Rainbow Orzo Salad
This veggie-packed Orzo Salad is a reader favorite for a reason. It’s quick, easy, and so fresh. Perfect for everything from meal prep lunches to summer cookouts.
Why You’ll Love This Orzo Salad
Rainbow Orzo Salad is one of those recipes I make on repeat all summer long. It’s packed with fresh, crunchy veggies and tossed in a simple vinaigrette that’s light, tangy, and so much better than anything store-bought.
I’ve made it more times than I can count, and I always get recipe requests when I bring it to a cookout or BBQ. Friends have told me they’ve made it again the next day, and honestly, I have too.
I love how versatile it is. You can easily swap in whatever veggies you have on hand. It’s vegetarian, easy to make vegan or dairy-free, and can be a complete meal if you add a protein. Just add chickpeas or grilled chicken.
Even better? It comes together in under 30 minutes, which is excellent for busy weeknights. I almost always have the ingredients on hand, and it somehow tastes even better the next day, making it perfect for meal prep.
If you’re looking for an easy pasta salad recipe that’s never boring, this is the one. It’s a great way to use that fresh summer produce from the farmer’s market or your CSA box.
I have plenty more summer recipes to choose from. Try this Pesto Orzo Salad or Zesty Italian Pasta Salad.
Ingredients
- Orzo: Orzo is the perfect pasta shape for this salad. I like Delallo, but you can use whatever brand you prefer. You can use whatever small pasta shape you like if you don’t have orzo. Regular, whole wheat, or gluten-free all work in this recipe.
- Tomatoes: Quartered cherry tomatoes, grape tomatoes, or diced roma tomatoes.
- Peppers: Diced yellow and orange bell pepper. I used half of each for the different pops of color. You can choose whatever color bell pepper you have available.
- Cucumber: Diced cucumber. I used English cucumber, but you can use any cucumber variety. Persian cucumbers would also be great in this salad. Leave the peels on for an added pop of color.
- Red Onion: Diced red onion (optional).
- Feta: Crumbled feta cheese.
- Basil: Fresh basil, sliced. You can swap for your favorite fresh herbs, like parsley.
- Salt and Pepper: Sea salt and black pepper to round out all the flavors.
- Red Wine Vinaigrette: Extra virgin olive oil, red wine vinegar, fresh lemon juice, honey, minced garlic, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper.
*The full ingredient list with amounts is in the recipe card below.
How to Make Orzo Salad
- Make the pasta. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook orzo until al dente, according to package directions.
- While the pasta is cooking, make the dressing by whisking all the dressing ingredients together in a small bowl until combined (or shake together in a jar). Set aside.
- Drain and rinse the orzo with cold water, about 1 minute, or until cooled. Place in a large bowl.
- Add in the tomatoes, peppers, cucumber, red onion (optional), feta cheese, and basil. Toss to combine. Drizzle with the dressing and give it a good stir to combine. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Serve immediately or store in an air tight container in the refrigerator. Enjoy!
Pro Tip: To store, refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Orzo salad may dry out a little after refrigerating. Just drizzle a little bit of olive oil over it and toss to combine.
Variations
I love this salad as it is, but it’s also versatile, so customize it to your liking!
- Swap out the vegetables and herbs. You can swap out the vegetables or add in any others you prefer. Great options are spinach, pitted olives, and artichoke hearts.
- Add a protein. Make it into a meal by adding chopped pepperoni or salami, grilled chicken or shrimp, or chickpeas.
- Use different cheese. Don’t like feta? No problem! You can use crumbled goat cheese, shredded parmesan, or even chopped mozzarella balls. Make it dairy-free by leaving the cheese out entirely.
- Give it added flavor. Roast the tomatoes and peppers for even more flavor!
- Make it vegan. Leave out the cheese, and swap out the honey for pure maple syrup in the dressing to make it a vegan orzo salad.
- Make a different dressing. Lemon vinaigrette, Italian dressing or Greek dressing are all great options.
Make Ahead and Storage
To Make Ahead: While this salad is great served fresh, it’s just as delicious the next day. If you’re making it in advance, I recommend saving half of the dressing and adding it right before serving for the best texture and flavor.
To Store: Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. The orzo may absorb some of the dressing over time, so if it dries out, drizzle with more dressing or a bit of extra virgin olive oil to refresh it.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ’s)
Orzo is a small rice-shaped pasta. It is typically made from semolina flour, but can also be made from whole grains.
It typically takes orzo pasta 7-10 minutes to cook, depending on the brand. Cook according to package directions for best results. Orzo pasta is typically boiled in salted water until al dente.
Yes! If you prefer a gluten-free or whole wheat option, feel free to swap the orzo for it. You can also try other pasta shapes like ditalini or rotini.
No problem! You can skip the feta or try using another cheese like goat cheese, mozzarella, or a dairy-free cheese alternative.
More Summer Recipes
If you like this recipe for orzo salad, then you’ll love these other simple recipes.
- Crunchy Chickpea Mediterranean Salad
- Lemon Orzo with Spinach
- Chickpea Avocado Salad
- Black Eyed Pea Salad
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If you make this recipe, don’t forget to come back and leave a 5-star rating and a comment below.
Rainbow Orzo Salad
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
- Category: Salad
- Method: Boil
- Cuisine: American
Description
Rainbow Orzo Salad is a bright and colorful salad that’s perfect for warmer weather. It’s crunchy, light and fresh. This easy pasta salad is the perfect side dish or light lunch.
