Orzo Salad with Yogurt Dill Dressing Recipe - Rachel Cooks® (2024)

Creamy, veggie-packed orzo salad will quickly become a family favorite with its flavorful yogurt dill dressing.

You can’t beat a good pasta salad for an easy lunch 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 thisspring orzo salad with asparagus and arugula, and my southwestern orzo salad. Everyone loves my bruschetta orzo salad, too (I always get requests for the recipe!).

You’re going to love this orzo salad, too! It’s packed with so many vegetables: tomatoes, red onions, peas, carrots, and cucumber. The light tangy dressing has lots of herbal flavor with fresh parsley and dill. So good!

Reasons to Love This Orzo Salad

• Best combination of textures: Traditional pasta salad doesn’t have much going on in the texture department, but this orzo pasta salad combines crisp, crunchy veggies with tender pasta and creamy dressing.
• No mayo! If you’re looking for a no-mayo pasta salad that still brings the creamy factor, this orzo salad is it! Greek yogurt, olive oil, and lemon juice make for a creamy, tangy dressing that’s not overly heavy.
• Healthy eating: As far as pasta salads go, it’s fairly healthy eating: lots of fresh veggies and a light dressing made of nonfat Greek yogurt. A generous 1 ½ cup serving is only 305 calories.
• An all-occasion pasta salad: Serve it for a party, bring it to a potluck, or just make a batch for meal prep lunches. It would be welcome at any backyard BBQ or get-together. It travels well and doesn’t require any last minute prep. This orzo salad is good for any occasion, any day of the week!

What you’ll Need

For the Salad

• Orzo: Choose either regular orzo or whole wheat orzo which adds fiber and nutrition. Avoid using fresh pasta for pasta salads, as it’s more likely to break apart.
• Frozen Peas: About the easiest vegetable you can find, frozen peas add a pop of color and a little bit of sweetness to the mix.
• Roma Tomatoes: Removing the seeds keep the tomatoes from releasing liquid into the salad which would make it too watery.
• English Cucumber: An English cucumber is ideal because it has fewer seeds which, again, means less liquid introduced into the orzo salad. The best part? You don’t have to peel it because the skin is tender.
• Carrots: Regular carrots are just fine. Sometimes, I use rainbow carrots which add fun color to your salad.
• Red Onion: Finely dicing the onion will help it soften and mellow in the dressing.

For the Dressing

• Plain Nonfat Greek Yogurt: If you happen to have 2% or whole milk yogurt in the fridge instead of nonfat, that’s just fine, as long as it’s plain yogurt, and not flavored.
• Extra-Virgin Olive Oil: A little EVOO gives the dressing a smoother consistence and also adds heart-healthy fats. When you’re making pasta salad, a good quality extra-virgin olive oil will take it to the next level. This is a great opportunity to use an aromatic, fruity oil that you wouldn’t use for cooking.
• Lemon Juice: Freshly squeezed lemon juice is a better choice than packaged lemon juice.
• Fresh Parsley and Dill: You can substitute dried dill if you’d like, but don’t use dried parsley because it really doesn’t add much flavor!
• Granulated Sugar or Honey: Traditional mayo-based pasta salad recipes often have lots of added sugar, but here, we just add a touch for balance.
• Kosher Salt and Ground Black Pepper: I recommend fresh coarsely ground pepper for the best flavor.
• Garlic Powder: This adds a note of savory flavor to our dressing.

How to make This Orzo Salad

Cook the orzo in a large pot of salted water according to the package directions.

In the last 2 minutes of cooking time, add the peas to the pot with the orzo.

Drain the peas and pasta in large colander, then rinse well with cold water.

In a small bowl or liquid measuring cup, whisk together the dressing ingredients.

In a large serving bowl, toss the orzo, peas, tomatoes, cucumbers, red onion, and dressing until everything is coated. Season to taste with salt, pepper, and additional sugar, if desired.

How to make this Orzo Salad your own

• Mix and match the vegetables: 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 bell peppers, add those. Don’t like tomatoes? Leave them out. Have some fresh corn or leftover celery? Those would be lovely!
• Add protein: Add a can of chickpeas (rinsed and drained), chopped hard boiled eggs, cooked shredded chicken, salmon, canned tuna, diced cheese, etc. Garnishing with feta is delicious, too!

Serving Suggestions

Lunch/light dinner: 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. If you like, add protein with one of the suggestions listed above.

As a side: Serve this orzo salad for dinner alongside turkey burgers or air fryer hamburgers. It goes well with almost anything. Try it with salmon bites or air fryer pork chops or chicken. Orzo salad is always popular at picnics and potlucks, too.

Make Ahead Ideas

Store the dressing separately from the salad and stir them together just before serving so the salad doesn’t become too dry. The pasta tends to absorb the dressing as it sits.

Storage & Reheating Tips

Serve immediately or store covered in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.