Lemon Orzo Pasta Salad

Lemon Orzo Pasta Salad is the perfect side dish to your summer cook out, or a great meal prep for healthy lunches! This colorful rainbow orzo salad is loaded with tomato, kalamata olives, bell pepper, artichokes, chickpeas, feta cheese and lots of greens! Full of fresh Mediterranean flavor, it feeds a crowd and is perfect when you can't decide "What should I bring?"

Summer's Perfect Side Dish

• Lemon Orzo Pasta Salad is a Summer Grilling Favorite! - It goes with everything - grilled chicken, sausages, burgers, brats, hot dogs, kabobs or fish! It's great to bring to a cabin weekend, a backyard barbecue, or just a simple weeknight dinner side at home. Perfect for Memorial Day or the 4th of July when you're bringing a dish to share! Large enough to feed a crowd or meal prep for easy lunches.

• Healthy, Fresh and Beautifully Colorful! - Full of garden fresh veggies, this rainbow orzo salad is full of fresh summer flavor and packed with protein from the chickpeas. The dressing is a simple vinaigrette, so no need to worry about mayo sitting out. It's easy to throw together in just 25 minutes. You'll want to make this recipe again and again!

• If You've Got Summer Veggies, try my Panzanella Bread Salad, Cherry Tomato Bruschetta and my Creamy Tomato Basil Fettuccine!

Ingredients & Substitutions

• Pine Nuts - This lemon orzo pasta salad with pine nuts adds a little something special! While pine nuts are an expensive ingredient, just a small amount, toasted to bring out their flavor, really makes this delicious! They are optional, but highly recommended!

• Orzo Pasta - Orzo is a rice shaped pasta, perfect for pasta salads! Orzo is a favorite but this Mediterranean pasta salad could also be made with another short pasta shape such as ditalini, small shells, elbow macaroni, or farfalle.

• Chickpeas - Also called garbanzo beans, orzo with chickpeas adds protein and heartiness to this pasta salad. This makes it a well balanced, full of veggies, great option to meal prep for lunch.

• Tomato - When summer tomatoes are in season, you are definitely going to get the best flavor! Any type or color of small cherry tomato are fine. However, there are a lot of elements to this orzo lemon salad so really it can be made any time of year.

• Kalamata Olives - Kalamata olives really are the favorite! Make sure to buy a jar that is already pitted. Also try them on this Mediterranean Hummus! They add that salty briny punch of flavor.

• Artichokes - I use artichokes from a can or a jar and cut them in quarters if they are whole. Artichokes really make it a Mediterranean orzo side dish!

• Bell Pepper - I use about half of a red bell pepper thinly sliced. Yellow or orange bell pepper or a few mini peppers would also be good. Jarred roasted red peppers would also be a nice variation or a few thin slices of red onion.

• Feta Cheese - Salty feta cheese gives this pasta salad its Mediterranean flare! You could also substitute goat cheese or shaved Parmesan. I like to buy feta cheese in a block that comes in a tub of brine and crumble it myself.

• Fresh Herbs - This pasta salad is bursting with fresh flavor from lots of garden fresh herbs. Any combination of basil, scallions, parsley, or chives.

• Arugula - A big handful of greens like arugula or spinach adds wonderful color, extra nutrition and nice texture to the salad.

• Lemon Dressing - This lemony orzo salad is made with a very simple vinaigrette, just fresh lemon juice, olive oil and salt and pepper to season the salad. Bottled lemon juice is fine too, although fresh lemon wedges are great to garnish the platter. Wait to toss the salad with dressing until just before serving.

Step-By-Step Instructions

Step 1 - Start this recipe with the pine nuts to save yourself an extra pot to clean! In the pot you are going to boil the pasta, first toast the pine nuts over medium heat. This just takes a couple minutes so watch them and don't let them burn!

Remove them to a bowl, then use the same pot to set water to boil for the orzo. Cook orzo for 7 minutes in boiling salted water and drain.

Step 2 - While the pasta cooks, you can chop and prep your veggies. Add all ingredients to a large bowl.

The dressing for this pasta salad is simply fresh lemon juice and olive oil, seasoned with salt and pepper. Whisk it together in a little dish with a fork or shake it in a jar with a lid.

Step 3 - This salad can be served warm or cold. If serving warm, add the drained hot orzo to the bowl of ingredients and toss well along with the dressing.

To serving cold, you could run the orzo under cold water before draining, or just toss it hot and cool it in the fridge.

If making ahead, wait to add the dressing until just before serving.

Storage

• Leftover orzo salad with lemon can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Leftovers can be eaten cold and are great for a healthy lunch.

• You may want to add a bit more lemon juice and olive oil since the dressing will soak in and the pasta can dry out a bit in the fridge.

Make Ahead Instructions

• This orzo lemon pasta salad can be made anytime during the day and kept in the fridge to bring to a party.

• If making ahead, keep the dressing on the side in a jar with a lid. Shake it and toss well with the pasta salad just before serving. If you dress the salad too early the pasta will soak up the dressing and be dry.

Ingredient Variations and Additions

Lemon Orzo Pasta Salad is so versatile and can easily be altered to fit your taste! Cherry tomatoes exploding in the garden, add extra! Don't like olives, leave them out!

Any ingredient can be omitted and extras can be substituted. Some delicious variations could include cucumber, jarred peppers or giardiniera, capers, or sliced meats like prosciutto or pepperoni.

Recipe FAQ's

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