Rainbow Orzo Salad – Eat yourself skinny

This Rainbow Orzo Salad is the perfect summer side dish! Packed with colorful veggies, fresh herbs, and tender orzo pasta, all washed down with a delicious lemon herb dressing and easily prepared in just minutes!

If you’re looking for a fresh and easy summer side dish, then you’ve come to the right place! This Rainbow Orzo Salad is packed with colorful veggies, fresh herbs, and tender orzo pasta, all topped with the most delicious lemon herb dressing! This Orzo Pasta Salad is one of my all-time favorite dishes during the warmer months and I love making it for a large crowd. The veggies give this salad a nice crunch and the orzo soaks up all the delicious lemon flavor of the dressing as it marinates. A great side dish for grilling chicken, fish and steak, or you can enjoy it on its own for lunch.

The entire meal can easily be prepared in less than 30 minutes and honestly the most time consuming part is the chopping. I really like finely chopping all the veggies because I think it makes the salad look a lot better. This recipe uses so many delicious summer produce and is easy to adapt to suit your tastes.

ingredients you need

• orzo – I love the light flavor of orzo in this salad, but you can use any type of small pasta as well
• Vegetables – I used a combination of red bell pepper, orange bell pepper, cucumber, red onion, and fresh corn, but you can use tomatoes, zucchini, or other veggies too
• Fresh herbs – a delicious combination of fresh parsley and fresh basil
• sea ​​salt + ground pepper – For seasoning
• Lemon Herb Dressing – see recipe below!

How to Make Rainbow Orzo Salad

One of the many reasons I love making this Rainbow Orzo Salad is because it’s so easy to make! Here’s how I do it in just 5 easy steps:

1. Chop your veggies and herbs. This might be the most time-consuming part, but hey, play the podcast or make some music – I promise it’s worth it! I like trying to finely chop all the veggies because I think the salad just looks better visually and is more fun to eat. You also want to chop the fresh basil and parsley.
2. Cook the orzo. Bring your water to a boil, sprinkle in some salt and cook the orzo according to package directions until al dente. Be sure to stir occasionally to keep the orzo from clumping. Drain the orzo in a colander and run cold water over it until cool.
3. Make the dressing. While the orzo is cooking, you can make this dressing! Simply combine olive oil, fresh lemon juice, red wine vinegar, Dijon mustard, garlic, oregano, and salt/pepper in a glass or bowl and set aside until ready to use. Really SO good and a dressing I’ve used on so many different meals! It honestly deserves a post of its own.
4. Mix the salad together. Combine the cooked orzo, chopped vegetables, and fresh herbs in a large bowl and drizzle with the lemon herb dressing. Mix well and season with additional salt and pepper as needed. Serve immediately or Marinate for a few hours before serving (highly recommend!)
5. Marinate. Cover the orzo salad and place in the refrigerator to allow the flavors to marinate for a few hours or even overnight. Serve and enjoy!

Homemade Lemon Herb Dressing

I can’t tell you how much I love this dressing. Bright lemon flavor, tangy Dijon mustard, delicious garlic, and fresh herbs really make this the perfect dressing for this orzo salad because it tastes amazing and absorbs quickly into all pasta and veggies! SO. MUCH. TASTE. You will need the following:

• olive oil – I like to use a good olive oil that doesn’t have to be expensive. Just make sure it’s cold pressed and organic for the best flavor (in my opinion).
• lemon – I just love the bright, fresh flavor that fresh lemon juice brings to this dressing. For even more lemon flavor feel free to add some zest too!
• red wine vinegar – This makes for a nice tangy flavor that pairs perfectly with olive oil and lemon juice. You can also use apple cider vinegar or white vinegar if you have it on hand
• Dijon mustard – This will give the dressing a bit more oomph and help emulsify it
• Garlic – I always like to use fresh garlic in my salad dressings, but a quarter teaspoon of dried minced garlic or garlic powder will do the trick if that’s all you have
• Spices – a delicious combination of dried oregano, salt and pepper

preparation and storage

The great thing about this Rainbow Orzo Salad is that it tastes great both warm and cold and keeps for up to 30 minutes 3 to 4 days in your fridge. Just make sure any leftovers are stored in a sealed, airtight container in the fridge. You can easily make this orzo pasta salad ahead of time by chopping up all your veggies and making the salad dressing a day ahead of time. I promise you, this salad tastes even better the second day!

If you make this orzo salad recipe ahead of time, make sure you have some dressing left over before serving. The noodles and veggies soak up a lot of the dressing (which is great for the flavor!!) but you might want to top it up with more dressing for serving.

Substitutions and Variations

• If you don’t have an orzo on hand, you can use another type of pasta that’s smaller, or substitute quinoa, rice, or farro for it.
• You can also customize this salad to your liking by using different veggies like zucchini, grape or cherry tomatoes, Kalamata olives, broccoli, etc. and also mix in chopped veggies like spinach, kale, or arugula.
• Sprinkle some feta or goat cheese on top to boost flavor and make this orzo salad creamier.
• Add some protein like shredded chicken, salmon, and shrimp, or keep this salad vegetarian and add chickpeas, kidney beans, pine nuts, or other chopped nuts.
• Change the dressing with what you like best! This balsamic dressing would taste amazing in this salad or even a creamier tahini dressing.

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