Greek Orzo Pasta Salad Recipe
You’ll love this Greek orzo pasta salad with bright, fresh flavors and satisfying, salty bites! This Greek pasta salad is made with classic Greek ingredients like crunchy and crisp cucumbers, juicy tomatoes, briny olives, salty feta, and fresh dill. Everything is tossed with tender pasta and a red wine vinaigrette for a salad that’s perfect for picnics, potlucks, or paired with an easy grilled Greek chicken for the most delicious summer cookouts.
When the sun starts shining in the spring and summer, meals like cold orzo pasta salad with some grilled meat is exactly what I crave. It’s fresh, flavorful, and satisfying without feeling heavy. You’ll find yourself making it all summer long!

Estimated reading time: 8 minutes
What is orzo pasta salad?
This easy Greek pasta salad recipe has traditional Greek flavors like cucumbers, tomatoes, feta cheese, kalamata olives, and fresh dill – all tossed with orzo pasta and a red wine vinaigrette dressing. It’s best served slightly chilled and is the perfect meal for summer dinners or potlucks.

What You’ll Love About Greek Pasta Salad
- Fresh and bright flavors
- Perfect for picnics and potlucks
- Great with grilled chicken
- Easy to make
- Made with simple ingredients
- Can be prepped ahead

Salad Ingredients
- Easy Greek vinaigrette – Red wine vinegar, olive oil, vegetable oil, garlic, dijon mustard, dried oregano, sea salt, and black pepper
- Orzo – Use a high-quality orzo for best flavor. You can use whole grain orzo if desired or you could also use a different pasta shape if you prefer.
- Cucumbers – I prefer Persian or an English cucumber, but you can really use any cucumber. If you’re using a regular cucumber, be sure to peel it and remove any seeds (if there are too many).
- Tomatoes – I used cherry or grape tomatoes, but you could also use other tomatoes if they are in-season! If you use a tomato like roma, be sure to remove the seeds so the pasta salad doesn’t get too watery.
- Feta cheese – I recommend using block feta in brine for best flavor, plus it lasts longer! If you can’t find that, you could also use crumbles.
- Kalamata olives – The kalamatas give classic Greek flavors, but you could also use black olives or other your favorite type of olive.
- Fresh dill – Using fresh dill gives such great bright flavor, it is not to be skipped!
- Extras – You can also add some extra additions like diced red onion, chopped artichoke hearts, or diced green or red bell pepper.


How to Make Orzo Pasta Salad
This is an overview on how to make orzo pasta salad, the detailed instructions can be found below in the recipe card.





FAQs
Is orzo better for you than pasta?
Orzo is a pasta, just in a small shape, similar to rice or another grain. It is often confused for a grain, but it is in fact pasta. If you want to use a whole grain, you could use a whole wheat pasta.
Is orzo pasta salad with feta healthy?
I love looking at this question in a bit of a different way – using my background in Nutrition and Intuitive Eating. Instead of jumping to negative conclusions, I tend to look at the food in a bigger view, so hereโs what I see in this meal. I see vegetables, satisfying fats (olives!), energy (orzo pasta), and so much flavor (fresh herbs, red wine vinaigrette, feta).

Storage Instructions
Store leftover Mediterranean orzo pasta salad in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 2-3 days.
If salad feels a bit dry (the orzo will continue to soak up dressing), drizzle with a bit of olive oil.

What to Serve with Greek Orzo Pasta Salad
Serve this Greek pasta salad recipe with an easy main, it’s especially delicious with grilled chicken!
- Our Favorite Grilled Chicken Thighs
- Grilled Chicken Drumsticks
- Grilled Lemon Chicken Breasts
- Panko Crusted Salmon

How to Feed Pasta Salad to the Whole Family
I get it, feeding kids can be tough! But following the Division of Responsibility and knowing your job and your childโs job makes it SO much more enjoyable. Youโll be able to feed your kids any meal, which will help ensure that they are eating a variety of nutritious foods โ with plenty of play food sprinkled in.
I would recommend serving a small portion in a pinch bowl (taster bowl) if itโs a new or learning-to-like it food. Serve the meal with a few items you know your kids will eat, like fruit, milk, and/or bread and butter. And don’t be surprised if pasta salad isn’t a big hit right away, this type of dish can require some long-term patience.

More Easy Pasta Recipes
If you like orzo pasta salad recipes like this one, you might also like these other easy pasta recipes:

Let me Meal Plan for you!
In a dinner time rut? Overwhelmed with the task of meal planning? It’s time to hand over meal planning to a pro!
This done-for-you plan can easily be customized and your grocery list is made with the click of a button โ all while you sit in the school pick up line.
Youโll save time, save money, waste less food, and go into meals calm instead of stressed. Your dinner is planned and your grocery list is made and everything is conveniently delivered to an app so you can print it out, access from your phone, or computer.

Greek Orzo Pasta Salad Recipe
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 6 servings (about 1 cup per serving) 1x
- Category: Salad
- Cuisine: Mediterranean
Description
You’ll love this Greek orzo pasta salad with bright, fresh flavors and satisfying, salty bites! It’s perfect for picnics and potlucks.
Ingredients
For the dressing:
- 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 2 Tbsp. vegetable oil
- 1 clove garlic, minced (or use citrus zester!)
- 1 tsp. dijon mustard
- 1 tsp. dried oregano
- 1/4 tsp. sea salt
- 1/8 tsp. black pepper
For the pasta salad:
- 8 oz. orzo (1 1/3 cup)
- 1 1/2 cups sliced cucumbers (Persian sliced into half moons)
- 1 1/2 cups grape or cherry tomatoes (sliced in half)
- 4 oz. feta cheese (cubed)
- 1/3 cup kalamata olives (sliced in half)
- 1/4 cup fresh dill (chopped)
Instructions
- Cook orzo according to package instructions.
- While orzo is cooking, mix dressing in a large bowl. Combine red wine vinegar, olive oil, vegetable oil, grated garlic, dijon mustard, dried oregano, salt, and pepper. Whisk until emulsified.
- When orzo is done, drain in colander and quickly rinse with cold water. Add to bowl with dressing and toss to combine. Stir occasionally to help cool. (It will look like a lot of dressing, but the orzo will soak some of it up.)
- Prepare ingredients:
Thinly slice cucumber.
Slice tomatoes in half.
Cut feta into cubes.
Slice olives in half.
Roughly chop dill. - Add cucumber, tomatoes, feta, and olives to the bowl of orzo. Gently toss together.
- Spoon orzo salad into shallow bowls and top with chopped dill, a drizzle of olive oil, and freshly cracked pepper.
Food styling and photography by Loren Runion.
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With the red wine vinaigrette, this salad has a true Greek flavor! It is fresh, has a smooth texture and complimented our grilled chops nicely. And Emilyโs right, it seems as though the amounts for the vinaigrette are too big, but they are not.
Thank you. ๐ ๐