This orzo pasta salad with feta and sun dried tomatoes makes a wonderful side dish or light meal, whether you are enjoying it at home, pot luck, barbecue or even a picnic.
When the weather warms up, we all have this natural aversion to cooking. Who wants to heat up the house even more, right? Here in San Diego we are lucky. We only turn on our air conditioner for about 4 weeks out of the year.
Some years are worse than others, of course, but for the most part, we count ourselves blessed. But that doesn’t mean I cook less over the summer!
My family loves to take our cooking outdoors. I also like to serve lighter, easier meals. I never thought my kids would like pasta salad, but lately they can’t get enough of it. When we have a picnic or potluck to go to, I have two go-to dishes: my roasted balsamic vegetables salad and this orzo pasta salad with feta.
Why you must try this recipe
I was never a fan of pasta salads. Most of them include bottled dressing and canned ingredients. The flavors will blah and bland and lackluster. So of course I dove in head first and created something better.
Fresh flavors always make food taste better. The quality of your ingredients can elevate or sink a recipe. When you think pasta salad, you probably envision the tri-color spiral pasta with Italian flavors in it.
This pasta salad recipe uses orzo pasta and gets its ingredient inspiration from Greek flavors. Fresh herbs are used for high impact flavor. The dressing is made with extra virgin olive oil, lemon juice and grated lemon zest.
You can easily fine tune the recipe to use your favorite ingredients. For example, swap out olives for artichoke hearts. Or as my kids prefer, add both! Want to add some protein? Mix in some chopped chicken or shrimp.
This recipe can easily be halved or doubled. It is easy to be transported and it keeps in the refrigerator for several days. This orzo pasta salad is truly a vibrant dish that is sure to be a crowd pleaser.
Ingredients you need
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- Orzo pasta: Orzo is the small rice shaped pasta. It cooks quickly (yay for not heating up the kitchen) and fits nicely when you scoop it up with a spoon. Another great small pasta you can use for this salad is Israeli couscous, which look like small round balls. Other pastas commonly used for pasta salad are the spirals like fusilli, rotini or gemelli. I like the spirals because they grab the dressing and feta crumbles in their crevices and are also very easy to eat.
- Kalamata olives: My kids are cray cray for olives, so the more, the better! You can also use green olives or a combination of olives. You can also use artichoke hearts or heart of palm instead of or in addition to olives.
- Red onion: I like the mild bite that red onions offer. You can also use green onions.
- Sun dried tomatoes: I prefer to use the ones marinated in oil and use some of this delicious oil in the pasta salad. You also use sun dried tomatoes not packed in oil. If you are not a fan of sun dried tomatoes, you can substitute it with fresh tomatoes, diced or halve the small cherry/grape tomatoes.
- Spinach: I love sneaking in something healthy into my recipes. Spinach blends in with the green of the herbs and kids won’t know they are eating something nutritious. You can also use chard, kale or arugula.
- Fresh herbs: I use fresh basil and fresh mint for this pasta salad. Fresh herbs offer tremendous flavor compared to dried, but you can use dried if you don’t have access to fresh herbs. You can also use Greek oregano or tarragon, too.
- Extra virgin olive oil: You can use any variety or flavor of olive oil. If you like more zing, choose a pungent peppery oil. For added flavor, use an infused oil like those pressed with citrus, garlic and herbs. Learn more about how to choose an olive oil.
- Lemon: I use both the zest and juice from a fresh lemon.
- Feta cheese: Feta can be dry or moist, creamy or crumbly, salty or smooth – it all depends on what milk is used and how it is made. Use any variety of feta you enjoy. Learn more about feta in the FAQ section at the end of this post.
- Salt and pepper
Step-by-step directions
1. Prepare pasta per package directions. Cook until al dente and drain in a colander. Transfer to a mixing bowl until cooled to room temperature.
2. Add the chopped olives, onions, sun dried tomatoes, spinach, basil, lemon zest and mint to the mixing bowl with the orzo pasta.
3. Add the oil, lemon juice and pepper then toss gently. Serve at room temperature or keep covered in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
Expert tips and recipe FAQs
If you don’t know much about feta, you probably didn’t realize that there are numerous varieties of this wonderful cheese. Feta originally came from Greece is traditionally made with sheep’s milk. Sometimes goat milk is added to mix as well.
Feta can be dry or moist, creamy or crumbly, salty or smooth. It can also be made by a variety of different milks, like sheep, cow and goat milk. Here are some of my personal favorite varieties of feta that you can use in this pasta salad with feta, depending on what characteristics you prefer.
- Greek Feta is made with combination of sheep milk and goat milk, has a salty and tangy flavor with a dry and crumbly texture.
- Bulgarian Feta is made with sheep milk and yogurt culture, is the saltiest of the feta varieties and has a firm and creamy texture.
- French Feta is made with sheep milk, has a very mild flavor (less saltiness) with a very smooth and creamy texture.
Feta is best stored in the brine it came in. Feta will stay fresh like this for weeks or even months in a covered container soaking in its brine. If the feta tastes too salty for your own personal taste, you can rinse it with water before serving.
And if you want to learn even more about feta, check out this great post.
Assuming you are using fresh ingredients, this salad will keep in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. You could stretch it to 7 days, but I recommend 5 days to be on the safe side. Pasta salad goes bad faster if it sits outside of the refrigerator for long periods of time.
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Yield: serves 6
Orzo Pasta Salad with Feta and Sun Dried Tomatoes
This Orzo Pasta Salad with Feta and Sun Dried Tomatoes makes a wonderful side dish, light meal, pot luck or picnic.
Prep Time
10 minutes
Cook Time
8 minutes
Total Time
18 minutes
Ingredients
- 2 qt water
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 lb orzo pasta
- ½ lb kalamata olives, pitted and chopped
- ½ cup diced red onion
- 12 oz sun dried tomatoes, packed in oil, drained and chopped
- 1 cup thinly sliced spinach
- 3 TBS thinly sliced fresh basil
- 3 TBS thinly sliced fresh mint
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 3 TBS extra virgin olive oil
- 3 TBS lemon juice
- Grated zest from 1 lemon
- ⅓ lb crumbled feta cheese
Instructions
- In a heavy saucepan bring water and salt to boil. Add orzo to the boiling water and cook per package directions.
- When pasta is cooked, drain well in a colander and transfer to a large serving bowl.
- Add olives, onions, sun dried tomatoes, spinach, lemon zest, basil and mint to the orzo pasta and mix well.
- Add remaining ingredients and toss gently and serve at room temperature or chill in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
Notes
Assuming you are using fresh ingredients, this salad will keep in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. You could stretch it to 7 days, but I recommend 5 days to be on the safe side. Pasta salad goes bad faster if it sits outside of the refrigerator for long periods of time.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
8
Serving Size:
1 bowl
Amount Per Serving:
Calories: 517Total Fat: 26.3gSaturated Fat: 6.7gCholesterol: 78mgSodium: 982mgCarbohydrates: 59.6gFiber: 5.1gSugar: 1.6gProtein: 15.8g
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This recipe was originally published June 8, 2010. It has been continually updated with more information and new photographs.
