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Any time of year is the prefect time to make this delicious vegan orzo pasta salad recipe! Toss with roasted red pepper dressing and you have a healthy side dish loaded with veggies and flavor.
Orzo Pasta Salad Recipe
Pasta + me = true love. Regular pasta, whole wheat pasta, lentil pasta...I love it all, in all shapes and sizes!
One of my favorite types of pasta is orzo. Uncooked, it reminds me of rice. As it's boiling, though, the orzo increases about twice in size and creates short-cut noodles. I absolutely LOVE orzo in soup (like Italian wedding soup) - you can get a ton of pasta on your spoon. Nom nom.
For this pasta salad, I'm going with the whole wheat orzo for added nutrients and fiber. But really, any type of pasta that you love will work.
Load it with Veggies!
Adding veggies to pasta just makes them more pleasant to eat, let's be real here. I'm usually not a fan of raw peppers and onions, but I LOVE them in pasta salad. Cucumbers and carrots are always a must have for me in a good pasta salad. Other optional veggies include celery, zucchini, olives, tomatoes...really anything will do! Making a pasta salad is a good way to use up veggies you have stashed in your crispers before they go bad.
Dress It
The Roasted Red Pepper Salad Dressing I recommend using also adds a healthy oomph! It's a little spicy, a little tangy, a little sweet, and absolutely de-licious. The made ingredients are: roasted red peppers (of course), lemon juice, garlic, and pepper. SUPER easy to make, too - you literally just blend the ingredients together and it's ready to be drizzled onto a salad.
You can also dress this salad with a simple Italian dressing.
This easy orzo pasta salad makes a great BBQ side dish or potluck contribution!
Orzo Pasta Salad
Ingredients
- 3 cups dry whole wheat orzo
- 2 bell peppers - chopped, any color
- ½ red onion - chopped
- 1 large cucumber - sliced and halved
- 1.5 cups carrots - chopped
- Roasted Red Pepper Dressing
- Salt and pepper to taste - if desired
Instructions
- Cook orzo per package instructions.
- While the orzo is cooking, cut up your veggies.
- After draining the orzo, rinse it with cold water to bring down the temperature.
- Mix together the orzo and chopped veggies. Stir in a little of the dressing at a time and add as much as you prefer. Season with salt and pepper if needed.
- Store in fridge until completely cold. Enjoy!
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