Orzo With Grilled Summer Vegetables
This Orzo Pasta Salad recipe with grilled vegetables is a beautiful, make-ahead summer dish. It’s one of our go-to vegetarian or vegan recipes for BBQ’s and casual dinner parties. The flavors are light, bright and delicious
You can tailor this recipe to your tastes - varying the vegetables and seasonings as you like. Just keep tasting and adjusting. You won’t be disappointed!
Our Favorite Vegetables For Grilling:
Zucchini - green or yellow work perfectly, cut into 1/3″ to 1/2″ slices before grilling—cut too thin and they’ll fall apart.
Bell peppers, poblano peppers, jalapeño peppers, sweet baby peppers, shishito peppers — slice bell peppers and remove seeds of the bell peppers before grilling for easiest eating.
Portabello mushrooms or large brown mushrooms — no need to slice the mushrooms, grill them whole. Start the mushrooms gill side down then finish cap side down to hold in moisture.
Eggplant — our favorite way to eat eggplant, where it becomes tender, creamy, and smoky
Carrots — grilling quickly softens carrots and makes a pretty “tiger-striped” presentation
Onions — any variety including green onions become oh so sweet when grilled
Asparagus — fatter asparagus stalks are easier to cook on the grill.
Corn — fresh summer corn is incredible on the grill—juicy, sweet kernels with an undeniably crispy, smoky exterior.
Artichokes — So good! Our favorite technique here.
Cauliflower — slice as steaks or grill in florets
Broccoli — slice as steaks or grill in florets
Orzo With Grilled Summer Vegetables
Ingredients
1 1/4 cups uncooked orzo pasta, whole wheat or gluten-free
1 cup chopped cherry tomatoes
1 clove minced garlic
olive oil spray or olive oil
1 small red onion, quartered
1 red bell pepper, seeded and quartered
1 yellow bell pepper, seeded and quartered
1 large, zucchini, sliced into 1/2 inch thick rounds
salt and black pepper, to taste
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup chopped basil
Instructions:
Prepare the grill with clean grates and preheat to medium heat, 350°F to 450°F.
Cook orzo in salted water according to package directions; drain and rinse under cold water, transfer to a large bowl and combine with tomatoes and 1 tablespoon of the oil and garlic.
Spray the onions, bell peppers and zucchini with olive oil; season with salt and black pepper, to taste
Grill vegetables on a grill basket 10-12 minutes or until lightly charred and tender. (Turn the veggies at the halfway point.)
Set the grilled veggies aside on a cutting board to cool, then dice into 1/2-inch pieces.
Toss with the remaining olive oil and vinegar and top with chopped basil
Variations we love:
Add some grilled chicken, fish, or tofu to the dish to make it a a heartier meal.
Add some heat such as chili flakes or sriracha.
Add fresh ripe mango or peach cubes – so good!