I’m trying to work my way through a large tub of spinach this week before it gets wilted, so today I threw a bunch of it into a really simple salad with orzo, sun-dried tomatoes (another ingredient I’m trying to use up), and some of my leftover feta that I have stashed in the freezer. I topped it all off with a super simple homemade balsamic vinaigrette. I absolutely LOVE super simple salads like this Spinach and Orzo Salad. For me this would be a great light lunch, but you could also serve it alongside some of your summer grilling!
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“This has become my go-to hot summer recipe. Perfect for potlucks too! Sometimes I add some salami chunks, chickpeas, Kalamata olives, or all of the above. So yummy!”
Tracy
Tangy Balsamic Spinach Orzo Salad with Feta
This spinach orzo salad is a seriously low-effort, high-reward recipe. The tender orzo gives it just enough substance to feel like a real meal, and the fresh spinach, feta, and sun-dried tomatoes keep everything light and vibrant. I also make a quick balsamic vinaigrette (olive oil, balsamic, Dijon, and garlic) to pull it all together with big, tangy flavor using basic pantry staples. It’s great right away while the orzo is still slightly warm, but it also holds up well in the fridge for easy lunches and make-ahead dinners!
Recipe Success Tips
- Use what you’ve got. I kept my salad simple because, like I said, I was using up leftovers. But, if you want to take it further, you could always add some thinly sliced red onion, maybe some kalamata olives, grilled chicken, chopped artichoke hearts, baked tofu, canned white beans or chickpeas (drained and rinsed), pine nuts, walnuts, cherry tomatoes (instead of sun-dried tomatoes), or mozzarella balls (instead of feta). This salad is super flexible!
- Let the dressing sit for a few minutes. I like to make the balsamic vinaigrette before I assemble the rest of the salad. This gives the garlic and Dijon time to mellow and blend, which makes the flavor taste more balanced and less sharp.
- Taste and adjust before serving. Between the feta, dressing, and the sun-dried tomatoes, there’s already plenty of salt in the mix, so I don’t add any extra at the end. You can always taste and adjust with extra salt or pepper if needed.
- Not into orzo? Small shell pasta, diatlini, couscous, or quinoa would all work well! Just cook whatever you choose according to the package directions, then use it the same way in the salad.
Spinach Orzo Salad
Cost $8.27 recipe / $2.06 serving
Ingredients
BALSAMIC VINAIGRETTE
- ¼ cup olive oil ($0.88)
- 2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar ($0.22)
- 1 garlic clove (minced, $0.08)
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard ($0.03)
- salt (to taste, $0.01)
- black pepper (to taste, (freshly cracked) $0.02)
SALAD
- ½ lb. orzo (uncooked, $0.49)
- 4 cups fresh baby spinach ($1.45)
- ½ cup sun dried tomatoes ($3.62*)
- 2 oz. feta (crumbled, $1.47)
Instructions
- Prepare the vinaigrette first to allow the flavors time to blend. Add the olive oil, balsamic vinegar, minced garlic, Dijon, about 1/4 tsp salt, and some freshly cracked pepper to a jar or bowl. Whisk until the ingredients are combined, or place a lid on the jar and shake for 10-15 seconds. Set the dressing aside.
- Bring a pot of water to a boil to cook the orzo. Once boiling, add the orzo and continue to boil until tender. Drain the orzo and allow it to cool just slightly.
- While waiting for the orzo to cook, chop the sun dried tomatoes into small pieces. Place them in a bowl and cover with hot water (I used a ladle full of boiling water from the pot just before adding the pasta). Let the chopped sun dried tomatoes sit in the hot water for about 5 minutes, then drain.
- Place the baby spinach in a large bowl. Add the drained and still warm orzo to the bowl, along with the soaked sun dried tomatoes, and crumbled feta cheese. Pour the balsamic vinaigrette over top, then toss until the ingredients are combined and coated with vinaigrette. Serve immediately or refrigerate until ready to eat.
