Orzo Salad

Am back. And, its nice to be alive and kicking. First of all, a big Thank You, for each and one of you who were kind enough to visit here and wish me good health. Its nice to hear from you all, my blogging buddies.

After a week, spent indoors, I went to the vegetable market yesterday. The sight of bright, fresh and colourful vegetables and fruits, stacked neatly, is a feast for both eyes and soul. I came across these beauties and couldn’t resist picking them.

Cherry Tomatoes

These tomatoes were slightly bigger than a chickpea, but each bite was a sweet, fresh and a juicy burst inside our mouths. For $3.50 a lb, they better be.

Cherry Tomato V Regular Tomato

Though ideas of using them in a tart or pie showed up in my mind, I decided to use them as is. I was in no mood for a cold salad, therefore put together a warm pasta salad, that can also be served at room temperature. Orzo is a rice shaped pasta that cooks fast and works great in salads and soups.

As I am still under medication, I made a basic, less spicy version of the salad. Also I made one whole pound of pasta and snacked on it as and when I was hungry.

Ingredients

Orzo – 1 lb
Tomatoes – 1 lb
Red onion – 1, medium sized, chopped fine
Mixed herbs (cilantro, basil, mint) – ¼ cup, finely chopped
Salt

Dressing

Red wine vinegar – 1 tbsp
Extra virgin olive oil – 3 tbsp
Zest and juice of a lemon
Red pepper flakes – 1 tsp
Salt
Pepper

Method

Cook the pasta according to package directions. Reserve ½ cup of the pasta water before draining.

Whisk together all the ingredients for the dressing in a large bowl. Add the cooked warm pasta, onions, tomatoes and the herbs. Mix well and taste for seasoning. If the pasta becomes dry, add some of the reserved pasta water till each grain is separate. You can also add more olive oil.

Orzo Salad

Some other interesting additions would be
  1. Chickpeas – Soaked and cooked.
  2. Olives – Not the regular canned or jarred ones, but fresh ones from the olive bar. Their brine is an excellent addition to any salad.
  3. Pine nuts – toasted
  4. Any left-over vegetables.
I tried all of these variations every time I helped myself with the salad.

40 comments:

Sig said...

Those tomato pics are simply wow! Hope you are feeling better now... what a great idea to make a whole bunch of pasta, and make a variety of salads...

Laavanya said...

Suganya, good to know that you are feeling better.. Congrats on your award. This orzo salad looks so pretty and seems to be a wonderful burst of flavors.

Sharmi said...

those pictures look very beautiful and tempting. very yummy looking Salad. Good to see you back in full swing.

archana said...

Your pictures are too good. Orzo looks cute just like rice grain :)

Vanamala Hebbar said...

Suganya

Orzo salad is new to me. Will try it sometime. But pics are very nice

Roopa said...

nice to see you back! the bowl of pasta looks so nice wonderfull dreesing !

Susan said...

Nice to see you getting back into the swing of things, Suganya. Hope you don't have to take meds much longer. Great little tomatoes, there. You'll get your money's worth if you eat them up fast (that is, if there are any leftovers). They tend to wrinkle pretty quickly.

Priya said...

Good to see you back in action Suganya..the salad looks gorgeous and I can feel the lil tomatoes bursting in flavor in my mouth !!

musical said...

Hey Suganya, good to know that you are feeling better! and those lovely tomatoes and pretty salad is perfect recipe to recover! Whatta lovely and lively salad :)

hugs,
musical.

Viji said...

Good treat for your health after this mild set back. The salad is refreshing Suganya. Viji

Suganya said...

Much like rice, orzo happily accepts any additions. I am happy that i made this.

Laavanya, Thank you. The salad was, indeed, a burst of flavours.

Sharmi, its good to be back :)

Archana, try 'em. You will definitely find orzo handy.

Vanamala, There are umpteen number of recipes that makes perfect use of orzo. I am sure you will find your favourite one.

Roopa, Thank you!

I still have a few days of medications to go Susan. But am feeling much better now. Wrinkly tomatoes? They were gone long before that.

Priya, They did taste very good, particularly when my food needs very different from the ordinary.

Hugs to you too Musical :).

