An easy Greek orzo salad recipe made with orzo pasta, ripe cherry tomatoes, black and green olives, crispy cucumber, red onion, and crumbled feta cheese.
It's the perfect make-ahead summer BBQ side dish, and it's great for picnics and al-fresco lunches too!
Classic Greek salad with the addition of orzo pasta is one of my go-to BBQ side dishes. I usually serve the pasta salad with my easy Greek-style lamb burgers for a tasty Greek-inspired BBQ!
The Greek orzo salad is super quick and easy to make, and best of all it keeps in the fridge for up to 3 days! This is fuss-free, family-friendly food at its best!
👩🍳 Love pasta salad? Try my chicken and bacon ranch pasta salad too!
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✔️ Why you'll love this recipe!
Here's why this is the best orzo salad recipe!
- Easy summer pasta salad recipe.
- Serve as a BBQ side dish or for lunch.
- Ready in under 20 minutes.
- Keeps in the fridge for up to 3 days.
- Easily doubled to feed a crowd.
- Eat with burgers, kebabs, and grilled chicken.
🛒 Ingredient notes
- Orzo Pasta - or use another pasta shape such as macaroni or penne.
- Feta - Greek feta in a block, crumbled into large chunks.
- Olives - pitted kalamata olives if you can find them.
- Tomatoes - I use a combination of cherry tomatoes and sun-dried tomatoes for maximum flavour.
- Cucumber - for crunch and texture.
- Red Onion - you'll only need half of the onion, but make sure you chop it finely.
- Dressing - extra virgin olive oil, red wine vinegar, garlic clove, dijon mustard, juice of half a lemon, dried oregano, salt, pepper, and sugar.
🔪 Instructions
The recipe card with ingredient quantities and detailed instructions can be found at the bottom of the post
One: Cook the orzo according to packet instructions, drain and run under cold water to cool. Pat dry and set aside.
💡 Pro Tip - let the pasta cool completely before mixing it with the veggies.
Two: Whisk together the extra-virgin olive oil, red wine vinegar, finely chopped garlic clove, dijon mustard, juice of half a lemon, dried oregano, salt, pepper, and sugar in a small bowl.
Three: Put the cooked orzo in a large mixing bowl and add the olives, tomatoes, cucumber, red onion, and feta. Pour over the dressing and mix everything together. Chill until you are ready to serve.
💭 Expert tips
- Make the salad the day before you need it for the best flavour!
- For extra crunchy cucumber, remove the middle seeds by running a teaspoon down each half of the cucumber.
- Reduce the sharpness of the red onion by squeezing lemon juice over it and leaving it to steep for 20 minutes before adding it to the salad.
🍴 Serving suggestions
Serve the Greek orzo salad at summer BBQs with other side salads such as spicy potato salad and 5 bean salad.
Air fryer corn on the cob goes well with it too, as does homemade pesto focaccia.
📖 Variations
- Add a can of drained chickpeas for extra protein.
- Add more vegetables such as chopped peppers, baby spinach and sweetcorn.
- Swap the red wine vinegar for white wine vinegar or cider vinegar.
- Garnish with chopped fresh herbs for extra colour.
- Use a store-bought Greek vinaigrette dressing instead of making one from scratch.
- Add leftover chicken or shredded lamb to make it more hearty.
🥡 Storage
Make-Ahead: Make the Greek pasta salad up to 24 hours ahead. Store it in the fridge until needed.
Leftovers: Place leftover salad in an airtight container and store it in the fridge for up to 3 days.
❓ Frequently asked questions
No, orzo is a thin, oval, rice-shaped pasta that is typically used in soups in Italian cuisine, but you can use it in any number of pasta dishes.
Yes, feel free to use long grain rice instead of orzo in this salad. Cook the rice according to packet instructions.
Unfortunately due to the high water content of the tomatoes, and cucumber, this salad is not suitable for freezing.
😋 More salad recipes to try
- Prawn, Avocado and Mango Salad
- Coronation Chicken Pasta Salad
- Beetroot and Goats Cheese Salad
- Courgette and Feta Salad
- Chicken and Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad
- Halloumi Couscous Salad
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Recipe
Best Greek Orzo Salad
Ingredients
- 200 g Orzo
- ½ Cucumber halved, deseeded and chopped into chunks
- 100 g Cherry Tomatoes halved
- 100 g Kalamata Olives
- 200 g Feta Cheese crumbled into large chunks
- ½ Red Onion finely chopped
- 5 Sun-Dried Tomatoes chopped
For the Greek Dressing
- 3 tablespoon Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
- 1 tablespoon Red Wine Vinegar
- 1 Garlic Clove finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon Dijon Mustard
- ½ Lemon juice only
- 1 teaspoon Dried Oregano
- ¼ teaspoon Salt
- ¼ teaspoon Black Pepper
- ½ teaspoon White Sugar
Instructions
- Cook the orzo according to packet instructions, drain and run under cold water to cool. Pat dry and set aside.Pro Tip - let the pasta cool completely before mixing it with the veggies.200 g Orzo
- Whisk together the dressing ingredients (extra-virgin olive oil, red wine vinegar, finely chopped garlic clove, dijon mustard, juice of half a lemon, dried oregano, salt, pepper, and sugar) in a small bowl.3 tablespoon Extra-Virgin Olive Oil, 1 tablespoon Red Wine Vinegar, 1 Garlic Clove, 1 teaspoon Dijon Mustard, ½ Lemon, 1 teaspoon Dried Oregano, ¼ teaspoon Salt, ¼ teaspoon Black Pepper, ½ teaspoon White Sugar
- Put the cooked and cooled orzo into a large mixing bowl and add the olives, tomatoes, cucumber, red onion, and feta. Pour over the dressing and mix everything together. Chill until you are ready to serve.½ Cucumber, 100 g Cherry Tomatoes, 100 g Kalamata Olives, 200 g Feta Cheese, ½ Red Onion
Notes
- Make the salad the day before you need it for the best flavour!
- For extra crunchy cucumber, remove the middle seeds by running a teaspoon down each half of the cucumber.
- Reduce the sharpness of the red onion by squeezing lemon juice over it and leaving it to steep for 20 minutes before adding it to the salad.
- Add a can of drained chickpeas for extra protein.
- Add more vegetables such as chopped peppers, baby spinach and sweetcorn.
- Swap the red wine vinegar for white wine vinegar or cider vinegar.
- Garnish with chopped fresh herbs for extra colour.
- Use a store-bought Greek vinaigrette dressing instead of making one from scratch.
- Add leftover chicken or shredded lamb to make it more hearty.
Sarah James
We loved this summer pasta salad recipe. It was so easy to make and delicious, we particularly enjoyed the saltiness of the Feta with the olives and cucumber. Thanks for sharing.
Kate
Wow, so many gorgeous things packed into this salad - definitely on the menu for this weekend's BBQ, thanks so much! X
Tayler Ross
I'm always looking for new salads to make during summer, and this orzo salad is definitely calling my name. Thanks so much for sharing the recipe!
Cara
Combining Greek salad with pasta salad? Yes please! It's the perfect summer side dish, and I will definitely be making it again!
Liane Walker
This is a great orzo summer salad. I made it super quick, and it was a great side with veggie burgers. Thanks for sharing the recipe!