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Notes
Nutrition Information
Have you tried this recipe?Mention @budgetbytes or tag #budgetbytes on Instagram!How to Make Spinach and Orzo Salad Step-by-Step Photos
Make the vinaigrette: This dressing is super easy and only takes about five minutes. Add ¼ cup olive oil, 2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar, 1 clove of minced garlic, 1 tsp Dijon mustard, about ¼ tsp salt, and some freshly cracked pepper to either a small jar or a bowl. Place a lid on the jar and shake for 10-15 seconds, or whisk it in a bowl until combined. Set the dressing aside.
Cook the orzo: Cook 8 oz. (about 1 cup) orzo according to the package directions. Once cooked, drain it in a colander, and let it cool for just a few minutes. Meanwhile, prepare the sun-dried tomatoes. These are the type that I use, and in my local store, they are in the produce department. I used about ½ cup of these tomato halves, which were about 11 pieces. The pieces are large, though, so we want to chop ’em up.
Prep the tomatoes: Chop the tomatoes into small pieces. Since these are the dry type of sun-dried tomatoes (as opposed to oil-packed), we want to soften them up some. Place the chopped tomatoes in a bowl and cover them with hot water. I just ladled some of the boiling water that I was boiling for the orzo (before I actually added the orzo) over the tomatoes. Let them sit in the hot water for about 5 minutes, then drain them.
Assemble: Place about 4 cups of fresh baby spinach in a large bowl. Add the drained and slightly cooled orzo (it should still be warm—this helps wilt the spinach just a bit), softened sun-dried tomatoes, and 2 oz. crumbled feta.
Drizzle the balsamic vinaigrette over the salad (I used the entire batch of vinaigrette).
Finish and serve: Toss the ingredients together until they are combined and coated in the balsamic vinaigrette. The spinach leaves will soften after a few minutes as they absorb the dressing and heat from the orzo. I like to save just a little of the feta to sprinkle over top as well.
And that’s it! Could this Spinach and Orzo Salad be any easier?? Good food doesn’t have to be complicated.
Serving Suggestions
This spinach orzo salad is one of my favorite go-with-everything sides. It’s delicious with a weeknight hero, like our chicken meatloaf in the cooler months. Or if it’s the middle of summer and I’m cooking outside, I love serving it alongside grilled sirloin tenders because the tangy salad feels extra refreshing next to this budget-friendly steak. For a more veggie-forward plate, it’s fantastic with oven roasted ratatouille, which I make most often in late summer when zucchini and eggplant are everywhere. It doesn’t matter what the weather is, I’ll always add garlic bread to the table so everyone can scoop up any extra dressing and feta that ends up at the bottom of the bowl.
Storage Instructions
This salad keeps really well in the fridge for 3-4 days. If you’re fine with the spinach softening a bit more, you can store it fully assembled in an airtight container. Stir to recombine before serving. If you want everything to stay fresher and less wilted, store the dressing, the orzo, and the spinach/tomatoes/feta separately and toss right before serving. I’ll sometimes warm the orzo slightly in the microwave with a little water and then mix it in at the last minute to recreate the warm-cold contrast.
TRY THESE OTHER SPINACH SALAD RECIPES:
- Tomato Mozzarella Pasta Salad: This budget-friendly spin on Caprese is exactly what I crave when it’s scorching hot outside.
- Roasted Vegetable Salad Meal Prep: These salad meal prep boxes help me eat more veggies because having them prepped makes it so much easier to reach for during the week.
- Wilted Spinach Salad: This wilted spinach salad is my go-to quick and light summer meal that works as an easy main or side and is perfect for customizing and enjoying outdoors.
- Chicken and Mandarin Salad: This chicken and mandarin salad comes together from leftovers and turns into a perfectly balanced mix of sweet, salty, creamy, and crunchy flavors.
