Crispy Zucchini and Orzo Salad with Chimichurri
Greek zucchinis and Argentinian herb sauce - the perfect combination.
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If there was a chimichurri fan club, I’d join it in a heartbeat! The Argentinian sauce is usually served with grilled beef, but it’s also great with a wide range of other dishes - for example, it livens up a simple pasta salad with its freshness, the slight spiciness of the garlic and the many herbs.
Instead of regular pasta, we use orzo, a Greek pasta made from durum wheat semolina in the form of oversized rice grains, which is sometimes also sold as “kritharaki”. They still have a pleasant bite even after cooking.
The salad is the star here here, with the zucchini taking a back seat to the power of the chimichurri. Turning the zucchinis briefly in oil before frying makes them particularly crispy and tasty.
The zucchinis are based on a simple recipe from the lovely blog Zitronen & Olivenöl (Lemons & Olive Oil), and the orzo salad with chimichurri is originally from the food blog Budget Bytes.
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Recipe
A portion of crispy zucchinis with orzo salad - here with added feta.
Ingredients
Preparation Time: 10 min
Total Time: 40 min
Servings: 2
- • 150 g Orzo
- • 100 g cherry tomatoes
- • half a zucchini
- • 10 g oil
- • 1 g salt
- • 10 g parsley
- • 5 g coriander
- • 2 small cloves of garlic
- • 20 g olive oil
- • 10 g vinegar
- • 3 g dried oregano
- • 2 g cumin
- • 2 g chili powder
- • 2 g salt
- • 1 zucchini
- • 1 pinch of salt
- • 2 tablespoons of flour
- • 40 g olive oil for frying
Ingredients
Servings: 2
Preparation Time: 10 min
Total Time: 40 min
- • 150 g Orzo
- • 100 g cherry tomatoes
- • half a zucchini
- • 10 g oil
- • 1 g salt
- • 10 g parsley
- • 5 g coriander
- • 2 small cloves of garlic
- • 20 g olive oil
- • 10 g vinegar
- • 3 g dried oregano
- • 2 g cumin
Instructions
- 1 First prepare the orzo: boil the orzo with a pinch of salt and double the amount of water, then cook over a low heat according to the instructions on the packet.
- 2 Meanwhile, prepare the chimichurri: Wash and chop the fresh parsley and coriander. Peel and chop the garlic, then place in a bowl with the parsley, coriander, oil, vinegar and spices and blend.
- 3 For the salad, dice half the zucchini and sauté in olive oil.
- 4 Cut the whole zucchini into thin slices. Mix the salt and flour in a shallow dish and add the zucchini slices. Fry in plenty of olive oil until golden brown. Drain on kitchen paper.
- 5 Wash and halve or quarter the cherry tomatoes.
- 6 Mix the orzo with the zucchini, cherry tomatoes and chimichurri, then season with salt. Serve with the fried zucchini slices.
Carbon Footprint
Carbon Footprint: 634 g CO₂e
This ranks it number 2 out of 57 recipes published on the blog so far in terms of estimated carbon footprint.
In other words, this is the recipe with the second-lowest climate impact published here! 🥈🥳
Compared to the reference recipes, all of which have an estimated carbon footprint of over 3800g, this dish has almost 85% fewer emissions.
When it comes to the individual ingredients, the oil and zucchinis stand out: Olive oil accounts for only about 10% of the ingredients, but almost 30% of the climate impact. On the other hand, zucchini account for almost half of the weight of the ingredients, but only about 10% of the estimated carbon footprint.
Comparison of Ingredients
| Ingredients | Carbon footprint per kg | Carbon footprint for recipe | % of ingredients | % of CO₂ emissions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| orzo | 0.7 | 105 | 22% | 17% |
| cherry tomatoes | 0.9 | 90 | 15% | 14% |
| zucchini | 0.2 | 20 | 15% | 3% |
| oil | 3.2 | 32 | 1% | 5% |
| salt | 0.7 | 1 | 0% | 0% |
| parsley | 1.0 | 10 | 1% | 1% |
| coriander | 1.1 | 6 | 1% | 1% |
| garlic | 0.4 | 2 | 1% | 0% |
| olive oil | 3.2 | 64 | 3% | 10% |
| vinegar | 1.4 | 14 | 1% | 2% |
| oregano | 1.1 | 3 | 0% | 1% |
| cumin | 1.1 | 2 | 0% | 0% |
| paprika powder | 1.1 | 2 | 0% | 0% |
| salt | 0.7 | 1 | 0% | 0% |
| zucchini | 0.2 | 40 | 29% | 6% |
| salt | 0.7 | 1 | 0% | 0% |
| flour | 0.9 | 18 | 3% | 3% |
| olive oil | 3.2 | 128 | 6% | 20% |
| Cook orzo | 24 | 4% | ||
| Sauté zucchini | 71 | 11% |
Instructions
- 1 First prepare the orzo: boil the orzo with a pinch of salt and double the amount of water, then cook over a low heat according to the instructions on the packet.
- 2 Meanwhile, prepare the chimichurri: Wash and chop the fresh parsley and coriander. Peel and chop the garlic, then place in a bowl with the parsley, coriander, oil, vinegar and spices and blend.
- 3 For the salad, dice half the zucchini and sauté in olive oil.
- 4 Cut the whole zucchini into thin slices. Mix the salt and flour in a shallow dish and add the zucchini slices. Fry in plenty of olive oil until golden brown. Drain on kitchen paper.
- 5 Wash and halve or quarter the cherry tomatoes.
- 6 Mix the orzo with the zucchini, cherry tomatoes and chimichurri, then season with salt. Serve with the fried zucchini slices.
Carbon Footprint
Carbon Footprint (2 portions): 634 g CO₂e
This ranks it number 2 out of 57 recipes published on the blog so far in terms of estimated carbon footprint.
In other words, this is the recipe with the second-lowest climate impact published here! 🥈🥳
Compared to the reference recipes, all of which have an estimated carbon footprint of over 3800g, this dish has almost 85% fewer emissions.
When it comes to the individual ingredients, the oil and zucchinis stand out: Olive oil accounts for only about 10% of the ingredients, but almost 30% of the climate impact. On the other hand, zucchini account for almost half of the weight of the ingredients, but only about 10% of the estimated carbon footprint.
Comparison of Ingredients
| Ingredients | Carbon footprint per kg | Carbon footprint for recipe | % of ingredients | % of CO₂ emissions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| orzo | 0.7 | 105 | 22% | 17% |
| cherry tomatoes | 0.9 | 90 | 15% | 14% |
| zucchini | 0.2 | 20 | 15% | 3% |
| oil | 3.2 | 32 | 1% | 5% |
| salt | 0.7 | 1 | 0% | 0% |
| parsley | 1.0 | 10 | 1% | 1% |
| coriander | 1.1 | 6 | 1% | 1% |
| garlic | 0.4 | 2 | 1% | 0% |
| olive oil | 3.2 | 64 | 3% | 10% |
| vinegar | 1.4 | 14 | 1% | 2% |
| oregano | 1.1 | 3 | 0% | 1% |
| cumin | 1.1 | 2 | 0% | 0% |
| paprika powder | 1.1 | 2 | 0% | 0% |
| salt | 0.7 | 1 | 0% | 0% |
| zucchini | 0.2 | 40 | 29% | 6% |
| salt | 0.7 | 1 | 0% | 0% |
| flour | 0.9 | 18 | 3% | 3% |
| olive oil | 3.2 | 128 | 6% | 20% |
| Cook orzo | 24 | 4% | ||
| Sauté zucchini | 71 | 11% |