Ingredients
For the Dressing
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon honey
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- salt and pepper, to taste
For the Salad
- 1 1/2 cups uncooked orzo pasta
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes, quartered
- 1/2 orange bell pepper, diced
- 1/2 yellow bell pepper, diced
- 1 cup diced cucumber
- 1/4 cup chopped red onion (optional)
- 1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
- 1/4 cup fresh basil, sliced
- salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Make the pasta. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook orzo until al dente, according to package directions.
- While the pasta is cooking, make the dressing by whisking all the dressing ingredients together in a small bowl until combined (or shake together in a jar). Set aside.
- Drain and rinse the orzo with cold water, about 1 minute, or until cooled. Place in a large bowl.
- Add in the tomatoes, peppers, cucumber, red onion (optional), feta cheese, and basil. Toss to combine. Drizzle with the dressing and toss again to combine. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Serve immediately or store in an air tight container in the refrigerator. Enjoy!
Notes
In place of the cherry tomatoes, you can use grape tomatoes or diced Roma tomatoes.
To store, refrigerate in an air tight container for up to 3 days. It may dry out a little after refrigerating. Just drizzle a little bit of olive oil over it and stir to combine.
Nutritional values (per serving) are approximates only.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving
- Calories: 205
- Sugar: 3.7 g
- Sodium: 160.3 mg
- Fat: 11.2 g
- Saturated Fat: 2.4 g
- Carbohydrates: 22.6 g
- Fiber: 1.7 g
- Protein: 4.6 g
- Cholesterol: 5.6 mg
Reading the other comments, I see that several agree with me that the proportions of the salad need some adjusting, at least from our viewpoint. I would cut down on the amount of orzo considerably! I like my efforts to come out looking like the photo of the recipe, and with this amount of orzo versus the other ingredients, that ain’t gonna happen. So next time, and this salad is worth tweaking for a next time, I will cut the pasta in half and double the other ingredients and the dressing. I also used fresh Mozzarella balls. This amount of orzo feeds about 8-10 generously, not 6. That’s OK, you can use it for another meal but, again, I would double at least the rest.
I’ve made this salad several times now. It’s so colourful and delicious. A good way to get your veggies in! I find one cup of orzo works best. Otherwise there isn’t as much flavour from the dressing. The only other change I make is to add some sliced Kalamata olives.
I might add chick peas next time.
Can I use parsley instead of basil?
Yes! Parsley would be a great substitute for basil.
If I want to make this ahead of time, (like the day before) would you wait to add the dressing? Or add half of dressing, store in fridge and then add the rest right before serving?
Hi Shauna! If you want to make this ahead of time, you can add half of the dressing, store it in the fridge, then add the rest right before serving!
This was a great refreshing pasta salad, definitely gonna make it again. I didn’t leave the feta cheese out, but I had it on the side for those who like feta cheese.
I’m confused how much much orzo do you use for this recipe recipe? I did not see it listed..
You use 1 1/2 cups uncooked orzo pasta. The full recipe in the recipe card above.
I have a question for the dressing. Am I suppose to use all dressing when it’ll time to toss the salad?
Hi Bianca. Yes! You should use all of the dressing while tossing the salad. If you aren’t planning to serve it immediately, you can use half of it when tossing, then drizzle the other half just before serving. I hope you love it!
So yummy I make this all the time!
I would love to exchange the cooked Orzo with cooked and cooled Jasmine Rice.
Does the exchange sound like it might be flavorful?
Hi Nancy! Although this sounds like it could be delicious, I have not tried this recipe with rice in place of the orzo. I would recommend substituting the orzo for another type of small pasta.
Can you use any Pasta if you don’t have Orzo Pasta ?
Hi Sarah- Yes, you can use your preferred small pasta shape!
OK, just made this gorgeous salad. A few things to make note of is if you’re like me when cooking, I usually eyeball ingredients. The only thing I measured was the pasta and the dressing ingredients. Also, because of not measuring the veggies and cheese (I used fresh mozzarella pearls) I had to make a double batch of dressing which wasn’t a problem.
One thing that I probably could have saved time on making was the dressing. After tasting it, I could have used Good Seasons Italian dressing mix and used the red wine vinegar and EVOO and it would have been identical and I would have had enough the first time.
Tastes really good and I can’t wait to dig into it tomorrow. It made quite a bit so I may have to give some away. That was just the ×1. It’s more than enough to feed a family of 4 with leftovers. Keeping this for future use. Thanks for sharing it!
I found your recipe via @TheCountryCook ~Brandie and I will be making this on St. Patrick’s Day for my husband and myself. I love a great pasta salad, they are so refreshing. However, I will have to sub the feta for fresh mozzarella pearls since neither one of us like feta. Trying red wine vinegar for the first time too. With having severe allergies to a few food items (apple cider vinegar being one of them), I usually try a recipe the first time as is unless allergies or preferences are involved, but I keep it as close as possible. Thanks for sharing this recipe!
Thanks Donna! I hope you and your husband love this recipe! Mozzarella pearls would be a fantastic substitution for the feta.
Perfect side for a dinner party. Flavors worked well together and was a huge hit. It went fast!
I just made this, my husband who doesn’t like cucumber even loved it. I forgot to add the feta but it was still amazing. I don’t think I will add it next time. And there will definitely be a next time.
Thanks Lynette! I’m so glad you loved it.
I made this orzo salad last week with dinner. Both my husband and I loved it. It was very quick and easy and definitely a great option for when you need to bring a side dish to a dinner party. I really loved the addition of the honey in the vinaigrette! It added the perfect amount of subtle sweetness.