Mediterranean Orzo Salad combines orzo with our favorite mediterranean veggies and a simple fresh dressing. It’s perfect as a meatleass meal or served alongside grilled chicken or grilled shrimp.
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
Mediterranean Orzo Salad Made Easy
What is Orzo? Orzo is a small rice-shaped pasta. It’s great in soups, as a hot side dish, or made into a salad like this Mediterranean version.
- Veggies: Cucumbers, tomatoes, bell pepper, and artichokes.
- Bold Flavors: Crumbled feta, green or red onion, or add in some tuna like my Mediterranean Tuna Salad.
You can also add or substitute other vegetables, such as drained garbanzo beans or fresh spinach leaves.
How to Make Orzo Salad
- Boil: Cook the orzo according to package directions.
- Prep: While the orzo is cooking, prep all of the vegetables (recipe below) and chop the artichokes.
- Assemble: Combine orzo with chopped and sliced veggies and artichoke hearts. Add the dressing and toss to coat.
Dressing For Mediterranean Orzo Salad
The dressing in this recipe is very simple, no need to mix it in a separate bowl, add it to the salad and toss to coat.
You can replace it with any vinaigrette or bottled Greek dressing if you’d prefer.
More Fresh Simple Sides
Did you enjoy this Mediterranean Orzo Salad? Leave a comment or rating below!
Ingredients
- 1½ cups orzo uncooked, about 8 ounces
- 1½ cups sliced English cucumber or mini cucumbers
- 3 Roma tomatoes seeded and diced, or 1 ½ cups halved grape tomatoes
- 1 bell pepper any color, seeded and diced
- 2 green onions thinly sliced
- 1 (14 ounce) can artichoke hearts drained and chopped
- 2 ounces crumbled feta cheese about ½ cup
- chopped fresh parsley for garnish
For the Dressing
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
- ¾ teaspoon dried dill
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Cook orzo in salted water according to package directions. Drain well and rinse under cold water. Set aside.
- While the orzo is cooking, chop the vegetables. Drain the artichokes well and chop into bite sized pieces.
- In a large bowl, combine the artichokes, orzo, cucumber, tomatoes, bell pepper, and green onions.
- Add the dressing ingredients, olive oil, lemon juice, red wine vinegar, dried dill, garlic powder, and salt. Toss well to coat.
- Add the feta cheese and parsley if using. Gently toss and refrigerate at least 2 hours before serving.
Notes
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Salad
Cuisine Greek, Mediterranean© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
Can I make this the night before? Looks awesome!
Yes, this keeps beautifully for a few days.
in the instructions part of the recipe, there is no mention of adding the chopped artichoke hearts.
The recipe is delicious and I have made many other recipes that you send and they are great.
Sorry for the confusion; they are added in step 3 after chopping. Enjoy!
I made this recipe with a few changes, since it is a good basic recipe.
I swapped sun-dried tomatoes for the fresh, ( softened a bit with boiling water) added a bit of sliced peperoncini for zip, I have also used pickled red peppers, and instead of olive oil in the dressing I used a jar of artichoke bruschetta I had on hand, since I didn’t know what to do with it, and it was very oily. I also used the homemade dressing as described in the recipe. It’s delicious. Now this is my most requested summer salad and without the fresh tomatoes and fresh cucumbers, it will last three days in the refrigerator.
Hello Julie, I am so glad to hear that you enjoyed the recipe.
My family loved this! I was looking for a different pasta salad and this was an absolute find. Easy to make and the salad dressing was wonderful.
So glad you enjoyed it, Carolyn! Thanks for trying our recipe.
This is another winner! I’ve made it several times and love how forgiving the recipe is with regard to substitutions. Sometimes I use cooked farro instead of orzo, sometimes I add canned chickpeas. Last time I made it I had to sub marinated mushrooms for the artichokes and it was still delicious! Other swaps – jarred red roasted peppers, grape tomatoes, dry oregano, red onion – the possibilities are endless but the result is always delicious. I use your vinaigrette recipe every time because its so fresh. Thank you!!!
Ann, all those substitutions sound delicious. I am happy to hear you enjoyed the salad!
Made as directed and it was perfect!
My absolute favorite pasta salad. Delicious and easy to make.
So happy to hear that, Christine!
This is my second time making and my picky husband loves it! Left overs I will take for lunch and grill some shrimp to add on top and have as a meal!!!
My family loves orzo. This salad looks delicious
In the above recipe you state to chop the artichoke hearts and reserve the juice for the dressing, but no where could I find when and where to add the juice to the dressing? Did I just miss it somewhere. I made this salad and it was great, but I did leave out the juice from the artichokes simply because I was unsure how much to add to the other ingredients.
In step 4 I add a couple of spoonfuls to store bought Greek dressing. If you’re making the homemade dressing, you can replace 2 tablespoons of olive oil with the oil from the artichoke hearts. Hope that helps!
I’m all about Mediterranean recipes lately, since they’re delicious & also healthy. This is a very nice salad, and I’ll double the recipe for our 4th of July cookout side dish. Absolutely lovely, so thank you very much.
That sounds like a great idea Angelina! Everyone always loves this salad when we make it.
I love that receipts I will try on the weekend
Thanks Eva! Can’t wait to hear how it turns out for you!