Zesty Orzo Salad with Lemon Dill and Tomatoes
This amazing orzo salad recipe will quickly become your new favorite summer side dish. Made with fresh veggies, lemon dill dressing and tender orzo pasta, this lemon orzo pasta salad is the ultimate summer salad.
Equipment
- Large Stock Pot or Dutch Oven Idea for soups and stews, and perfect for cooking any type of pasta.
- Mixing Bowls These stainless steel mixing bowls are an essential cooking tool for every kitchen.
- Citrus Juicer This hand-held citrus juicer is fantastic for fresh lime and lemon juice. Great for making dressings at home!
Ingredients
- 10 oz. orzo pasta cook only to al dente
- 1 cup grape tomatoes halved
- 1 cup Kalamata olives halved
- 1 cup artichoke hearts roughly chopped
- 1 cup cucumber thickly sliced and quartered
- 1/2 cup red onion chopped
- 1/4 cup fresh dill minced
Lemon Dill Dressing:
- 1/3 cup fresh lemon juice juice of 2 lemons
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1 Tablespoon fresh dill minced
- 2 teaspoon minced garlic about 2-3 cloves
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Begin by making the dressing: in a small bowl, whisk together the lemon juice, olive oil, dill, garlic, oregano, salt and pepper. Set aside
- In a large stock pot or Dutch oven, cook the orzo pasta to al dente only. This is typically 1-2 minutes less than regular cook time. Promptly drain pasta and immediately rinse with cold water to stop the cooking. Transfer the cooked pasta to a large mixing bowl. Dress with HALF of the lemon dill dressing. Stir well to coat. Refrigerate the dressed pasta while cutting the vegetables.
- Cut/prepare the tomatoes, olives, artichoke hearts, cucumber and red onion.
- Toss the chopped vegetables in with the chilled orzo and pour the reserved dressing over the top of all the ingredients. Toss again to coat.
- You can serve right away or refrigerate until ready to serve.
Notes
Storage: Leftover salad will keep for up to 5 days when refrigerated in an airtight container.
Making this salad a day in advance for an event? I recommend making the salad exactly according to the recipe directions. However, make an additional batch of dressing. The pasta will absorb much of the initial dressing once the salad has been refrigerated for more than 24 hours. Just before serving, dress the salad with the additional dressing to freshen the salad.
Nutrition
Serving: 1cupCalories: 201kcalCarbohydrates: 23gProtein: 4gFat: 11gSaturated Fat: 2gPolyunsaturated Fat: 9gSodium: 157mgFiber: 3gSugar: 2g
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!