This Chimichurri Orzo Salad is tossed in a simple herby dressing, loaded with veggies, sprinkled with feta cheese (and all in under 15 minutes!)
I’ve been exploring the world of foolproof sauces lately. Because after frustratingly futile attempts at mayonnaise and hollandaise, I’d rather stick to the sauces that I can’t screw up.
There was this romesco sauce (which I put on ev-er-y-thing) and now we’re giving chimichurri sauce a go!
Chimichurri sauce is a simple combination of parsley, cilantro (or more parsley if you’re one of those people that despises cilantro), onions, garlic, and a few more flavor makers. It’s basically the Argentinian cousin of pesto.
You can use it as a marinade, sauce, or dressing (which is what we’ll be doing in today’s Chimichurri Orzo Salad!)
P.S. Do you love chimichurri? Then you’ve got to give its cousin, Gremolata, a try!
Ingredients
- 1 cup parsley 60 g
- 1 cup cilantro 60 g, can substitute with more parsley
- ½ cup chopped red onion 75 g
- 3 cloves garlic
- 2 Tbsp lime juice 30 mL
- ¼ cup red wine vinegar 60 mL
- ¼ tsp each salt, pepper, and crushed red pepper
- ½ cup extra virgin olive oil 120 mL
- 1 cup uncooked orzo 210 g
- 1 cup fresh spinach 60 g
- ½ cup feta cheese 75 g
Instructions
- Bring 2 cups of water to a boil and add orzo. Cook 7 to 10 minutes, or until al dente (these cooking instructions may vary by brand, check your orzo package).
- While the orzo cooks, add parsley, cilantro, red onion, garlic, lime juice, red wine vinegar, salt, black pepper, red pepper, and olive oil to a food processor. Pulse until smooth.
- Slice spinach into thin strips (it’s easiest to stack them up and slice a bunch at once).
- Stir to combine orzo and chimichurri sauce to suit your taste (you may not need the whole batch of sauce). Stir in spinach and feta and serve!
Nutrition Information
I first published this Orzo Salad on Amanda’s Cookin’
Anne neale says
Yes. Love the sauce and it started off a beautiful bright green color. After a couple of hours, it started to separate and turn a darkish green/brown color! Still very tasty but not very appealing! 1: What did I do wrong? And 2) can I reverse the damage? Many thanks in advance. Anne
Sarah Bond says
Hi Anne! Due to the nature of the fresh herbs in this recipe, I’m afraid you probably can’t prevent the browning. If you haven’t mixed the sauce with the orzo, you can reblend it to fix the separation issue!
Allison says
SO GOOD! I’m excited to have leftover chimichurri sauce. Might try that with grilled fish. This salad was delicious and would be good for a potluck.
Sarah Bond says
So happy to hear it, Allison! Enjoy! 😀