Lemony Orzo With Asparagus and Garlic Bread Crumbs Recipe (2025)

Maybe I’m stoned but this was incredible. Added some mushrooms too.

We loved this! I sautéed the asparagus in olive oil, salt, and pepper and a tad bit of the minced garlic. I just prefer this way of preparing asparagus rather than boiling. I used a very large lemon, which produced lots of zest, and I felt it was needed. I only had a bit of fresh parsley, so that was all I used and it was still good. Be generous with the salt and fresh ground pepper. I would use a large garlic clove. Also sprinkled on feta and fresh tomatoes with extra lemon squeeze. Yum!!

We loved this! Only complaint was not enough, because we like pasta/veg mixtures to be the whole meal deal. and we added more lemon and garlic. Notes for next time: double everything, quadruple garlic. Lemon wedges on the table

Yes, double/quadruple everything! 1 cup orzo not enough for 1 lb asparagus, plus desired add-ins. As a shortcut, make 'dressing' ahead using all 5 TBSP oil, mashed garlic, lemon juice/zest & desired seasoning. Remove 2 TBSP oil & sauté asparagus (& add-ins if desired...I used mushrooms) for few min, leaving hot pan on to quickly crisp bread crumbs. Toss together veggies, orzo, spices & remaining 3 TBSP oil then top with cheese & bread crumbs. Amazing!

This was surprisingly really good for how simple it is. Cements my opinion that orzo is the best pasta, it soaks up all that lemony dressing soooo well. I boiled the asparagus because I'm depressed and that's all I deserve.

This was excellent. Thank God for Panko! Used Italian parsley, since I was using that also for the main course. Mint would have made this even more awesome. The asparagus was very tender. Did the asparagus the day before. Paired this with Moroccan Chicken with Preserved Lemon and Olives (also from NYT Cooking). What a superb meal.Be careful with the orzo and test it to make sure it is at the al dente stage, rather than relying on just time.

It's always nice to find a new NYT recipe and quickly realize that you have all the ingredients! Made it exactly as printed - with lots of dill, and tried not to eat too much of it. Goes nicely with a white wine spritzer on a warm NYC evening.

Agree with other comments that orzo doesn't need as much time as the box suggests. 7 minutes (putting the asparagus in after 5) seemed to work.

I made this with vegetable broth-cooked farro instead of orzo since I had that on hand. I also opted to saute the asparagus (plus a yellow squash I needed to use) with onion and garlic. Definitely dug the combo of mint, dill and parsley. Topped with kalamata olives and a bit of feta. Delicious!

Comments:Don't cook orzo more than 7minutesDouble/quadruple everything! 1 cup orzo not enough for 1 lb asparagus, plus desired add-ins. As a shortcut, make 'dressing' ahead using all 5 TBSP oil, mashed garlic, lemon juice/zest & desired seasoning. Remove 2 TBSP oil & sauté asparagus (& add-ins if desired) for few min, leaving hot pan on to quickly crisp bread crumbs. Toss together veggies, orzo, spices & remaining 3 TBSP oil then top with cheese & bread crumbs.

This needed something... more garlic, more salt, more lemon, maybe broth? Something missing. I used Italian parsely, boiled the asparagus, used panko. Panko gave a nice crunch. Paired with baked salmon. No one was over the moon on it.Maybe... kalamata olives?

Like someone else said - this is definitely missing something. I added tomatoes, extra panko, another lemon, more oil, more salt... it's still missing something. I added green onions too - don't do that, it's not missing onions at all haha

So this is a delicious dish that I’ve made several times, but I’ve found that adding an extra salty, umami flavor to it really makes everything pop. If you’re not strictly vegetarian, I recommend chicken Better Than Bouillon or a couple dashes of fish sauce. You can add it right into the dressing.

I substituted crushed ritz crackers for the breadcrumbs. Super yummy!

Halved the recipe, and followed it. Delicious! Boiled the asparagus - which was fine - because I was stressed and it was easiest. Next time I'll sautee asparagus, but the lightly boiled was just fine. Used my homemade focaccia for the breadcrumbs (put in the nutrabullet) with the garlic. Used parmesan & mint. Really liked the crunch from the breadcrumbs. Easy Peasy, and had an all-in-one side for my simply grilled seafood. Tasty & Easy = Winner.

This was a wonderful dish. I omitted the Parmesan because my husband doesn't eat cheese and made sure to salt it well to make up for that. I used more breadcrumbs and garlic because we love both. I followed the advice of some other reviews and sauteed the asparagus and that added a nice crunch. And because I like lemon but didn't want it to overwhelm the dish, I used all the zest (a bit more than a teaspoon) and only 1 tablespoon of juice and then tasted it and decided it was great as is.

Cooked the garlic with the breadcrumbs and used an extra clove; need to double next time! So good! Added a little extra cheese too.

Thought it was very yummy. I added some cut up grape tomatoes for a bit of a sweeter counterpoint and it was perfect.

Made this celebrating the arrival of spring. Followed recipe using dill and parsley. Panko adds a wonderful crunch. Loved this!

Delicious, with a couple of minor modifications. Cooked the orzo in vegetable broth (3 cups), and roasted the asparagus spears (400 degrees, 9 minutes) with a drizzle of olive oil and salt and pepper, then cut it into small pieces before adding to the orzo. Used mint and basil. The garlic panko crumbs were a wonderful finish. Will definitely make again.

Double the dressing. Otherwise, a perfectly decent weeknight dinner recipe. Not amazing but quite tasty and forgiving if you happen to fumble the order of operations.

It was very bready. I did not like the texturetoo much gluten in it.

Easy, fast and delicious. Added some sun dried tomatoes because I had them. Wonderful.

I made this as a vegetarian meal rather than a side dish. I used 12 ounces of orzo but kept all other quantities the same. I added parm, gruyere and feta, dill AND parsley. Yum.

Delicious! Add a fried egg and next time double the recipe!

Wow! This is such an amazing side dish. Nice and bright and flavorful. Definitely a keeper!!

Can I prepare in advance and assemble just before serving, maybe pop into oven to warm up?

Bright and fresh. I loved the veg/orzo ratio, which made it feel virtuous in a way pasta rarely does.VERY lemon-forward. I'll likely pull back next time.

I took advice of others and cooked orzo for 5 min and put the asparagus in for two. This is a delightful and flavorful and will be a regular in my rotation. I will try other veggies in this and this summer will make it to serve cold and throw in some cherry tomatoes.

I added 1lb ground turkey for protein. Increased/guessed at the olive oil/lemon combo. Generous with the pepper