I used a 250g (about 1/2 lb) bag of baby spinach, chopped, so yeah… a lot of spinach. I added chopped Kalamata olives. I probably used more feta than the recipe called for. I added vegetarian “chicken” pieces. I took this salad to work for lunches. This recipe is so simple and delicious, I love it. This is a great recipe to make in autumn/winter when fresh tomatoes are not in season (winter right now where I live). I am looking forward to making recipe again and again, maybe adding roasted chickpeas and/or toasted pine nuts. The dressing is perfect as it is. Thanks for this keeper of a recipe.
This has become my go-to hot summer recipe. Perfect for potlucks too! Sometimes I add some salami chunks, chickpeas, Kalamata olives, or all of the above. So yummy!
Wow, my husband and I really liked this. And it was so easy.
I mostly followed the recipe, but substituted a few things and added a few others.
– instead of feta, I added mozzarella balls (per another commenter)
– instead of straight spinach, I added baby greens (a kale, spinach and swiss chard mix from Costco)
– added cherry tomatoes and toasted pine nuts
Eating it with garlic bread made for a filling, but light and delicious meal.
Thank you for sharing, Beth!
Tasty side dish! Only gave it 4 stars because the amount of balsamic vinegar and raw garlic gave it a bit too much of a bite for me. I will definitely make it again though and try reducing the amount of vinegar and replacing the raw garlic with some garlic powder. This go around I used Israeli couscous instead of orzo (just because it’s what I had available) and added an extra cup of spinach to work in some more greens.
I got this recipe from my daughter a couple of years ago. And it is simply amazing. The dressing is so good. I’d like to add some fresh cucumber and maybe fresh tomato, olives, if I have them. I also like to add some crab meat just to make it a complete meal. Definitely my favorite pasta salad recipe so glad I found this! I try to make it a few times every summer. Also, I don’t care for feta, so I’ll leave that out and add fresh mozzarella balls
Love this recipe, it is a go-to for me. I do not like sundried tomatoes, so I throw a pint of halved cherry tomatoes in with it.
I subbed 0% greek yogurt for half of the olive oil in the dressing this time and it turned out amazing!
I made this for the first time this year this evening. Delicious as always! This recipe has become a summertime staple in our dinner rotation in the last couple years. I usually add white beans or chickpeas and either walnuts or pine nuts to give it some extra protein to enjoy as a one- bowl meal. Many of your recipes have become my go-tos for something simple and tasty, namely the “poor man’s burrito bowls” and the spicy peanut ramen.
WOW! This was amazing. We chose to eat this as a more spinach-based salad so we used an entire huge container of spinach, and kept the orzo and S-D-T ratios the same. And naturally we went ham on the feta. We tripled the dressing to account for all of that spinach and we devoured the entire huge box of spinach. I honestly don’t think we’ve ever finished such a big box before. This is a MUST.
A friend of mine did something very similar, but instead of SD tomatoes, she used dried cherries, and added a bit of fresh torn herbs in with the spinach, like basil and mint. It was so good. Great base to try a little savory/sweet combo.
This recipe looks delicious! I’m going to make it for a dinner party – how many people does the recipe feed (as a side).?
I guess it just depends on how big of a serving you usually do for side dishes. Four to be safe, maybe 6 if you do smaller side portions.
SOOOO good. One of the best pasta salads I’ve ever had! And so simple to throw together. Literally going to eat this every week this summer haha. It’s great as a dinner side, and makes the perfect work lunch, too!
This was soooo good! My whole family loved it. The flavors were well balanced and made a great side dish.
Made this recipe today. Absolutely in love with the flavors. So delicious and this is definately an addition to my meals. New to your page and cannot wait to explore more of your recipes.
This recipe is amazing! I added leftover chopped walnuts, and then honey and oregano to the dressing. Definitely a keeper! I loved eating it warm. Also, the feta we had in the fridge had herbs, which I’d definitely use again for added flavor.
We’ve made this a few times now. Was a summer go-to salad, but now still a recipe we have enjoyed as it gets colder! Having the pasta makes this more filling than a traditional spinach salad. Most of the ingredients are on-hand, just need fresh spinach each time.
Happy to hear it Eileen!