Greek Toasted Orzo Salad
My Greek inspired toasted orzo salad has a chewy texture and a nutty flavor, this Mediterranean pasta salad is a summer hero!
Servings: 8
Ingredients
orzo salad
- 1 1/2 cups orzo, toasted*
- 1 medium ripe tomato, diced
- 1/2 small red onion, diced
- 2 mini cucumbers, diced
- 1/2 cup olives, pitted and sliced
- 4 ounces feta cheese, diced
- 2 Tbsp small fresh oregano leaves
- coarse salt and fresh cracked black pepper
lemony mint dressing
- 1/3 cup olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic, minced. Use 1 garlic clove if you prefer a less pungent flavor.
- 2 Tbsp fresh squeezed lemon juice
- 1 tsp yellow mustard
- 1 tsp honey
- 7-10 leaves fresh mint
- pinch coarse salt
Instructions
- Boil the toasted orzo in plenty of well salted water until just al dente. Orzo size varies, so follow your package instructions. Mine took about 8 minutes. Drain and rinse briefly under cold water. Drain again, really well. You don't want a soggy pasta salad.
- While the past is cooking put the dressing ingredients into a small food processor and process until creamy. Taste to add salt and adjust any of the ingredients to your liking: if it's too tart add more honey or more olive oil.
- Put the drained toasted orzo in a large mixing bowl and toss with some of the dressing. Now add the tomato, onion, cukes, olives and oregano leaves and give a toss with more dressing. Now toss in the feta cheese and add salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste.
- Serve right away or chill until ready to serve.
Notes
To toast orzo:
Toss 1 1/2 cups orzo with 1 teaspoon of olive oil. Toss thoroughly to get all the grains lightly coated in oil. Spread out in a single layer on a baking sheet and toast in a preheated 350F oven for about 1o-15 minutes, stirring to rearrange every 5 minutes or so.
Nutrition
Calories: 256 kcal · Carbohydrates: 25 g · Protein: 7 g · Fat: 15 g · Saturated Fat: 4 g · Polyunsaturated Fat: 1 g · Monounsaturated Fat: 8 g · Cholesterol: 17 mg · Sodium: 355 mg · Potassium: 133 mg · Fiber: 2 g · Sugar: 2 g · Vitamin A: 243 IU · Vitamin C: 4 mg · Calcium: 108 mg · Iron: 1 mg
Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate only. This information comes from online calculators. Although The View from Great Island attempts to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures are only estimates.
Did You Make This?We love seeing what you've made! Tag us on social media at @theviewfromgreatisland for a chance to be featured.