This vegetarian Mediterranean orzo pasta salad with crunchy vegetables and spinach, briny olives, and feta cheese makes a healthy, easy-to-make, meal-prepped meal or flavorful pasta salad side.
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I LOVE any recipe that shines with Mediterranean flavors, and this orzo salad is just one example of that fact. Because if you’ve been a reader here for a while, or perused my recipe archives, you’ll see, Mediterranean recipes are very well represented. and I just can’t get enough, because when I make this pasta salad, I literally eat it all week long.
Ever since the Mediterranean Diet was named best diet to follow in 2018 and 2019, Mediterranean recipes here on FoodieCrush have been some of the most searched of the year. And this vegetarian orzo salad served as a main meal or side pasta salad is a VERY good one to add to the ever-growing list.
This Mediterranean orzo salad is a little bit Greek, a little bit Italian, and every bit delicious.
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What’s In this Mediterranean Orzo Salad
It’s time to skip the deli case and make this salad at home. This cold orzo pasta salad uses ingredients you can easily keep stocked in your fridge and pantry, especially if you’re into healthier eating.
Here’s what you’ll need for this orzo pasta salad:
- Orzo pasta
- Red bell pepper
- Cucumber
- Red onion
- Castelvetrano green olives
- Kalamata pitted olives
- Baby spinach
- Feta cheese
- Canola oil
- Olive oil
- Lemons
- Kosher and black pepper
- Oregano
Orzo Salad Ingredient Substitutions
You can swap other Greek or Italian ingredients for those in the list above, like:
- Artichoke hearts
- Tomatoes or sun-dried tomatoes
- Green peppers or roasted peppers
- Avocado
- Grilled eggplant
- Garbanzo or cannellini beans
- Arugula
- Mediterranean marinated chicken
- Grilled shrimp
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How to Make This Orzo Pasta Salad
The heart of this pasta salad is the short orzo noodle. Always choose a high quality pasta, Italian-made DeLallo is my favorite. Be sure to cook the pasta al denté as it will absorb the dressing as it sits, and you don’t want the noodles to become mushy. Rinse and drain the pasta and make sure it’s cool before adding the other ingredients.
Chop the vegetables in same bite-size pieces so the flavors are equally enjoyed with each forkful. Roughly tear the baby spinach leaves in big pieces for the best green, leafy bites.
To make things easier, choose pitted olives. More meaty and less tart, Castelvetrano green olives are my favorite green olive. Paired with the more briny kalamata olive, they make the perfect pair.
When it comes to feta cheese, always choose the block feta instead of crumbles, which can taste more chalky and dry.
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The Pasta Salad Dressing
There isn’t much to this dressing except for the glorious fact that It’s easy to make. But, if you have my Greek salad dressing in the fridge, feel free to use it instead.
I use a combination of extra virgin olive oil and canola oil for this recipe. The canola oil is milder than olive oil so the combination makes a mellower dressing that flavors but doesn’t take over.
Fresh lemon juice is always best, especially in this dressing. I used the juice of 1 lemon, but depending on how juicy yours are, add more to taste. To make your lemons more juicy, pop them in the microwave for 15 seconds.
I use dried oregano for that herby feeling, but feel free to try dried basil or Italian seasoning instead.
Make This Pasta Salad the Day Before
All of the ingredients in this pasta salad hold up well and develop even more flavor over time, making it a great pasta salad recipe to make ahead of time for meal prep, picnics, BBQs and parties.
This pasta salad can be made the day before serving and will last in the refrigerator for up to one week.
