This dish is really the epitome of simple, fresh nutritious ingredients, done well. It is such a light and herbaceous pasta salad, perfect for the hot weather, and filled with pretty much all my favorites- orzo, chickpeas, tomatoes, basil, zucchini- all coated with a perfectly balanced red wine vinegar and honey vinaigrette. I followed the recipe below and added fresh zucchini as well.
This makes a great side, or lunch on its own, and is also perfect for meal-prep. I think there are many veggies that would be great in this- so experiment! Next time I think I will try adding some red bell pepper, and steamed broccoli as well. The dressing is fantastic, and the recipe makes more than needed for this dish. I stored the extras in a mason jar, and dressed green and spinach salads, lots of options!
Orzo Salad Recipe:
Couple of Tips:
1. For the dressing, I found it very important to add the olive oil last to emulsify. In addition, for my taste I doubled the honey.
2. Cooking the orzo in chicken stock really gives it a lot of flavor! I would not recommend subbing water, and found stock better than broth, though broth would definitely work. Can easily become a vegetarian dish as well, if you sub for vegetable broth.
Nutritional Notes:
Chickpeas (Garbanzo beans) - 10 Health and Nutrition Benefits of Chickpeas (healthline.com)
Red Wine Vinegar- 6 Health and Nutrition Benefits of Red Wine Vinegar (healthline.com)
Comments