Viji, It is, indeed, a treat for me. Particularly after those endless bread and milk :(

Meeta K. Wolff said...

Good to hear you are feeling better. Nothing lovelier then a good healthy meal to get you back on your feet. Beautiful recipe and pics!

Raaga said...

Get well soon... and that's a lovely salad :-)

sunita said...

Glad to know you're back on track...the salad looks great!

indosungod said...

Suganya nice to see you back. Those tomatoes are just what the doctor ordered looks so fresh and healthy.

Aruna said...

Suganya, Ur pics are soooo good, I bet I have said that already many times :) Hope u r doing well now.... Orzo salad looks yummmm!!!

themistressofspices.wordpress.com

Richa said...

so true, the look of the fresh vegs do liven up the spirits!
hope u r doing better now.
Salad looks so good.

FH said...

Happy Monday Suganya!:)
Looks like you are doing better.Those are Cherry or Grape tomatoes,I grow them.Salad looks excellent.
I eat those tomatoes just out of the plant most of time before they reach the Kitchen:)

Bong Mom said...

Hey Suganya
Haven't been around blogosphere much so missed your award winning pic. It was fantastic and a big Congrats to you.

Sia said...

stunning pics suganya...
i am really glad to know u r feeling better now:) sending warm hugs on ur way

Tee said...

such beautiful tomatoes! good to have you back. Orzo salad looks delicious!

Seema Bhat said...

Suganya, Good to know that you are feeling better now. I admire how beautifully you have incorporated the colors in the salad. Lovely pictures as always buddy.

Suganya said...

So true Meeta. I always prefer warm salads over cold ones.

Thank you Raaga and Sunita.

ISG, They did bring me back from the blah-dom.

Aruna, Thanks.

Like a kid in the candy store, Richa. Only its veges :)

Asha, I too grow 'em. But these were teeny tiny. Like currants.

Thank you Sandeepa. Good to have you here.

Hugs back, Sia :)

Thank you Tee and Seema.

marriedtoadesi.com said...

Congratulations on the award! Good to have you back, and as usual the pictures are stunning!

Kanchana

Anonymous said...

Beautiful pictures and wonderful salad.

SeeC said...

Simply superb. Lovely pictures.
Nice to see you back.

Orzo salad sounds new to me. But is very tempting. Once again lovely photography

A, mama of twins said...

suganya-
glad you are back ! your photos are soooo beauuuuuutiful..

Love the interchangeable salad idea. Yum.

Cynthia said...

Glad you're back hon and getting on the mend. I guess you left when I was away...

You should try these tiny little jewels (the tomatoes :)) rolled in some fine salt and ground cumin mixed together. You'll keep popping them in your mouth till they're all done :)

Coffee said...

Glad to see you back and kicking! Those tomatoes looks like lovely red bulbs between the orzo! :)

amna said...

ur pics are truly awesome. which camera do you use?

thank u for dropping by my blog. i used candles outside the cake cuz we didnt have any small ones to stick it in :D was a last minute arrangement :)

nice u can see the pics, some couldnt :(

nice blog you have here, blogrolled you!

Nupur said...

That looks perfect for this heat wave! I think I would love the olive variation the most :)

TBC said...

The pics look very good, especially the first one.
Hope you are feeling better.

Suma Gandlur said...

Glad to hear that you are better now. Oh my god, those tomatoes look so gorgeous.

Bharathy said...

OMG!! how did I miss your post!!!Will comment again after I see the pics :)..
Take care till you are completely allright,child!!

Chef Jeena said...

Hi there, I like your blog! Nice recipe it looks yummy. I like the tomato pictures :) Feel free to visit my blog too :)


Click here for jeenas food recipe blog :-)

Bharathy said...

A perfect Salad for a bitter tongue..
Photos..!!!

Kajal said...

What a great combination and eye catching Photo...with red and white and green colors....

Latha Narasimhan said...

The tomatoes look lovely!
Can't believe they are so small.
Once I bought nice plums. most of it got over by the tome i started preparing the jam.

Padma said...

Its nice to see you again with a bang...Orzo is next on my list too, thankx for the comfy food n pix

Webly said...

so beautiful and simple!

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