Pork Pilaf with Roasted Asparagus

When it comes to weeknight dinners, I always try to some up with meals that are well rounded, and tick all the boxes. This recipe for Pork Pilaf with Roasted Asparagus really does just that. You have a great combination of ground pork with a garlic and parmesan pilaf and then the addition of the roasted asparagus brings it right on home. You are going to be thrilled with how simple this meal is to get to the table.

For the pork pilaf part of this meal, you are going to need to have an extra large saute pan – sometimes it’s called an Everyday Pan. This is a pan that is between 12 and 14 inches wide with taller side ways – at least 3 inches. It also must have a lid. The lid is a key to making one pot meals that have things like rice or pasta in them, as this is how you create enough steam to really cook the starch components evenly and all the way through.

I have used orzo pasta for this version of pilaf. If you don’t have it, or can’t find it (it’s usually in the smaller box on the fringes of the pasta section), there are a few options. You can use fideo – which is thin short pieces of pasta and mostly found in the ethnic food aisle in the Mexican food section. And as a last resort you can break up thin or regular spaghetti. The easiest way to break it up is to wrap it in a clean dish towel and slowly drag it over the edge of the countertop with a slight downward pull. This will give you pieces around a half an inch.

Now Let’s Get Cookin’!

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Pork Pilaf with Roasted Asparagus

A ground pork dish for when you can't decide if you want rice or pasta, topped off with a simple roasted asparagus.

Course Dinner, Main Course

Cuisine American

Keyword asparagus, baked pork chops, chicken broth, Garlic, garlic butter orzo, ground pork, rice, rice pilaf, roasted asparagus

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 45 minutes minutes

Servings 6

Ingredients

• 2 lb Ground Pork
• 1 tbsp Dried Minced Onion
• 1 tsp Italian Seasoning
• 1 tsp Paprika
• ¼ cup Butter
• 4 Garlic Cloves minced
• 2 cups Orzo or thin spaghetti cut into ½-inch pieces
• 2 cups Long Grain Rice
• 4 cups Broth
• 1 cup Milk
• 1 cup Grated Parmesan Cheese
• 1 cup Heavy Cream
• 1 tsp Parsley

For the Roasted Asparagus

• 2 bunches Asparagus with bottoms trimmed
• 1 stick Butter quartered
• 1 tsp Salt
• 1 tsp Pepper
• 1 tsp Garlic Powder
• 1 tsp Paprika

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Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350degF.
• In a large sauté pan over medium-high heat, add ground pork along with dried minced onion, Italian sausage and paprika. Cook and crumble until no longer pink. Push to one side of the pan and let the fat/grease to the opposite side.
• Add butter to the side with the fat/grease. Once melted add garlic and let sauté for 2 minutes. Then add rice and orzo and stir to toast until slightly brown.
• On a foil or parchment paper covered baking sheet, spread out the asparagus and butter quarters. Sprinkle with seasonings. Place in oven and bake for 30 minutes.
• Add broth and milk. Let come just to a boil, then reduce heat to medium and cover pan. Let cook for 15 minutes. Stir in heavy cream and parmesan cheese. Let cook another 5 minutes.
• Serve pork pilaf with a portion of roasted asparagus.