Creamy Sausage Orzo Bake

If you’re looking for an easy dinner that’s creamy, comforting and requires very little hands-on cooking, this Boursin Sausage Orzo Bake is exactly that.

Tender orzo is baked in chicken broth with browned pork sausage, onion, garlic, sun-dried tomatoes and a combination of spinach and arugula. A whole package of Shallot & Chive Boursin melts into the orzo as it cooks, then gets stirred through at the end to create an incredibly creamy sauce without needing heavy cream.

It’s a simple casserole-style dinner that comes together in about 45 minutes and uses just a skillet and baking dish.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

• Incredibly creamy without heavy cream. Boursin melts directly into the orzo to create the sauce.
• Easy weeknight dinner. After browning the sausage and onion, the oven handles most of the cooking.
• Packed with flavour. Sausage, Boursin, garlic and sun-dried tomatoes give the dish plenty of flavour with a relatively short ingredient list.
• A complete meal. You’ve got pasta, sausage and plenty of greens all baked together in one dish.

Quick Recipe Summary

Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 35 minutes
Total: 45 minutes
Serves: 4
Temperature: 375°F
Baking Dish: 10×7 inches

Brown the sausage with onion and garlic. Add it to a baking dish with dry orzo, chicken broth, spinach, arugula and sun-dried tomatoes. Place a whole package of Boursin in the centre, cover tightly and bake for 25 minutes. Stir the melted Boursin through the cooked orzo and serve.

Ingredient Notes & Substitutions

Sausage

We used regular pork sausage, which adds plenty of savoury flavour and richness to the orzo.

Italian sausage is an easy substitute if that’s what you have. Mild, sweet or spicy sausage will all work.

Orzo

Orzo may look like rice, but it’s actually a small variety of pasta. Cooking it directly in the chicken broth allows it to absorb flavour while releasing starch that helps make the finished casserole extra creamy.

There’s no need to boil the orzo before adding it to the baking dish.

Boursin

Shallot & Chive Boursin is the key ingredient in this recipe. It melts into the chicken broth and starch from the orzo to create the creamy sauce.

Garlic & Fine Herbs Boursin would be our first choice for a substitute.

Spinach & Arugula

We use 2 cups total of baby spinach and baby arugula.

Spinach cooks down and blends easily into the casserole, while arugula brings a subtle peppery flavour that helps balance the richness of the sausage and Boursin.

You can also make the recipe entirely with spinach.

Sun-Dried Tomatoes

Sun-dried tomatoes add a slightly sweet, tangy flavour that works particularly well against the creamy Boursin.

If you’re using oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, drain them before chopping and adding them to the casserole.

Chicken Broth

The chicken broth isn’t just there for flavour. It’s also the liquid that cooks the dry orzo, so don’t reduce it significantly.

Low-sodium chicken broth is a great option since several other ingredients in the recipe are naturally salty.

How to Make Boursin Sausage Orzo

1. Brown the sausage and onion

Cook the sausage and diced onion together in a skillet over medium-high heat.

Break the sausage apart as it cooks so you end up with small crumbles distributed throughout the casserole.

2. Add the garlic

Once the sausage is cooked and the onion has softened, add the minced garlic.

Cook it for only about 30–60 seconds. You want it fragrant without letting it burn.

3. Assemble the orzo bake

Add the dry orzo, chicken broth, spinach and arugula, sun-dried tomatoes and sausage mixture to your baking dish.

Give everything a good stir so the orzo is evenly distributed and submerged in the broth.

4. Add the Boursin

Place the entire 150 g package of Boursin in the middle of the dish.

There’s no need to melt or mix it beforehand.

5. Cover and bake

Cover the baking dish tightly with foil.

Bake at 375°F for 25 minutes.

Keeping the dish covered is important because it traps steam and gives the orzo enough moisture to cook properly.

6. Stir and serve

Remove the baking dish from the oven and take off the foil.

Stir the softened Boursin into the orzo until it completely melts into the remaining broth and coats the pasta, sausage and vegetables.

Give it a couple of minutes to sit before serving. The sauce will continue to thicken as it rests.

Pro Tips

Cover the dish tightly. You don’t want too much moisture escaping while the orzo cooks.

Don’t pre-cook the orzo. It goes into the casserole completely dry and cooks directly in the chicken broth.

Brown the sausage first. This gives you better flavour and ensures the sausage is completely cooked before assembling the casserole.

Don’t immediately add salt. Taste the finished casserole first. Between the sausage, Boursin, chicken broth and sun-dried tomatoes, you may not need any.

Let it rest before serving. Even 3–5 minutes will allow the sauce to thicken and cling to the orzo.

Common Mistakes

The orzo is still firm

Different baking dishes and ovens can change the cooking time slightly. If the orzo is still firm after 25 minutes, stir in a splash of hot chicken broth, cover again and bake for another 5 minutes.

The casserole seems too liquidy

Give it a good stir and let it rest for several minutes. The orzo will continue absorbing liquid as it sits, and the Boursin sauce will thicken.

The casserole is too dry

This can happen if the dish isn’t covered tightly enough or if it’s baked for too long. Add a splash of warm chicken broth while stirring in the Boursin.

Storage & Reheating

Store leftover Boursin sausage orzo in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3–4 days.

The orzo will continue absorbing some of the sauce as it sits. When reheating, add a splash of chicken broth or water to loosen the sauce.

Reheat individual portions in the microwave until hot throughout, stirring partway through.

FAQs

Do I need to cook the orzo first?

No. Add the orzo directly to the casserole while it’s still dry. It cooks in the chicken broth while the casserole bakes.

Do I need to cook the sausage first?

Yes. Brown the sausage completely before adding it to the casserole. This improves both its flavour and texture.

Can I use a different Boursin flavour?

Absolutely. Shallot & Chive works beautifully, but Garlic & Fine Herbs would also be an excellent choice.

Can I use only spinach?

Yes. Simply replace the arugula with additional baby spinach, keeping the total amount of greens at about 2 cups.

Can I add Parmesan or mozzarella?

You can, but you don’t need them. Boursin makes the casserole creamy and cheesy enough on its own. If you want a cheesier baked top, you could add shredded mozzarella or Parmesan before briefly returning it to the oven.

More Easy Dinner Recipes

If you love easy, comforting dinners like this Boursin Sausage Orzo Bake, pair it with a simple salad or roasted vegetables for an easy weeknight meal.

The combination of creamy Boursin, savoury sausage, sun-dried tomatoes and tender orzo gives you plenty of flavour without a complicated ingredient list or sauce to make separately.