Manestra (simple Greek orzo comfort food)

4.93 from 118 votes

Manestra- the BEST simple Greek comfort food made with orzo, ground beef (or lamb or turkey), onions, and tomato with mint and cinnamon.

Prep Time10

Cook Time20

Total Time30

Course: Pasta

Cuisine: Greek

Servings: servings

Calories: 486kcal

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large onion diced
1 lb. ground beef or lamb or turkey
6 oz. tomato paste
1 teaspoon kosher salt plus more if needed
black pepper to taste
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 heaping teaspoon dried spearmint or 1 tablespoon fresh chopped mint
4 cups water
1 cup orzo whole wheat or regular is fine
grated romano cheese, fresh chopped mint or parsley, and/or extra-virgin olive oil, for serving optional

In a large heavy pot with a lid, such as a Dutch oven, heat the 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat. Add the diced 1 large onion and cook until softened and starting to brown, about 3 minutes. Add the 1 lb. ground beef and cook until fully browned, breaking apart as it cooks with a wooden spoon, about 5 minutes.
Add the 6 oz. tomato paste, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, black pepper to taste, 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon, and 1 heaping teaspoon dried spearmint.
Stir to coat the meat in the tomato paste and spices and cook until tomato paste begins to brown, about two minutes.
Add the 4 cups water; bring to a boil.
Add 1 cup orzo; stir, cover, and simmer on low, stirring occasionally, until orzo is cooked (approximately 20 minutes). I recommend doing this on the back burner, which isn't as hot, to prevent the orzo from sticking to the pot too much.
Serve with grated romano cheese, fresh chopped mint or parsley, and/or extra-virgin olive oil, for serving, if desired.

I recommend using lean ground beef for this. If you use a fattier kind, or with ground lamb, it may be greasy, so I recommend using a spoon to scoop out and discard some of the fat after browning the meat.
If you use ground turkey, I recommend adding 1 tablespoon of butter or olive oil to the pan when you cook it, since turkey is so lean.
The provided nutrition information does not include any added sodium from seasoning to taste, any optional ingredients, and it does not take brands into account. Feel free to calculate it yourself using this calculator or by adding the recipe to Yummly.