Orzo Salad Recipe with Yogurt Dill Dressing

This orzo salad recipe will quickly become a family favorite with its flavorful (and guilt-free!) yogurt dill dressing.

You can’t beat a good pasta salad during a hot summer’s day and this, my friends, is a good pasta salad!

I believe that orzo is the perfect pasta for salads. Because it’s similar in size to the veggies, you’re destined to get a perfect forkful of pasta, vegetables, and dressing. I love this spring orzo salad with asparagus and arugula, or my popular southwestern orzo salad.

About this Orzo Salad Recipe

Orzo salad with yogurt dill dressing would be welcome at a backyard bbq or potluck. As far as pasta salads go, it’s fairly healthy eating: lots of fresh veggies and a light dressing made of nonfat Greek yogurt. Use whole wheat orzo to make it even healthier. 

Use this orzo salad to make a filling lunch: make a bed of spinach (or arugula, or romaine, or whatever green you like) on your plate, give it quick squeeze of lemon juice and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, and top it with a scoop of this orzo salad. A perfect lunch and a perfect way to re-purpose leftovers. 

I adapted this recipe from a recipe on my colleague Liz’s site — the original dressing is a bit different than mine, plus I included a few different vegetables.

Make this pasta salad your own

The great thing about an orzo salad recipe like this is that you can add whatever vegetables you have on hand or whatever you like. If you like onions, add those. If you like peppers, add those. Don’t like tomatoes? Leave them out. Have some fresh corn? That would be lovely!

I’m sure you’ll enjoy the fresh flavors of dill and parsley in this orzo salad recipe as well as the tangy, flavorful (and guilt-free!) dressing.

Orzo, the perfect pasta for salad!

Here’s some more great orzo pasta salad recipes for you to try!

 

• Southwestern Orzo Salad
• Bruschetta Orzo Pasta Salad
• Greek Orzo Salad with Roasted Shrimp
• Avocado and Feta Cheese Orzo Salad from Diethood
• Warm Strawberry Bacon Orzo Salad from How Sweet It Is

Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me @rachelcooksblog on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest!

Recipe

Get the Recipe: Orzo Salad Recipe with Yogurt Dill Dressing

5 from 2 votes

Prep Time: 15 minutes mins

Cook Time: 10 minutes mins

Total Time: 25 minutes mins

8 servings

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This orzo salad is a family favorite with lots of vegetables and a flavorful yogurt dill dressing. Fresh dill makes it taste like summer!

Ingredients

Salad:

• ▢ 16 oz. box orzo (uncooked)
• ▢ 1 cup frozen peas
• ▢ 3 roma tomatoes, seeds removed, diced (about 2 cups)
• ▢ 1 English cucumber, diced (about 2 cups)
• ▢ 2 medium carrots, finely diced (about ¾ cup)
• ▢ ¼ red onion, finely diced (about ½ cup)

Dressing:

• ▢ 1 cup plain nonfat Greek yogurt (2% or whole milk yogurt is fine)
• ▢ 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• ▢ 3 tablespoons lemon juice
• ▢ ½ cup finely minced fresh parsley
• ▢ ¼ cup finely minced fresh dill (or 2 tablespoons dried dill)
• ▢ 1 teaspoon granulated sugar or honey
• ▢ 1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt
• ▢ ½ teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
• ▢ ½ teaspoon garlic powder

Instructions

• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook orzo according to package directions. In the last 2 minutes of cooking time, add the peas to the pot with the orzo. Drain peas and pasta in large colander, and run cold water over them to cool.
• In a small bowl or measuring cup, combine dressing ingredients and whisk to combine.
• In a large serving bowl, mix together orzo, peas, tomatoes, cucumbers, red onion, and dressing until everything is coated with dressing. Taste and season with more salt, pepper, and/or sugar as desired.
• Serve immediately or store covered in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.

Notes

• Make Ahead Tip: Store dressing separately from salad and stir in immediately before serving. Pasta will soak up some of the dressing as it sits. If necessary, increase dressing to achieve desired consistency.
• Substitute (or add) vegetables of your preference such as bell peppers, celery, edamame, radishes, corn, etc. 
• To increase nutrition, use whole wheat orzo. 
• Add protein with hard boiled eggs, cooked chicken, salmon, tuna, garbanzo beans, diced cheese, feta cheese, etc.

Nutrition Information

Serving: 1.5cups, Calories: 305kcal, Carbohydrates: 50g, Protein: 12g, Fat: 6g, Saturated Fat: 1g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g, Monounsaturated Fat: 4g, Trans Fat: 0.001g, Cholesterol: 1mg, Sodium: 464mg, Potassium: 352mg, Fiber: 4g, Sugar: 5g, Vitamin A: 3160IU, Vitamin C: 18mg, Calcium: 65mg, Iron: 2mg

This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.

© Author: Rachel Gurk

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