Greek Orzo Salad is the perfect summer side dish! Light, refreshing and so easy to make this greek orzo salad recipe is going to be in your weekly menu planning rotation. Made with classic Greek flavors, you can serve with a protein if you want (we love grilled chicken, salmon or these Greek Turkey Meatballs) and is a great addition to any cookout!
Best Ever Greek Orzo Pasta Salad
Anything Greek-inspired and I am signed up! This absolutely delicious, light and easy Greek Orzo Salad recipe is what good cookout menus are made of. It is simple to make, easily made ahead of time and it makes enough for a crowd. Serve with a protein (like grilled chicken or grilled salmon) if you want!
Love orzo: try our One Pan Parmesan Chicken Orzo!
Why This Recipe Works
- Easy: you truly just toss everything in a bowl; taste and adjust!
- Light: the orzo is pasta, but doesn’t sit heavy in your stomach while the tomato, cucumber and other ingredients are super light!
- Versatile: serve as-is, with dairy-free feta or with a protein!
Orzo Greek Salad Ingredients
- orzo + water: gotta cook that orzo!
- Greek vinaigrette: you can use our homemade Greek vinaigrette or you can use store-bought
- kalamata olives: make sure you buy the pitted variety!
- feta cheese: you can easily use a dairy-free feta cheese here.
- cucumber: I like using the little English cucumbers.
- cherry tomatoes + red onions: both must-haves for anything Greek!
- kosher salt + ground black pepper: because you gotta have that extra flavor.
- lemon zest: this adds just a bit of acidity that really brightens up the flavors.
How to Make Orzo Greek Salad
Gather your ingredients.
Cook your orzo – drain excess water and then I would recommend rinsing with cold water so you aren’t mixing hot orzo with things like feta cheese!
Toss everything together.
Serve and enjoy!
We loved serving it with pesto salmon and some steamed asparagus.
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Greek Orzo Pasta Salad
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 12 servings 1x
- Category: Side Dish
- Method: Stove Top
- Cuisine: Greek-Inspired
Description
Greek Orzo Salad – the perfect side dish for any meal! This Greek Orzo Salad recipe is easy, light and so refreshing!
Ingredients
- 2 cups uncooked orzo
- 4 cups water or broth
- 1/4 cup Greek vinaigrette*
- 2 cups kalamata olives, pitted
- 4oz feta cheese, crumbled (use dairy-free or regular feta)
- 2 cups cucumber, sliced and quartered
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1/2 cup red onions, diced
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 2 teaspoons lemon zest, minced
Instructions
- Add water to a small/medium saucepan and bring to a boil.
- Add orzo and let cook 8-12 minutes or until cooked al dente. Drain. Rinse with cold water.
- Place rinsed/drained orzo into a large bowl.
- Add remaining ingredients. Stir to combine.
- Taste and add additional vinaigrette, salt, lemon zest or other ingredients – as desired.
Notes
- *Greek vinaigrette: you can use homemade Greek vinaigrette or store-bought – either will work! Feel free to add more or less, as desired. If you make this ahead of time or the salad sits out for a bit, just note that the you may need to add more as the orzo soaks up the liquid! You can also drizzle a bit of olive oil in there too if it starts to get a bit dry.
- Make ahead: you can definitely make this ahead of time, but as noted above, you may need to add quite a bit more vinaigrette as the orzo will soak up the liquid as it sits.
- Storage: Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
- Protein: feel free to serve with some Grilled Chicken Breasts or Greek Turkey Meatballs if you want!
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