In just a few years, orzo pasta has climbed the ranks of the world’s most popular cereals, gaining undisputed prestige. This is undoubtedly a great achievement, given that for many years it played only a secondary role in the human diet. It is no coincidence that a large part of the world’s diet depends on this common orzo cereal.
It is a type of wheat semolina pasta in the shape of a grain of rice. We are seeing this staple more and more used in many countries and included in a number of dishes, largely due to the nutritional and medicinal contributions it provides. Have you heard of it?
Here we present the phytotherapeutic contributions of this powerful and versatile cereal. Also, we will refer to the salient nutritional characteristics it can offer.
Phytotherapeutic value
Experts have recognized the health benefits orzo provides. To this respect, they point out that in case of inflammation of the gastrointestinal and urinary tract, orzo acts as an anti-inflammatory and emollient, relieving gastric discomfort and relaxing the intestinal walls.
It has also been found to be useful in relieving pancreatic and biliary disorders, as well as exerting a beneficial action against infections of the intestinal mucosa.
Due to the presence of fiber, orzo proves to be an excellent regulator of intestinal function, especially indicated in cases of constipation and lazy bowel (laxative-stimulant properties).
It is also used for gargling, which is beneficial in cases of inflammation of the oral cavity. The extract of orzo is also used to prepare candies against sore throat: not surprisingly, one of the most important properties of this cereal is precisely to relieve inflammation of the oral cavity.
Indicated to facilitate digestion in children, the elderly and people suffering from dyspepsia (digestive properties); also, the decoction of orzo is recommended for convalescence and physical weakness.
Due to its richness in minerals, as we have seen, orzo has a discreet mineralizing action. So, phosphorus stimulates intellectual capacity, acting in synergy with potassium, magnesium, iron and calcium, while silicon exerts a mild sedative activity.
Phosphorus also applies its properties as a good bone remineralizer.
Likewise, orzo is recommended to women who breastfeed their babies, due to its galactogenic properties, useful therefore to promote milk production by regulating estrogen production.
It has recently been observed that certain substances isolated from orzo (including tocotrienol) are able to inhibit the synthesis of bad cholesterol by the liver, thus exerting its cholesterol-lowering properties.
Good to know: For those who like coffee but should avoid it because of its exciting effect, the so-called “orzo coffee”, which lacks these properties, is recommended.
Other general characteristics of orzo can be found at https://riceselect.com/product/orzo where you’ll find information that will help you to deepen your knowledge about this cereal.
Nutritional properties
There is talk of a real orzo boom: in recent years, market demand for this staple has grown exponentially.
The demand for the world’s oldest cereal is closely related to its medicinal properties, as well as being a reflection of the strong media publicity. In any case, what really matters is that orzo is increasingly present on the tables of many people around the world.
It is a useful food for preserving the well-being of the body and it is a source of beneficial properties, in addition to being particularly pleasant to taste.
As to nutritional properties, when compared to corn, the nutritional composition of orzo is very similar, except, however, for the higher protein content (10.3 % versus 9.2 % for corn) and the lower fat content (1.4 % for orzo versus 3.8 % for corn).
Carbohydrates amount to about 70%, while fiber is estimated at about 9%; the remaining 12% is water.
Orzo has remineralizing properties by virtue of the significant amount of mineral salts, such as phosphorus (189 mg/100 g of orzo), potassium (120 mg/100 g of product), magnesium (79 mg), iron, calcium, silicon and zinc.
In addition to mineral salts, orzo contains a good amount of vitamins, in particular vitamin E (tocopherols and tocotrienols) and group B (B1, B2, B3); vitamins A and C are not present.
Important to mention is that it decreases the risk of gallstones formation, thanks to the presence of insoluble fibers found in orzo. Furthermore, another important fact is that this food has a high satiating power, which implies that it is a very good food to incorporate into a balanced and healthy diet.