This Orzo & Charred Corn Salad is so delicious and summery, with bold flavors from robust ingredients and an herby, lemony vinaigrette. The salad will be a crowd pleaser at your next gathering or family meal. It’s filled with orzo and corn (of course!), along with tomatoes, avocado, capers and olives. Extra flavor comes from dairy-free parmesan and crisp pistachios.
The salad will be a crowd pleaser at your next gathering or family meal. It has orzo and corn (of course!), along with tomatoes, avocado, capers and olives. Extra flavor comes from dairy-free parmesan and crisp pistachios.
This salad is packed with super flavorful ingredients, making the dish something special! The orzo and corn combination is so satisfying. With both light and savory ingredients, there’s both pops of freshness and heartiness.
Tips for Making this Orzo & Charred Corn Salad
The corn gets great flavor from sauteing it at high heat with some simple seasonings. It gets browned, which adds flavor. Fresh corn works so well for this and is the ideal pick. Alternatively, you can use frozen sweet corn.
Use pitted olives. Some great options are green castelvetrano olives like I used here. Or, you can do kalamata olives. If these more robust choices aren’t your taste, you can choose black olives which have a more subtle flavor.
We used shaved dairy-free parmesan here. The Violife brand makes a great one, where it’s a block and you can use a peeler to make the shavings. Alternatively, you can use crumbled vegan feta. Feta is a great option because it has bold flavor with a nice creamy texture.
This recipe has pistachios for some crunch and even more flavor. The roasted, salted kind works perfectly. You can substitute sliced or slivered almonds, or even pine nuts.
Other Delicious Orzo Recipe
Orzo and Roasted Broccoli Salad
Chickpea & Orzo Vegetable Soup
Orzo Vegetable Salad with Vegan Honey Mustard Dressing
Orzo & Charred Corn Salad
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups uncooked orzo
- 3 ears fresh corn
- 1/2 tbsp avocado oil
- 1/4 tsp each kosher salt, black pepper, & garlic powder
- 1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes halved
- 1/2 cup packed shaved dairy-free parmesan
- 1/4 cup finely chopped red onion
- 2 tbsp finely chopped fresh parsley
- 3 tbsp capers drained
- 2/3 cup pitted green (castelvetrano) olives whole or coarsely chopped
- 1/3 cup roasted salted pistachios coarsely chopped
- 2 avocados diced
Dressing
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 2 tbsp red wine vinegar
- Juice of 2 lemons
- 1 1/2 tbsp dijon mustard
- 1 to 1 1/2 tbsp agave nectar
- 2 tbsp finely chopped fresh parsley
- 1/4 tsp kosher salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1/4 tsp garlic pepper
Instructions
- Cook orzo according to package directions to al dente in salted water (use around 2 tbsp kosher salt in the pasta cooking water), then drain. Toss with 1 tsp olive oil.
- Meanwhile cut the bottom end from each ear of corn to create a flat surface. Stand the ear of corn up vertically, flat side down, and make cuts downwards towards the cutting board to remove the corn kernels from the cob. Repeat with the other ears of corn. Preheat a large pan on high heat. Add avocado oil, corn, and seasonings. Stir and spread out the corn flat across the bottom of the pan. Let cook for a few minutes, stir, and cook another few minutes until getting browned in spots. Transfer corn to a bowl.
- Add orzo to a large mixing bowl along with the corn, tomatoes, parmesan, red onion, parsley, capers, and olives.
- Whisk all Dressing ingredients together in a bowl and drizzle over the salad. The dressing itself will be very lemony, but will balance out once mixed through the salad.
- Toss well, add avocado, and gently toss. Top with pistachios.