Orzo Pasta Salad With Grilled Eggplant and Red Peppers




Orzo Pasta Salad With Grilled Eggplant and Red Pepper

Orzo Pasta Salad With Grilled Eggplant and Red Pepper

Cansanity
One year, my oregano took off as a ground cover under my raspberries, and so I started using oregano in everything that year. This pasta salad uses 3 tablespoons of chopped fresh oregano, and it is so delicious that I now grow eggplant in patio pots just so that I can easily make this dish. If you are not a fan of eggplant, you can just use peppers, and if you love feta cheese, you can certainly add more than the recipe calls for.
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Print Recipe
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 8 minutes
Barbecue Time 20 minutes
Total Time 43 minutes
Course lunch, salad, side dish
Cuisine American, Canadian
Servings 8
Calories 242 kcal

Equipment

  • BBQ
  • rimmed cookie sheet

Ingredients
  

  • 2 small red peppers seeded and cut into large chunky pieces
  • 3 small (½ pound) eggplants sliced into ½" slices, quarter the slices if the eggplant you are using is large
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1¼ cup dried orzo pasta
  • â…“ cup feta cheese
  • ¼ cup red onion chopped fine
  • ¼ cup Kalamata olives pitted and chopped
  • 3 tbsp fresh oregano chopped
  • 2 tbsp kosher salt -divided 1 tablespoon for seasoning the vegetables before grilling and 1 tablespoon to salt the pasta water

The dressing:

  • ¼ cup olive oil
  • 2 tsp Dijon mustard
  • 1½ tbsp red wine vinegar

Instructions
 

  • Put the red pepper and eggplant in a bowl, drizzle with olive oil and then sprinkle with kosher salt.
  • Grill the vegetables in a wire basket on the barbecue on medium low heat for 15-20 minutes. You want the vegetables to be tender but still hold together enough so that you can chop them smaller after grilling.
  • While the vegetables are grilling, put a medium pot filled with water on the stove, and bring it to a boil. Once boiling, add 1 tablespoon of kosher salt. Add the pasta, and cook for 8 minutes. Drain but do not rinse. Spread the pasta out onto a cookie sheet to facilitate cooling. Also, by cooling the pasta this way, it will not stick together as much.
  • When the eggplant and red pepper are done grilling, cool and then chop to a medium dice.
  • Once the pasta is cool and your grilled vegetable are chopped, assemble your salad. Add the diced onion, chopped olives, chopped oregano and crumbled feta cheese.
  • Whisk the dressing ingredients together and add to the pasta salad. Serve immediately.

Nutrition

Calories: 242kcalCarbohydrates: 31gProtein: 6gFat: 11gSaturated Fat: 2gCholesterol: 6mgSodium: 1900mgPotassium: 516mgFiber: 7gSugar: 8gVitamin A: 694IUVitamin C: 28mgCalcium: 85mgIron: 2mg
Keyword eggplant, orzo pasta, red pepper
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