My Greek parents tried Ina Garten's Greek orzo salad. Now they can't stop making it.

Aug 05, 2026 01:21 AM - 1 hour ago 1

Ina Garten's Greek Orzo Salad

My Greek parents emotion Ina Garten's Greek orzo salad. Anneta Konstantinides/Business Insider

When I saw that Ina Garten had a Greek orzo salad, I knew my Greek parents had to effort it.

My parents immigrated to the US from Greece successful the 1980s, and they made judge to thatch maine astir Greek civilization done food. My dada made his delicious pastitsio (like lasagna, but better) each week, and whipped up avgolemono soup whenever 1 of america was sick. Every Christmas was celebrated pinch a big cookware of baklava, and youvetsi was a meal staple.

But my parents are ever consenting to effort thing caller — they tested 15 different "Greek" products from Trader Joe's to spot which tasted authentic! So, erstwhile I told them Garten had a Greek orzo salad, they were ace excited.

Ina Garten's Greek orzo crockery is packed pinch caller ingredients.

Ingredients for Ina Garten's Greek Orzo Salad

Ingredients for Ina Garten's Greek orzo salad. Anneta Konstantinides/Business Insider

To make Garten's Greek orzo salad, which serves six, you'll need:

  • 1 cup of orzo (about 8 ounces)
  • 1 cup of canned chickpeas, rinsed and drained
  • 2 cups of babe arugula
  • 4 ounces of Greek feta, ½-inch diced (not crumbled)
  • ½ cup of bully oliva oil
  • ½ cup of diced reddish doorbell capsicum (¼-inch)
  • ½ cup of diced reddish bulb (¼-inch)
  • ½ cup of kalamata olives, pitted and halved lengthwise
  • ¼ cup of freshly squeezed citrus juice, positive other for serving
  • 3 tablespoons of capers successful brine, drained
  • 3 tablespoons of minced caller dill

Garten's Greek orzo salad, which appears successful her cookbook "Go-To Dinners," was inspired by Round Swamp Farm, a third-generation family workplace successful East Hampton.

"Their prepared nutrient and baked equipment are simply outstanding," she writes. "This look was inspired by 1 of their salads; it has each the Greek ingredients that I emotion — orzo, olives, feta, lemon, and dill."

The first measurement to making Garten's crockery is prepping the orzo.

Boiling h2o for Ina Garten's Greek Orzo Salad

Boiling h2o for the orzo. Anneta Konstantinides/Business Insider

I brought six cups of h2o to a boil successful a ample saucepan.

I added the orzo and 1 tablespoonful of brackish to my saucepan.

Cooking orzo for Ina Garten's Greek Orzo Salad

Cooking the orzo. Anneta Konstantinides/Business Insider

Once you've added the orzo, Garten says you should return the h2o to a boil, past little the power and simmer for 8 to 10 minutes.

You'll cognize it's fresh erstwhile the orzo is al dente.

While my orzo cooked, I began cutting my veggies.

Chopping veggies for Ina Garten's Greek Orzo Salad

Prepping the veggies. Anneta Konstantinides/Business Insider

I diced the reddish bulb and reddish doorbell pepper.

I prepped my chickpeas and capers.

Prepping chickpeas and capers for Ina Garten's Greek Orzo Salad

Prepping the chickpeas and capers. Anneta Konstantinides/Business Insider

I rinsed and drained the chickpeas and made judge to drain my capers.

I besides halved my kalamata olives, minced the dill, and diced my feta cheese.

Cutting olives for Ina Garten's Greek Orzo Salad

The halved Kalamata olives. Anneta Konstantinides/Business Insider

Garten's Greek orzo crockery comes together quickly — the only existent activity is cutting the herbs and veggies!

It didn't return agelong to make the dressing.

Making the dressing for Ina Garten's Greek Orzo Salad

The dressing for Garten's Greek orzo salad. Anneta Konstantinides/Business Insider

I conscionable whisked together the citrus juice and oliva lipid pinch 2 teaspoons of brackish and 1 spoon of achromatic pepper, and voilà! It was ready.

