Creamy Shrimp & Crab Orzo ‘Risotto’

 This Creamy Shrimp and Crab Risotto is a delicious weeknight or weekend dinner options. Toasted orzo pasta cooked until soft with broth, tomatoes, shrimp, lump crab, parmesan cheese and fresh julienned basil. 

I present to you, my friends, probably the most delicious recipe I’ve ever created. My shrimp scampi with zoodles recipe used to be my all-time favorite, but now I’m fairly certain this crab risotto beats it! 

Cooking is a fabulous way to show love to others. I’d much rather cook someone a well-thought out delicious meal than go out to eat at a fancy restaurant! With Valentine’s Day coming up, I wanted to share a delicious and romantic recipe that looks like you spent a ton of time making, but it really comes together in less than thirty minutes.  

Answer me this– could there be a better combination of ingredients? Shrimp, crab, pasta, cheese, butter, tomatoes and basil. It’s basically all of my favorite foods rolled into one. Whip up this crab risotto for me, and you’re speaking my love language. 

If you’re planning to cook for your significant other this Valentine’s Day, consider this delicious crab risotto!  

In the most recent issue of Cooking Light, there was a recipe for orzo ‘risotto’ with leeks and fried eggs. I loved the concept of using orzo pasta instead of the arborio rice typically used in risotto. It cooks much faster and has the delicious chewy taste of pasta. 

This crab risotto starts out with sauteing butter, olive oil, garlic, onion and shrimp until they’re cooked through, then adding tomatoes, orzo and white wine. I used this Lodge cast iron dutch oven to cook everything in. After the wine has reduced, you add warm chicken broth a ladle at a time until it’s absorbed– cooking the orzo until al dente and keeping the starch that’s released from the pasta to create a super creamy sauce. 

After the chicken broth has absorbed, the shrimp, crab, cheese and basil are folded in. Sure to impress whoever you’re cooking dinner for! 

Here’s the recipe for Creamy Shrimp & Crab Risotto: 

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Creamy Shrimp & Crab Orzo Risotto

This Creamy Shrimp and Crab Risotto is a delicious weeknight or weekend dinner options. Toasted orzo pasta cooked until soft with broth, tomatoes, shrimp, lump crab, parmesan cheese and fresh julienned basil. 

Servings 4

Author Emily Weeks, RDN, LD

Ingredients

• 4 cups chicken broth
• 1 Tbsp butter
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 yellow onion, diced
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 lb raw shrimp, peeled & deveined
• 3 roma tomatoes, de-seeded and diced
• 1 cup uncooked orzo pasta
• 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
• 1/8 tsp black pepper
• 1/3 cup white cooking wine
• 4.25 oz can of white crab meat
• 1/3 cup shredded parmesan cheese
• 1/2 cup fresh basil, julienned

Instructions

1. Warm the chicken broth in a small pot over medium-low heat. 

2. In a large skillet or pot (I used my dutch oven), melt the butter with the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onions, garlic and shrimp. Cook until shrimp are pink and curled -- remove and dice into pieces. Set the diced shrimp aside. 

3. Add the tomatoes, orzo, red pepper flakes and black pepper. Stir and cook the orzo for 2 minutes. Add the white wine and cook until evaporated, about 1 minute. 

4. Add the chicken broth to the orzo, 2/3 cup at a time, stirring until the liquid is absorbed. Repeat with remaining broth, waiting until the last batch is absorbed before adding the next. 

5. Remove from heat and stir in the diced shrimp, crab meat, parmesan and basil. 

Emily Weeks, RDN, LD

Hi! I’m Emily, Registered Dietitian Nutritionist and self-taught intuitive chef. I firmly believe that cooking is the simplest and most important step we can take to improve our minds and bodies and build healthier communities. Join me and let’s bring food back to the kitchen!