This easy Mediterranean orzo pasta salad with crunchy vegetables, spinach, briny olives, and feta cheese is the perfect meal-prepped meal or flavorful pasta salad side.
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“I’ve made this for everyone and unfortunately that never stopped! I’m continually asked to bring it to most all get togethers. It’s one of our very favorites here at home too!” -Lou Ann, FoodieCrush reader
This Is the Perfect Meatless Main or Potluck Side Dish
I LOVE any recipe that shines with Mediterranean flavors, and this orzo pasta 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 that Mediterranean recipes are very well represented.
I just can’t get enough, because when I make this pasta salad, I literally eat it all week long. This feta-laden orzo salad can be served as a meatless main or a hearty side, and it’s 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.
Enjoy!
Heidi’s Tips for Recipe Success
Buy a block of feta and crumble it yourself for maximum creaminess. When it comes to feta cheese, always choose the block feta instead of crumbles, which can taste more chalky and dry.
For the perfect bite every time, dice the veggies into bite-sized pieces so you can get a little of everything on your fork. I can usually finish all the chopping and dicing while the orzo cooks, so embrace multitasking here.
If possible, make this orzo salad the night before to give the flavors time to meld and reach peak levels of delicious. Just like a classic pasta salad, the orzo tastes even better after it’s had time to soak up some of the lemony dressing.
What’s in This Recipe?
The full recipe, with amounts, can be found in the recipe card below.
- Orzo pasta — Looks like long-grain rice, but it’s actually pasta! Always choose a high quality pasta (Italian-made DeLallo is my favorite).
- Veggies — I loaded up this salad with Mediterranean vegetables like red bell pepper, cucumber, spinach, and red onion, but you can mix and match whatever is in your produce drawer.
- Castelvetrano green olives — These mild, buttery olives from Sicily are perfectly poppable on their own but also work beautifully in salads.
- Kalamata olives — Bold, briny, and fruity, these Greek olives pack in lots of flavor yet have a similar buttery texture to the Castelvetrano olives. To make things easier, choose pitted olives.
- Feta cheese — Less than a cup of crumbled feta adds just the right amount of creamy, salty texture to the hearty orzo salad.
- Dressing — The pasta salad dressing gets a dose of Mediterranean flavor thanks to a combination of lemon juice, dried oregano, olive oil, and canola oil. The canola oil is milder than olive oil so the combo makes a mellower dressing that flavors but doesn’t take over.
How to Make Mediterranean Orzo Salad
- Cook the orzo pasta. Be sure to cook the orzo just until al denté as it will absorb the dressing as it sits, and you don’t want it to become mushy. Rinse and drain the pasta and make sure it’s cool before adding the other ingredients.
- Add the veggies and feta. Once the orzo has cooled, add to a large serving bowl along with the vegetables.
Heidi’s Tip: 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.
- Whisk together the dressing. There isn’t much to this dressing except for the glorious fact that It’s easy to make.
- Chill. Toss the orzo salad with the dressing to coat every nook and cranny in the lemon vinaigrette. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour to give the flavors time to meld and for the orzo to soak up some of the dressing.
Ingredient Substitutions
You can swap other Mediterranean-inspired ingredients for those listed above, like:
- Artichoke hearts
- Fresh, sun-dried, or roasted tomatoes
- Green peppers or roasted peppers
- Avocado
- Grilled eggplant
- Garbanzo or cannellini beans
- Arugula
- Dried basil or Italian seasoning
You can even replace the lemon dressing with my homemade Italian dressing or Greek dressing.
If you make this recipe, please let me know! Leave a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating below, leave a comment to tell us what you think, and tag me on Instagram @foodiecrush.
Mediterranean Orzo Salad Recipe
Ingredients
Pasta Salad:
- 16 ounces orzo
- 3 cups baby spinach leaves , gently torn into large pieces
- 1 ½ chopped red bell pepper , about one red bell pepper
- 1 cup cucumber , diced and seeded, about one medium
- ¾ cup red onion , diced
- 5 ounces Castelvetrano green olives , drained and halved
- 5 ounces Kalamata pitted olives , drained and halved
- 7 ounces feta cheese
Dressing:
- ½ cup canola oil
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 1 lemon , juiced
- 1 ½ teaspoons oregano
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- Bring a pot of water to a boil, season with salt, and cook the orzo for 10 minutes. Drain, rinse, and set aside to cool.
- Transfer the cooled orzo to a large mixing bowl. Add the spinach, chopped vegetables, and olives, then crumble half of the feta cheese over the pasta.
- In a small bowl, whisk the canola oil, olive oil, lemon juice, oregano and salt and pepper until mixed. Pour the vinaigrette over the pasta mixture and gently fold until the pasta and veggies are coated. Taste for seasoning and top with the remaining feta cheese.
- Refrigerate for 1 hour or overnight before serving.
Notes
Nutrition
Make-Ahead Tips
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.
FAQs
To make this a main dish salad, top it with Greek marinated chicken, grilled shrimp, grilled balsamic chicken, or pan-seared salmon.
This dish is easy to make gluten-free by using your favorite brand of gluten-free orzo pasta. Read the instructions to see how long the orzo must be cooked (aim for a chewy al dente texture).
