Greek Casserole: Yuvetsi

 

 Yuvetsi is a famous dish in Greek cuisine. It can be made with chicken, beef or lamb. A traditional yuvetsi recipe is easy to find and make. It is very juicy, delicious and filling as well. Easy to make, perfect choice for family dinners or guests. This is how I made it for two this time with a delicious summer 'Briam'. You can also find the briam recipe on my blog here.

Ingredients:
Serves for 2-3
300 gr beef (chopped into small pieces)
3 tomatoes
1 cup of orzo
1 cup of boiling water
A little less than 1/2 cup of extra virgin olive oil 
Salt, pepper, a pinch of nutmeg

How to:
1. Put the tomatoes into a food processor and process well. Put the tomatoes (with the juice and all), beef pieces, olive oil and hot water into a baking tray, season with salt and pepper and bake in 200 degree oven for 50 minutes. Be careful with the size of the tray. This recipe is for 2-3 people, if you are going to cook for more, double the ingredients and use a medium size, deep baking dish/oven tray.   
2. After it has cooked in the oven for 50 minutes, take your tray out and add a cup of orzo, with another cup of boiling water (if it looks dry, add 1/2 cup of water). If you are unsure about the amount of water, you can check in 10 minutes. The orzo will definitely soak up some water.

  The beef is soft and almost cooked; it is time to add orzo.

3. Once the orzo has softened and cooked, the beef is underneath the juicy caramelized tomatoes, take it out of the oven and serve warm. Because this is a Greek recipe, it is generally served with some feta cheese on top. I like to sprinkle it with chopped parsley and dry thyme.
With or, without crumbled feta cheese, this dish is yummy and sure to get you compliments from your friends. Very easy to make, so it is a good cheater's home cooking. :) 

Yuvetsi with beef and briam, all it need is a little bit of tzatziki or yoghurt. They go so well together!

Also, try this recipe with chicken thighs like I did on another day. 

I added chopped onions with tomatoes because I thought the chicken would need some extra ingredients.

My first ever yuvetsi!