Orzo Salad With Lemon, Mint And Ricotta Salata

I am sure many of you are aware of orzo, a rice-shaped pasta, usually used in soups and salad. I made this Greek inspired orzo pasta salad and served it with roasted chicken. You can find the roasted chicken recipe over here. Enjoy.


Recipe adapted from Dean & Deluca Cookbook

Orzo Salad With Lemon, Mint, And Ricotta Salata

Ingredients

1/4 Cup Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
1/3 Cup Minced Shallots
2 Tbsp Fresh Lemon Juice
1 Garlic Clove, minced
1/2 tsp Finely Grated Lemon Zest, or more to taste
Salt and Pepper to taste
1 Cup Uncooked Orzo
1/2 Cup Very finely diced Yellow Bell Pepper
1/2 Cup Very finely diced Seedless Cucumber
1/2 Cup Crumble Ricotta Salata Cheese (about 3 oz)
3 Tbsp Minced fresh Mint leaves

Method

Stir together the olive oil, shallots, lemon juice, garlic, and lemon zest in a small bowl. season to taste with salt and pepper.

Cook the orzo in a large kettle of boiling salted water until al dente. Drain pasta completely in a colander, running under cold water. Transfer orzo to a bowl, stir in the olive oil mixture, and let cool. Stir in the bell pepper, cucumber, ricotta salata, and mint until combined well. You should serve the salad immediately, but we think it tastes best if you let it stand at room temperature for 2 to 3 hours.