This recipe for Mediterranean Shrimp & Orzo Salad is one of our go-to dishes for a quick summer weeknight meal, potluck or picnic. It’s great for making ahead of time because this salad gets better with age! The longer the vinegarette marinates with the salad ingredients the tastier it gets! Plus it can be served warm of cold so it’s a win-win!
The Ingredients
- Orzo pasta (or any small pasta or grain)
- Latholemono vinegarette (click HERE to get the recipe)
- Cucumber
- Shrimp
- Green onion
- Feta cheese
- Chickpeas
- Tomatoes
- Fresh dill
Preparing the Salad Ingredients
To make this dish you’ll want to start by thawing your shrimp if using frozen. During this time cook your orzo pasta. Keeping in mind that it looks tiny when dried but puffs up after boiling so don’t make too much! While the orzo is boiling chop and dice your vegetables and set aside. When the shrimp are thawed, peeled and deveined add them to a heated nonstick pan with a little bit of olive oil and sautee for 1-2 minutes per side or until cooked through.
The Dressing
For this recipe, we used our go-to greek vinegarette, Latholoemono. What’s “La-tho-lemo-no” you may ask? It’s our favorite dressing for just about everything from salads to meat marinade and everything in between. It’s made with extra virgin olive oil (we also try to use olive oil imported from Greece which you can find at your location Mediterranean grocery store), freshly squeezed lemon juice, dried oregano, minced garlic and a touch of salt and pepper whisked together. A tip we love to use is putting all of the ingredients in a small food processor to really get the flavors combined!
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Assembling the Salad
And now we come to the easiest part, putting it all together! Well, that’s simply all you have to do. Combine the cooked orzo, chopped vegetables, chickpeas, and sauteed shrimp in a large bowl. Top with dill, feta cheese, and the latholemono vinegarette and toss to combine. Dinner is served!
We’d love to know if you make this recipe! So leave us a comment below and don’t forget to tag #heartheathlygreek on Instagram and Facebook!
Mediterranean Shrimp & Orzo Salad
Ingredients
- ¾ cup uncooked orzo
- 16-20 peeled and deveined shrimp (fresh or frozen)
- 1¼ cup chopped tomatoes
- 1¼ cup chopped cucumber
- 1 cup diced green onion
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 15 oz can chickpeas
- 2 tbsp fresh dill
- ½ cup feta cheese
- Latholemono vinegarette
Instructions
- Start by thawing the shrimp (if using frozen).
- Cook orzo according to package.
- Meanwhile, chop all of the vegetables and set aside.
- Make the latholemono vinegarette by adding all ingredients to a small food processor and blend until all ingredients are incorporated.
- Once the shrimp are thawed, peel and devein them.
- Heat a saute pan over high heat and add in the olive oil and the prepared shrimp. Cook for about 1-2 minutes on each side or until shrimp is fully cooked.
- In a large bowl combine orzo, chopped vegetables, chickpeas, and shrimp. Top with dill, vinaigrette and feta cheese and toss to combine.
- Serve immediately or store in an airtight container in the refrigerator until ready to eat. This salad can be served warm or chilled.
Notes
- Omit the shrimp for vegetarian.
- Omit shrimp and feta cheese for Vegan.
- If you don’t have orzo pasta, don’t worry, you can use any small pasta, quinoa, grain (like farro) or even cauliflower rice.
- When purchasing shrimp you want to look for wild-caught shrimp vs. farmed shrimp. Wild-caught is just that, shrimp caught in their natural habitat
Although a nice combo i think the orzo absorbed the dressing and thus the dish was bland. Next time i work double up the dressing, and/or add the orzo into the dish last.
So glad you like the recipe Bonnie. We do suggest adding the dressing at the end and serving immediately. Did you store the dish and eat it later? We always love hearing suggestions and comments from our readers!
_ Christina & Alexa
Is there anything else you can use besides the vinegarette??
Hi Jessica,
We have only made this recipe using the vinaigrette listed. If you use a different dressing let us know how it turns out! 🙂
-Christina & Alexa
Used farro instead of orzo and garlic salt in the dressing. Also I used frozen shrimp precooked and thawed so I did not heat them up (guessing that would be needed if they were raw). Loved the recipe and will be making again for a ladies weekend meal.
We’re so glad you enjoyed this recipe and love that you shared it with friends 🙂
-Christina & Alexa
Need the salad dressing recipe! Made it lived it!!!
Hi Paula, We are so glad you loved this recipe! We have attached the link to the dressing here:
https://www.hearthealthygreek.com/latholemono/