Goat Cheese Orzo Salad is one of my favorite quick pasta salad recipes. Orzo is a short pasta that is shaped like a grain of rice and therefore commonly mistaken for rice.
Goat Cheese Orzo Salad is a quick side dish recipe that uses quick cooking pasta with creamy goat cheese and roasted asparagus spears.
Orzo Pasta Salad is one of my favorite quick pasta salad recipes. Orzo is a short pasta that is shaped like a grain of rice and therefore commonly mistaken for rice.
Make sure you PIN Goat Cheese Orzo Salad!
It’s compact shape and quick cooking capability make it ideal for one-dish meals, casseroles, soups and pasta salads. Al dente in just 4 minutes, it will actually take you longer to preheat the oven for your asparagus than it will to cook the orzo!
Goat Cheese Orzo Salad is verstile side dish. Serve it with just about any protein or use it as the base for a meal that uses an earthy sauce, like my Orange Caramel Scallops.
Just enough flavor to taste delicious on its own, but not too much to overpower any other dish.
One word of advice when heating goat cheese is to not overheat it! I know that sounds a little odd, but it is true. Most goat cheeses don’t melt in a melty sort of way.
You see, cheeses like ricotta and goat cheese are curdled with citric acid (versus rennet for other cheeses like mozzarella) and therefore they will never melt.
If heated too high, goat cheese will take on a grainy consistency that is not nearly as appetizer as the sticky, white cheese we all know and love. So be careful of heating too high.
For my Orzo Salad, the goat cheese is pre-crumbled and added at the very last stage to prevent this from happening, just using the residual heat from the pasta and asparagus to heat it.
Tools for making Orzo Pasta Salad:
Rimmed Baking Sheet
– Really, every kitchen should have one, but they are especially handy for rolly veggies like asparagus.
Heavy Bottom Saucepan
– A workhorse of your kitchen, make sure you have a good, heavy bottom sauce pan. Don’t skimp on this one!
Colander
– I love colanders, I don’t know why, but they are so pretty!
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Questions about how to make orzo salad:
What is orzo? Orzo, also known as risoni, is a form of short-cut pasta, shaped like a large grain of rice and sometimes mistaken as rice because that.
Can I freeze orzo salad? You can freeze pasta, but it typically turns out gummy and with a funny texture after thawing. It is only suggest to freeze for up to 2 weeks, which in my house just isn’t worth it. I’d rather make another batch.
Is orzo salad gluten free? If you use gluten free pasta or orzo, then it is gluten free.
Can I use a different type of pasta? You can use any type of pasta you’d like! Here are the best pastas for pasta salad:
- Fusilli
- Rotini
- Farfalle
- Rotini
- Macaroni
Can I make orzo salad ahead of time? You can make this orzo salad in advance up to a few hours. In fact, it might taste better made 4-5 hours ahead so the flavors have time to penetrate the pasta and marry. If you make it too far in advance, the pasta can get gummy and soggy.
Goat Cheese Orzo Salad
Ingredients
- 1 inch bunch green asparagus , cut into 1pieces
- 1 cup uncooked orzo
- 4 ounces creamy goat cheese , crumbled
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil , divided
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Trim ends of asparagus and lay on a baking sheet. Toss with 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil, fine sea salt and finely ground black pepper. Bake for 12-14 minutes, turning once until tips are a little crispy and stalks are soft and flexible.
- Meanwhile heat a medium saucepan filled with water over high heat and bring to a boil. Salt water if desired. Add 1 cup uncooked orzo and cook per package directions for al dente. Strain.
- Transfer cooked orzo to a medium mixing bowl. Toss with remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil, crumbled goat cheese, lemon juice, fine sea salt and ground pepper.
- Serve hot or cold.
- If you’ve tried this recipe, come back and let us know how it was!
Wow! This is actually the first I heard about Orzo and while I was looking at the picture, I really thought it was rice.
I am excited to try this and will take your recommendation to pair it with some scallops.