My orzo & arugula salad with bell pepper vinaigrette tastes like a summertime harvest at its peak. Sautéed peppers, shallots, and garlic become the flavorful base for this salad, lending slightly sweet notes to balance out the tanginess of the vinegar and zesty lemon. The best part? This salad is served best at room temperature, making it the perfect prep ahead, end-of-summer party dish. 

couples well with barbecues, cookouts, and end-of-summer parties

This Orzo & Arugula Salad with Bell Pepper Vinaigrette is just begging for you to take it to your next summer hangout (hello, Labor Day weekend). Seasoned orzo and peppery arugula are tossed with sautéed peppers, shallots, garlic, and tomatoes, along with fresh cucumber and more tomatoes (blistered + fresh is the way to go). And the dressing?! The dressing is pure magic. Bell pepper infused olive oil lends a slight sweetness to the vinaigrette, really rounding out the whole dish.

Grab a summer spritzer and let’s get to making the best Orzo & Arugula Salad with Bell Pepper Vinaigrette!

what you need to make my Orzo & Arugula Salad 

I love all the elements of this salad! It’s light enough for a fresh starter or side, yet filling enough to serve as a main. It’s straightforward, proving that simple, good ingredients can be made into the most delicious, flavorful dish! In my opinion she’s ✨perfect✨. Here’s what you need for it:

• vegetable broth

• orzo

• baby arugula

• shallots

• bell peppers

• cherry or grape tomatoes

• garlic

• cucumber

• vegan feta, such as Follow Your Heart or Violife

don’t forget about the bell pepper vinaigrette

A salad is only as good as its dressing, and let me just say … this dressing is GOOD. It’s everything you love about a classic vinaigrette, but with a little oomph! Here’s what you’ll need to make it:

• olive oil – infused with shallots, peppers, tomatoes, and garlic

• fresh basil

• fresh lemon juice & zest

• red wine vinegar

• maple syrup

• salt, pepper, dried oregano, dried parsley, and red pepper flakes

how to make my easy Orzo & Arugula Salad with Bell Pepper Vinaigrette

Not only is this salad absolutely delicious, it’s also very easy to prepare! You can also prep it ahead of time, so when it’s time to enjoy, you can simply toss and dig in! Here’s how to make it:

1. Cook and cool the orzo:

Place the broth into a heavy-bottomed large saucepan over high heat. Once the broth reaches a boil, stir in the orzo. Reduce heat to low and cook, stirring often, until the orzo is al dente, about 7 minutes. Drain the orzo and place it in a large bowl, tossing with a bit of olive oil to prevent sticking. Set aside to cool.

2. Infuse the olive oil:

Pour the olive oil in a large sauté pan over medium-low heat. Add fresh basil leaves, shallots, bell peppers, cherry tomatoes, and garlic. Season with 1 teaspoon salt, and cook, stirring often, until the tomatoes blister and the peppers soften, 20 to 25 minutes.

3. Make the vinaigrette:

Once the vegetables are done sautéing, use a slotted spoon to transfer them into the same bowl as the orzo, draining as much oil through the slots as possible. Transfer the infused oil to a bowl and whisk with the rest of the dressing ingredients.

4. toss and enjoy!

This salad is delicious served at room temperature (and most like it this way), but I like it nice and cold! If you’d like, you can store the dressing and orzo/pepper mixture in the refrigerator to cool before tossing. Additionally, if you’re prepping this salad ahead of time for a BBQ or party, keep the ingredients separate until you’re ready to serve. Before serving, Toss the arugula with the orzo and dressing, top with vegan feta (if using), and serve with wedges of fresh lemon, and enjoy!

tools you’ll need:

• Salad spinner
• Saucepan
• Large saute pan
• Slotted spoon
• Large mixing bowl and serving bowl

more salads to try:

• Muffaletta Panzanella Salad
• Chick’n pesto pasta salad
• Cobb Salad

the perfect summer salad:

Summer is coming to an end, and what better way top celebrate than with a harvest of sweet summertime produce. If you give it a try, I’d love to see! Snap a photo, take a video, or make a story and post it to Instagram, and tag me at @eat_figs_not_pigs and #EatFigsNotPigs. I love seeing your recreations of my recipes!

Til next time, friends!

XO!

Orzo & Arugula Salad with Bell Pepper Vinaigrette

Ashley

My orzo & arugula salad with bell pepper vinaigrette tastes like a summertime harvest at its peak. Sautéed peppers, shallots, and garlic become the flavorful base for this salad, lending slightly sweet notes to balance out the tanginess of the vinegar and zesty lemon. The best part? This salad is served best at room temperature, making it the perfect prep ahead, end-of-summer party dish.

5 from 1 vote

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 25 minutes mins

Cook Time 30 minutes mins

Total Time 55 minutes mins

Course Vegan

Cuisine Salad

Servings 6 -8

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• 4 cups vegetable broth
• 1 ½ cups uncooked orzo
• ½ cup plus 2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil, divided
• 5 large basil leaves plus ½ cup fresh chopped basil, divided
• 2 large shallots thinly sliced
• 1 large red bell pepper diced
• 1 large orange or yellow bell pepper diced
• 12 ounces cherry or grape tomatoes divided into two 6-ounce portions
• 10 cloves garlic grated
• 1 ½ teaspoon kosher salt divided
• 1 cucumber thinly sliced
• ¼ cup red wine vinegar
• ¼ cup fresh lemon juice about 2 medium lemons, plus the zest from one of the lemons, plus more lemons for serving
• 1 teaspoon maple syrup
• ½ teaspoon each: fresh ground black pepper dried oregano, dried parsley, red pepper flakes
• 1 5 ounce container baby arugula
• Vegan feta optional

Instructions

 

• Place the broth into a heavy-bottomed large saucepan over high heat. Once the broth reaches a boil, stir in the orzo. Reduce heat to low and cook, stirring often, until the orzo is al dente, about 7 minutes. Drain the orzo and place it in a large bowl, tossing it with the remaining 2 teaspoons olive oil. Set aside to cool.
• Meanwhile, while the orzo is cooling, pour ½ cup of the extra virgin olive oil in a large sauté pan over medium-low heat. Add the 5 basil leaves (left whole), shallots, bell peppers, 6 ounces of the cherry tomatoes, and garlic. Season with 1 teaspoon salt, and cook, stirring often, until the tomatoes blister and the peppers soften, 20 to 25 minutes.
• Once the vegetables are done, use a slotted spoon to transfer them into the same bowl as the orzo, draining as much oil through the slots as possible. Transfer the infused oil to a bowl and let it cool about 10 minutes.
• While the oil is cooling, cut the remaining tomatoes in half and add them to the bowl of orzo and peppers, along with the cucumbers.
• To the oil, add the vinegar, lemon juice, lemon zest, maple syrup, remaining ½ teaspoon salt, pepper, dried oregano, dried parsley, and red pepper flakes.
• Before serving, I like to chill the orzo/pepper mixture and dressing separately for about an hour, but this salad can also be enjoyed at room temperature.
• To serve, fill a large serving bowl with the arugula and top with the orzo/pepper mixture and dressing. Toss to combine, ensuring everything is well incorporated. Finish with vegan feta (if using) and serve alongside a couple wedges of fresh lemon and enjoy!

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