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Roasted Vegetable Orzo Salad

Jul 7, 2020 / by / 7 Comments
★★★★★ from 4 reviews

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The perfect summer side dish? Roasted Vegetable Orzo Salad! It’s quick, easy, tasty, and goes with any and all summer deliciousness.

roasted veggie orzo salad

Isn’t summer just delicious? I must admit, I’m really more of a fall/winter girl when it comes to weather but the freshness and bright and colorful flavors of summertime are tough to beat. My Roasted Vegetable Orzo Salad is an old favorite that everyone loves!

roasted veggie orzo salad

This orzo pasta salad has all of my favorites from the farmer’s market at summertime!

  • Bell peppers
  • Peas
  • Shallot
  • Garlic
  • Pine nuts
  • Fresh mint

What is orzo?

Because of their similar look, orzo can get mistaken for rice! It’s actually a very short pasta. I love it in pasta salad because you get plenty of pasta with every bite!

roasted veggie orzo salad

Homemade Roasted Vegetable Orzo Salad Dressing

This dressing is simple as can be and adds a just-right, zesty finishing touch to this salad. You’ll just need…

  • Lemon juice
  • Olive oil
  • Salt
  • Red wine vinegar
roasted veggie orzo salad

What Goes with Orzo Salad?

I like serving pasta salad as a side dish! A few main dishes that would be perfect with this Roasted Vegetable Orzo Salad:

  1. Weeknight Balsamic Grilled Chicken
  2. Zucchini Apple Turkey Burgers
  3. Grand Marnier Chicken
  4. Grilled BBQ Chicken Burgers
  5. Sticky Chicken

More Pasta Salads

Food photography by Ashley Cuoco

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roasted veggie orzo salad

Roasted Vegetable Orzo Salad

★★★★★ 4.3 from 4 reviews
  • Yield: 8 1x
Print Recipe

Description

The perfect summer side dish? Roasted Vegetable Orzo Salad! It’s quick, easy, tasty, and goes with any and all summer deliciousness.

Ingredients

Scale

Serves 8

  • 1 pound orzo
  • 3 bell peppers, small dice (red, yellow, orange)
  • 2 shallots, diced
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon pepper
  • 1 cup frozen peas, defrosted
  • 1/2 cup toasted pine nuts
  • 1/4 cup chopped fresh mint

FOR THE DRESSING

    • 1/2 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice
    • 3 tablespoons olive oil
    • 1/2 teaspoon salt
    • 1/3 cup red wine vinegar

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cook orzo according to package, about 7-8 minutes. On a large sheet pan toss the bell peppers, shallots, and garlic with 2 tablespoons olive oil, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Spread into a single layer and roast for about 20 minutes until veggies are softened.
  2. Meanwhile, make the dressing. Whisk together the lemon juice, olive oil, salt and red wine vinegar. Set aside.
  3. Once orzo is cooked, drain and add to a large bowl. When veggies are cooked, add them to the orzo and stir to combine. 
  4. Pour dressing over the warm orzo and toss until orzo is lightly coated. Gently stir in peas, pine nuts, and mint. Serve warm, room temp, or chilled!

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Reader Interactions

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    xo, Laney

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    Comments

  1. Katie C

    This is delicious (very bright and fresh and satisfying). And it’s a very forgiving recipe if you want to make adjustments or changes (I think the first time I made it I swapped onion for shallot and pistachios for pine nuts and mini macaroni for orzo because that was what I had on hand…and it was SUPER TASTY). My partner requested that this be in our regular rotation. Win!

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  2. Katie

    This was so satisfying and delicious!! I made a few substitutions (onion for shallot, pistachios for pine nuts, and I completely forgot the peas) because the grocery store was out of a few things, but it totally worked. I’ll be making this again and again!!

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  3. Blythe

    I have made this multiple times for a summer side and it has become a family fave! Easy, light, and delicious!

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  4. NAC

    Loved the concept….very pretty and makes a large quantity. I followed the directions exactly how they were written .
    However, I found it to be flavorless. Any ideas on what to do to give a a tasty punch?

    ★★

    Reply

    • Life is but a Dish

      Thanks for this feedback. I’ve updated the recipe to add more citrus and red wine vinegar which helps give it that bright punch!