What flavours are missing in this recipe?

April 27, 2020 8:49 AM

This shrimp, orzo and butternut squash dish came out really bland

I made this last night and have lots of leftovers: One Pot Shrimp and Squash Orzo

But the dish I ended up with it came out really bland, kind of like a softer, slimier risotto with very little flavour besides chicken broth. The butternut squash and orzo just have a really mild taste and there is something tangy missing. Any tips?

- Tomato?
- Other herbs / spices?
- Something salty like olives?
Any advice is welcome as I have a huge batch of this stuff to get through.

posted by winterportage to Food & Drink (26 answers total)

add lemon first (or vinegar if you dont have fresh citrus - you identified a need for acid) since that would affect your perception of the salt in the dish, then more salt. also i would recommend pulling the shrimp out if possible, adding a couple tablespoons of water and reheating on the stove with the addition of a solid knob of butter. (reheating with the shrimp will just cause them to overcook - put them back on top once the rest is heated through and toss a cover on the pan for a minute or two just until theyre warmed up again).

im not saying adding lemon, salt, and butter can fix any dish out there, but even without knowing what you had made to start with, it would be me go-to suggestion for improvement.
posted by Exceptional_Hubris at 8:55 AM on April 27, 2020 [8 favorites]

Soy sauce? Brown sauce? Teriyaki? Bitters? Pineapple? (Hot pepper sauce would appeal to me. But, it'll just taste like hot sauce.)
posted by eotvos at 8:56 AM on April 27, 2020

I imagined lemon juice and feta would improve on the taste, but I see the recipe already calls for those ingredients.

Maybe substitute stock instead of broth? Seafood stock if possible? Or reduce the amount of broth and make up the difference with some dry white wine.
posted by emelenjr at 8:57 AM on April 27, 2020

I've found it hard to find good-quality, flavorful butternut squash in the late spring & the summer. It's really more of a fall vegetable. You might consider trying the recipe again in six months.
posted by Johnny Assay at 8:57 AM on April 27, 2020 [10 favorites]

Was the chicken stock salted or unsalted? You want salted. If you want to go with Feta, fine, but add double the amount maybe and I'd add paprika to this dish? Or curry? Or... something like that.
posted by DarlingBri at 9:00 AM on April 27, 2020

Also, the browning in the recipe is essential. Make sure that your squash & onions are well-browned before you proceed beyond step 2. "Medium heat" is probably not enough; you want more of a medium-high heat to really brown the squash. The recommended time of 5 minutes may not be enough either.
posted by Johnny Assay at 9:02 AM on April 27, 2020 [4 favorites]

Given the amount of garlic I’d expect you to be able to taste that at least. But I digress. Use less concentrated stock or sub some water to ease off on the chicken stock flavours. Add more salt, use dry, acidic white wine, not sherry. More lemon juice. More garlic? .

The amount of feta seems kinda stingy for a dish that is supposed to serve 4-6. So I’d absolutely have a lot more feta. See how far that gets you before you add unlisted ingredients.

Tomatoes could absolutely increase the acidity but I’d start by rebalancing the listed ingredients.

I could absolutely see hot sauce working here, too.
posted by koahiatamadl at 9:04 AM on April 27, 2020 [1 favorite]

If the texture is the problem I'd pull out the shrimp and put the rest in a baking dish, mix in a good amount of grated parmesan (maybe 2 cups for that amount of food?) and cover the top with (large) buttered bread crumbs and bake it for a bit, say 20 minutes at 400. The bread crumbs would help with the texture and the parm would give it salt and umami if it's missing that. If you wanted more texture within the dish you could also add some handfuls of buttered toasted croutons within the dish matrix itself.
If you're going for more of the Spanish flavoring then yeah you could throw in a cup of sliced kalamata olives and a few tablespoons of toasted tomato paste (mixed in), but I really think that recipe needs more feta. If the dish is too wet or slimy though you need to add crunch and dry stuff to soak up a little of the moisture.
posted by Rufous-headed Towhee heehee at 9:07 AM on April 27, 2020 [4 favorites]

For the bland, I try adding salt first to see if that helps.

