Spicy Meatball Orzo Dump and Bake
high-proteinbudgetcomfortone-pot
- Prep
- 5 min
- Cook
- 35 min
- Serves
- 4
- Difficulty
- Easy
Recipe by Stephanie Mayford
Published 14 July 2026
Steps
- Preheat the oven to 190°C.
- If the meatballs aren't frozen, start by frying them until golden on each side. If using frozen meatballs, add them directly to your casserole dish.
- While they are cooking, dice the onion and garlic and set aside.
- Next, prepare the pepper and broccoli by chopping into similar 1–2 inch pieces, and halve the olives and cherry tomatoes.
- Add the vegetables to your dish along with the rest of the ingredients and thoroughly stir to combine.
- Cook for 30 minutes with the lid on. After 30 minutes, remove from the oven and stir — you may need to add some water at this point if it is sticking to the bottom of the pan. Grate the cheese over the top and put the dish back in the oven for a further 5 minutes.
- Once the cheese has melted and is bubbling, sprinkle over fresh flat-leaf parsley and serve with garlic bread.
Ingredients
US Units
Produce
- 1 garlic
- clove
- ½ red onion
- diced
- ¼ broccoli
- head, cut into 1–2 inch pieces
- 1 yellow pepper
- or 4 mini peppers, chopped into 1–2 inch pieces
- 3½oz cherry tomatoes
- halved — a handful, quantity not specified in original recipe, estimated
- 1 sprig fresh parsley (flat-leaf, optional, to serve)
Fridge & Frozen
- 1oz vegan cheese
- grated
- 10½oz vegan meatballs
- quantity not specified in original recipe — estimated, approx. one standard pack
Tins & Dry
- 1 can chopped tomatoes (400g)
- 400g tin
- 9½oz orzo pasta
- NOT LISTED in the original ingredient table despite being named in the dish title and required by the method (400ml stock implies raw pasta cooked in the dish) — quantity fully estimated, flagged for human review before publishing
- 1¾oz olives
- mixed green and black, halved — a handful, quantity not specified in original recipe, estimated
Pantry
- 1⅔ cups vegetable stock
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- for frying the meatballs if not using frozen — quantity not specified in original recipe, estimated
- 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- quantity not specified in original recipe — estimated
- 1 tsp chilli paste
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 tsp dried thyme
- 1 tsp harissa
- 1 tbsp dried Italian herbs
- 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
- salt (to taste)
- black pepper (to taste)
Equipment
- Sharp knife
- Chopping board
- Tin opener
- Spatula or mixing spoon
- Cheese grater
- Teaspoon
- Tablespoon
- Large casserole dish or similar with a lid
Nutrition per serving
Calories 543 kcal
Protein 27g
Carbs 73g
Fat 17g
Fibre 11g
Values are approximate.