One Pot Herb Crusted Cod & Broccoli Parmesan Orzo

This herb crusted cod with broccoli parmesan orzo and burst tomatoes is a one pot wonder. This dish is so nourishing, full of tasty vegetables, fresh but also creamy and comforting. A perfect (lighter) weeknight meal.

This herb crusted cod with broccoli parmesan orzo has so many good things going for it. It tastes so good. It looks amazing. It's healthy!

Best part? It's ready in 30 minutes. Can it get any better than that?

I've also posted a recipe for just the broccoli parmesan orzo with burst tomatoes, which you can make and pair with any protein you like (or even eat it on it's own).

Ingredients

The ingredients are just simple whole food ingredients. See details below for information on substitutions.

Cod filets: Boneless skinless cod filets are best for this recipe. You can substitute other white fish like haddock, hake, tilapia, pangasius etc. You can also substitute a fattier fish like salmon or mackerel but filets that are much thicker or thinner may need more or less cooking time.

Herb crust mix: This herb crust mix has breadcrumbs and parmesan cheese to give the herbs a bit more body. The herb mix ix oregano, thyme, garlic powder, dill, salt and black pepper. The herbs are all dried herbs as fresh herbs, being wet, don't stick or crust as well as dried ones. The flavor profile is herbaceous, green and garlicky. Of course you can use any seasoning mix you want.

Orzo: There are a few varieties of orzo, some bigger and some smaller. I used a medium to small sized orzo for this recipe. If you use larger orzo, it might need a bit longer to cook and potentially a bit more water. If in doubt just keep a close eye on it, do a bite test to check doneness and add more water if it starts to dry out too much before it's done.

Vegetable stock: As I don't usually have liters of stock lying around, I actually used a low sodium bouillon cube dissolved in water, which is basically rehydrated stock. You can use stock if you prefer. If you don't have vegetable stock or bouillon, then you can substitute chicken but I wouldn't recommend beef stock as it could overpower the other flavors.

Butter: There's just a little butter in this recipe to sauté the onion, garlic and broccoli stem. You can substitute oil if you prefer.

Onion and garlic: Onion for sweetness and garlic for that inimitable garlicky magic.

Parmesan cheese: This dish is mostly healthy but the addition of parmesan cheese also makes it comforting and creamy. You can substitute another hard cheese like pecorino or grana padano. Alternatively you can opt for a soft cheese like cheddar (for that broccoli cheddar vibe) or even goat cheese! Why not.

Seasoning: The seasoning for the orzo is kept simple simple (just salt and black pepper) because the cod filets are crusted with herbs. Of course feel free to jazz it up if you like.

Broccoli florets: I used broccoli florets that I bought at my local market already cut and with most of the stem removed. I finely diced and added what was left of the stems to the orzo. For me this was about a half cup of broccoli stem. If you have the entire head of broccoli with the whole stem then that will add much more volume and bulk if you use it all in the orzo. It's up to you if you want to do this - the only real constraint is the size of your skillet and your taste for broccoli.

Cherry tomatoes: I used multicolored (red, orange and yellow) whole cherry tomatoes as a sort of proverbial cherry on top for this dish. The cherry tomatoes are not essential but they add such a lovely pop of color and sweet juice which contrasts beautifully with the broccoli parmesan flavor. I love using whole cherry tomatoes for this type of dish because when cooked they become even sweeter and tend to keep their shape which looks lovely. You can also substitute whole chopped tomatoes if you prefer.

Equipment

You will need a pan that can go from stovetop to oven. A simple oven safe skillet or saucepan will do. I used an All Clad Stainless Steel Fry Pan.

Instructions

This dish is really simple to make. You can have it on the table in about 30 minutes.

The first step is to mix up all the ingredients for the herb crust and cover the cod filets with it. Then just set the filets aside for a few minutes while you turn your attention to the orzo.

The only prep is cutting the onion, garlic and broccoli florets. Remove the stems from the florets and dice them finely. Then finely dice the onion and mash or mince the garlic.

Put your skillet on high heat and add these ingredients along with the butter. Sauté a few minutes until things begin to brown lightly.

Once there's a bit of browning action, you can add the orzo, salt, black pepper, lemon zest, and most of the stock.

Then you'll cook for about 10 minutes. You want to get the orzo either cooked through or close to it.

After 10 minutes the liquid will be reduced a lot and you can swirl in the parmesan cheese until it's melted in. Then add the broccoli and tomatoes along with the rest of the stock.

The stock is added in segments so it doesn't all evaporate or soak into the orzo. Being pasta, orzo will continue to absorb liquid and if it's all added at once and cooked off, it can make the orzo stodgy. So I prefer to keep it a bit 'wetter' to avoid it getting thick or stiff....which is never how you want to describe a luscious, creamy casserole.

Once you've added the rest of the stock you just place those cod filets on top and bake. That's it. Couldn't be simpler right?

I also placed a few of the cherry tomatoes right on top for a nicer presentation.

Serving Suggestion

The lemon you zested for the orzo doesn't have to go to waste. Slice it up and serve it alongside your yummy one pot herb crusted cod. A perfect pairing.

Related

Looking for more weeknight meals? Try these:

Recipe