Once the orzo was ready, I drained and transferred it to a ample bowl.

Cooked orzo for Ina Garten's Greek Orzo Salad

My cooked orzo. Anneta Konstantinides/Business Insider

Now I could build the salad.

First, I poured the vinaigrette complete the lukewarm pasta.

Pouring the dressing onto the orzo for Ina Garten's Greek Orzo Salad

Pouring the dressing onto the orzo. Anneta Konstantinides/Business Insider

I made judge to operation it good truthful the orzo would sorb each that delicious flavor.

Then I added the onion, doorbell pepper, and chickpeas.

Adding the veggies to Ina Garten's Greek Orzo Salad

Adding veggies to the orzo. Anneta Konstantinides/Business Insider

Everything was already looking truthful colorful.

I topped it disconnected pinch the dill, olives, capers, and feta, and mixed everything together.

Adding the dill to Ina Garten's Greek Orzo Salad

The crockery was almost ready! Anneta Konstantinides/Business Insider

I utilized 2 spoons to cautiously harvester each the ingredients.

I stirred successful the arugula conscionable earlier serving.

Ina Garten's Greek Orzo Salad

Garten's Greek orzo crockery is truthful colorful. Anneta Konstantinides/Business Insider

Garten says you tin bask her crockery either lukewarm aliases astatine room temperature, but clasp disconnected connected adding the arugula if you're making it the time earlier — nary 1 likes soggy leaves successful their salad!

Once you're fresh to serve, adhd a compression of caller citrus juice and sensation for seasoning.

I should besides statement that Garten recommends serving this pinch sliced lemon. My parents didn't emotion the thought of full citrus pieces successful the salad, truthful we decided to nix them.

Garten's Greek orzo crockery looked caller and vibrant.

Ina Garten's Greek Orzo Salad

My parents were impressed pinch Garten's Greek orzo salad. Anneta Konstantinides/Business Insider

I ever emotion serving a crockery afloat of color, and Garten's Greek orzo crockery has plenty.

The popular of reddish from the doorbell pepper, the caller greenish from the arugula, and the agleam purple from the bulb each worked together to make a beautiful plate.

My parents looked impressed arsenic I brought the crockery to the meal table. But would it sensation arsenic bully arsenic it looked?

Garten's Greek orzo crockery was ace delicious — and now my parents can't extremity making it.

Anneta's parents pinch Ina Garten's Greek Orzo Salad

My parents support making Garten's Greek orzo salad. Anneta Konstantinides/Business Insider

The orzo soaks up Mediterranean flavors acquainted to immoderate Greek — salty chunks of feta intertwining pinch the rich | kalamata olives, the texture of crisp doorbell capsicum and crunchy reddish bulb dancing together, that popular of caller citrus brightening each bite. There were truthful galore different components to the salad, but everything was perfectly balanced.

My parents now emotion whipping up Garten's Greek orzo salad, and I'm not surprised. The crockery tastes for illustration thing we would've eaten while watching the turquoise waves of the Aegean Sea during our summer trips to Greece.

"Ina must person been Greek successful 1 of her erstwhile lives," my mom declared.

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Anneta Konstantinides is simply a manner analogous astatine Business Insider, pinch a attraction connected nutrient and travel. She loves taking readers inside Michelin-starred kitchens and exploring the world of fine-dining, and she's ever trying to find the best Ina Garten and Gordon Ramsay recipes. Her 2nd location is LAX, wherever she's often catching a formation and reviewing airlines.Anneta has besides been reporting connected the pageant manufacture for the past six years and has interviewed each Miss USA and Miss Universe victor since 2019. She was a finalist astatine the LA Press Club Awards for her investigation into the  2022 Miss USA ungraded and was featured successful The New York Times Presents section "How to Fix a Pageant" connected Hulu successful September 2023. After graduating from UCLA pinch a B.A successful English Literature and a insignificant successful movie & television, Anneta worked arsenic a journalist successful London, Sydney, New York City, Los Angeles, and Washington, DC. You tin scope Anneta astatine [email protected]

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