Or what Rufous-headed said above.
posted by computech_apolloniajames at 9:11 AM on April 27, 2020 [1 favorite]

I always brown the crap out of the squash on baking sheets in the oven (or in the air fryer). It defeats the one-pot process, but it is something you can prep 1-2 days in advance and keep in the fridge, or even do a huge batch and freeze in recipe-sized portions for later. And yeah, if it's the wrong part of the year or an especially bland one, adding some sugar and the barest pinch of baking soda will help get more browning flavor out of it.

You would want a good pepper for this, and generous amounts. I'm extremely into Penzey's Florida Pepper blend right now, but white pepper is often used in pale dishes like this (nothing against white pepper, it's got a real punch).

I would definitely finish with lemon, for spark.
posted by Lyn Never at 9:21 AM on April 27, 2020 [1 favorite]

Oregano would be a nice addition and 1/4 teaspoon salt is not enough. Always taste a dish before you serve it and add salt & pepper to taste.
posted by cooker girl at 9:27 AM on April 27, 2020 [1 favorite]

Not enough salt, not enough acid.
posted by gnutron at 9:29 AM on April 27, 2020 [8 favorites]

A favourite thing to do with leftover (or terrible) risotto is arancini: roll that stuff up into balls and fry. You can follow suggestions here and add parm, adjust the seasoning, then use a nice flavored bread crumb coating. Arancini are usually served with a marinara or other dipping sauce, which gives you another chance to add flavour.
posted by Freyja at 9:51 AM on April 27, 2020 [6 favorites]

Chop into fine dice: 1/2 cup onion, 3-4 cloves garlic, 1 serrano pepper (or half a jalapeno). Heat up 1/3 cup oil (basic canola or veg oil) until just shimmering, then add the onion mix and fry until light brown, about 1 minute. Turn the heat off, and add a bay leaf and a teaspoon of dry sage (whole leaves if you can), swirl to mix. When you reheat your risotto drizzle some of this flavored oil with the browned bits. Then top with chopped raw bell peppers (green and sweet) and shredded Pecorino Romano cheese. And I agree with removing the shrimp before you reheat the dish, so they don't get tough & stringy. Good luck!
posted by winesong at 10:11 AM on April 27, 2020 [1 favorite]

Chopped walnut would go well with it.
posted by Candleman at 10:21 AM on April 27, 2020

Is it still too wet and slimy after a night in the fridge? Usually a rice or pasta dish is much drier the next day and sometimes needs a little water to loosen it up when reheating. You may find that the texture may be much thicker now. I would add tomatoes and top with garlic butter breadcrumbs or croutons.
posted by Serene Empress Dork at 11:21 AM on April 27, 2020

Not enough salt or acid would be my call on the dish tasting plain. They are relying on the lemon juice & feta at the end to add those. I'd be adding some lemon zest & a big pinch of salt when reheating.

The suggestion above to roll into balls & fry is my go to for left over risotto, heck I'll often make risotto just to have that the next day.

If you make it again I'd roast the pumpkin first in the oven to bring out the natural flavors more.
posted by wwax at 11:29 AM on April 27, 2020 [1 favorite]

There is some good advice above, but one thing I haven't seen is chili flakes. If there are seafood, pasta and garlic, I almost always think of chili flakes and parsley, and I am not someone who eats chili all the time.
Riffing on Serene Empress Dork's suggestion, I think that if you have some old bread that you can grind or some commercial bread crumbs, you could roast these with garlic and chili flakes and then mix into the orzo dish while gently heating. You would get instant crunch and flavor. Sprinkle with chopped parsley. In Southern Italy, there is a tradition for using spicy breadcrumbs instead of cheese.
You could also go towards a casserole thing, but I hate the smell and taste from overcooked shrimp, so I wouldn't even try that .
posted by mumimor at 11:41 AM on April 27, 2020

To me the dish mostly sounds under-salted.