What to Serve with Mediterranean Orzo Pasta Salad
More Mediterranean-Inspired Pasta Salads
- Greek Pasta Salad
- Kale Caesar Pasta Salad
- Creamy Tuscan Pasta Salad
- Easy Italian Spaghetti Salad
- Nicoise Pasta Salad
- Asparagus Orzo Salad
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Lynda Ryan
We loved this salad. It has wonderful flavours and is very colourful. However we found it extremely salty. I did not add salt to the dressing but I did salt the water for the orzo. In the future I would not do so. The olives and feta add enough salt.
I’m glad you were able to adjust Lynda!
Lisa
THE ABSOLUTE BEST!!!!! I have made this recipe for every social gathering we’ve been to after discovering this recipe about a year ago. Can’t say enough GOOD things about it, except our family, relatives and friends request it now !! I swapped out a jar of marinated artichoke hearts for the peppers, grape tomatoes (cut in half lengthwise) for the cucumber and basil for the oregano. Thanks so much for this recipe!!
Sounds great Lisa! I’m glad everyone enjoyed!
Molly
I made. this yesterday, sounded terrific, and no surprise, it tasted terrific, too. I used all the stuff I had in the fridge, peppercinis, lots of Kalamata and stuffed green olives, green and yellow onions. Didn’t have feta, used little moz balls. With all the olives the moz balls were fine, but not much flavor in them. My husband loved it, so did I.
I’m glad you both enjoyed Molly!
Deb
This quickly became a family favorite! Introducing my parents to it and added rotisserie chicken this time for a complete meal.
Sounds great Deb! Glad everyone enjoyed it!
Ellen Dirks
My sisters and I LOVE this salad!! We sometimes add artichoke hearts and sun-dried tomatoes.
Happy to hear it Ellen!
Sineath Falls
Yumny
Sherri
Our favourite salad for the summer! It is better the days after for sure.
Thanks!!
Thank you Sherri!
Christy
Made this for a work potluck, and everyone LOVED it!
I’m glad it was a success Christy!
Bobbie
Love this salad, I make it about once a month.
Substituting some beans for rice is good but I do love how the orzo soaked up the flavors
Sounds great Bobbie! Glad you could adjust to your liking!
Barbara W
Delicious!! My “Go-to” dressing is olive oil, apple cider vinegar, a couple “blops” of Dijon mustard, and several shakes Zhatar. If it’s too tangy, I use a little pinch of monk fruit sweetener.
Sounds amazing Barbara!
Hilary
Soooooo GOOD!!! The only thing I changed was used more EVOO instead of canola oil.
My husband who doesn’t like pasta salad, loved it!
Sounds great Hilary!
Pat
Followed the recipe. It was excellent! I would definitely make it again. Great salad for a crowd. Thanks!
Happy to hear it Pat!
Kristal Williams
I know this will be fantastic! However I bought black olives instead of green. Will it be ok?
Yes that would work Kristal!
Judi
I made this for a group of 12 ladies over for Bunco along with beef sandwiches! Everyone loved it and wanted the recipe! I only had a little bit left over! Thanks for an amazing recipe that I know I will make over and over!
Happy to hear it was a success Judi!
Judi
I am making this for a group of 12 ladies, one cannot have cheese, do you think I could make it up and just add the cheese on the side? Do you think it would compromise the flavors?
You should be able to serve on the side!
Dawn
I bet this could be served warm too!
Jill
Soooo good! And it is true, it gets better the next day and the next day. I used cubed pepper jack cheese, because my husband does not like feta. I am making it again tonight:)
KAMRAN
ALI
Rachel
Is there any vinegar in this vinaigrette?
Hayley
Hi Rachel! We use lemon juice here, but you could use red wine vinegar if you wanted!
Debra
Love this recipe. A family and potluck favorite!
I’m glad you enjoyed Debra!
Liz
I made this today and thought it was delicious. I threw in some fresh oregano leaves because I had them. I didn’t add the dressing until I was ready to eat it because I can’t stand soggy anything! The beauty of this dish is whatever you have in your fridge can be added. Thank you for the yummy and healthy recipe.
I’m glad you enjoyed it Liz!
MimiK
I’ve made this a couple of times, now. It’s a fantastic salad to make on these hot summer days. It’s fine on its own or with chicken thighs roasted in air fryer. Thanks for the recipe.
I’m glad you enjoyed it!
Steve
We love this salad! It’s become our go to when we’re wondering what to do for dinner.
I’m glad you enjoy it Steve!
Bonnie M
This recipe makes A LOT!! Which is a good thing because it is awesome for lunch the next day and to give away to your favorite neighbors who always bring you cookies! The only modification I made was to use dried basil in the dressing. I don’t care for the taste of plain oregano. But OMG healthy, fresh and delish!!
Bonnie M
And I used Gluten Free orzo, which is available on Amazon
I’m glad you enjoyed it Bonnie!
JoAnn
This recipe was so delicious! The brightness of the lemon juice was the perfect touch! It makes a huge amount, but can easily be scaled down, and I love that you can add or subtract ingredients with whatever you have on hand- thanks for sharing!
I’m glad you enjoyed it!
Brenda
I used Farro and bottled Greek Dressing! It is delicious-a definite go-to!
I’m glad you enjoyed it Brenda!