If you like salty umami flavours, I would add 4 anchovies to the oil along with the and onion and garlic, and use a spatula or spoon to mash them to a fine pulp as you gently heat them. Then add the squash and continue as directed. Anchovies basically melt if you cook them slowly in oil, and they impart a great salty depth without a ton of overtly "fishy" flavour. Like, I wouldn't eat a bite of an anchovy, but I LOVE them melted into pasta.

If you're trying to revive leftovers, I'd heat some melted anchovies, garlic and red pepper flakes in oil or butter, then drizzle into the re-heated pasta, and toss like a dressing. Finish with lemon and maybe more feta.

Other options:
A tablespoon or so of fish sauce added around the same time as the orzo
A couple tablespoons of white miso, dissolved in water and added near the end of cooking (Miso can be eaten straight from the package so it just needs to be warmed, and is best if it's not overcooked as that can make it bitter)
More salt, more lemon, more feta
Chopped capers or olives
Anchovy breadcrumb topping! Again, not overly fishy tasting, just salty and amazing.
posted by nouvelle-personne at 11:47 AM on April 27, 2020 [2 favorites]

This could be any or all of the acid/salt/fat.

Looking at the two measly tablespoons of olive oil in the recipe, I was going to guess fat until you said it was missing a tangy flavor. That makes me lean toward extra lemon, maybe some oregano or another herb you like that "goes" with squash. You could also add in some sundried tomatoes, which can lend a nice tartness.

And I would definitely be eating it with more feta than shown in the photo, and feta is a nice tangy cheese.
posted by bilabial at 11:58 AM on April 27, 2020

My secret weapon in situations like these is mustard powder, like Coleman's*. It's not a strong umami source, but it brings a fair bit of oomph to dishes that get most of their flavour from meaty sources like chicken broth. It's also an emulsifier, which may help thicken the risotto if it's still gloppy.

That, combined with all the other suggestions to bring more acid, fat, and maybe salt into the mix will make the risotto a lot tastier without messing with the overall flavour profile too much.

*Or, in a pinch, hot prepared mustard like Lowensenf; just don't use standard yellow mustard.
posted by blerghamot at 12:24 PM on April 27, 2020

Team Salt, 1st. Then maybe hot sauce, or jalapenos, which are great with shrimp. Squeeze if lemon or dash of vinegar is also a good plan.
posted by theora55 at 12:41 PM on April 27, 2020

I’d start with a little balsamic vinegar, more salt, and a dash of red pepper and go from there. Maybe a dash of fish sauce, too. That makes makes everything better.
posted by Weeping_angel at 2:34 PM on April 27, 2020

I also feel like it would benefit from some fresh herbs, but I’m not sure which ones. I’d usually go with sage and butternut squash, but that seems weird with the shrimp and feta.
posted by Weeping_angel at 2:36 PM on April 27, 2020

Agreed on the salt and acid. But one small *red* onion and four cloves garlic across 9 c material (4-5 c squash, a yield of 3+ c orzo, about a cup of shrimp)? I've been accused of being unable to function in the kitchen without alliums, but that's hardly enough to give the kind of richness of background flavor all that material would need. I'd sauté a large yellow onion until tender, add another several cloves of minced garlic, add a little water, cover and simmer a bit so that all that gets good and soft and won't be obtrusive in the finished dish, then add it to the prepared material as well as the previously mentioned lemon juice (and zest if you can) and salt.
posted by jocelmeow at 2:43 PM on April 27, 2020 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: Thank you very much, kind strangers! I trust everyone who says to add more lemon and more butter. Did that. Also tried frying up some onion garlic and hot pepper as winesong suggested. To be safe I also added the sage and chili flakes and a shit ton of Parmesan cheese and topped it off with crumbled up croutons. It's decent now!
posted by winterportage at 4:57 PM on April 27, 2020 [5 favorites]