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Grilled Vegetable Salad with Feta – Kalyn’s Kitchen


This tasty Grilled Vegetable Salad with Feta has all the flavors of summer in a tasty meatless salad combination. Make it with whole wheat orzo, or use cauliflower rice for a low-carb version of this tasty salad.

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I think Grilled Vegetables are one of the best things about summer, so it’s no surprise that this Grilled Vegetable Salad with Feta would be something I’d want to make all summer long. And this salad is a tasty side dish any time you’re cooking on the grill.

I did love the salad with whole wheat orzo, which is what I used when I first created this recipe. But the orzo adds quite a few carbs, and I’d love this salad just as much with quickly stir-fried cauliflower rice replacing the orzo, so take your choice on that! And making this salad with cauliflower rice would make it low in carbs and gluten-free!

You could also make something like my Grilled Zucchini Greek Salad if you’d like a grilled vegetable salad without any pasta or cauliflower rice. But no matter which one of those ideas appeals to you, I hope you put grilled vegetables added to a salad on your menu soon!

What ingredients do you need for this recipe?

(This is only a list of ingredients; please scroll down for complete printable recipe. Or if you use the JUMP TO RECIPE link at the top of the page, it will take you directly to the complete recipe.)

What vegetables did we use for the Grilled Vegetable Salad?

For the grilled veggies in this salad we used zucchini and red bell pepper, but you could also use eggplant, red onion, white onion, mushrooms, or asparagus for options here.

What is Orzo?

If you’re not familiar with orzo, it’s a tiny pasta shaped similar to rice but slightly bigger. It’s often used in soups and pilafs, but it’s also a perfect pasta salad ingredient because it lets the pasta take a supporting role and puts the spotlight on the other ingredients.

Want to make Grilled Vegetable Salad salad low-carb or gluten-free?

Orzo is made with wheat and isn’t low in carbs, but if you want a low-carb and gluten-free version of this tasty grilled vegetable salad, just make some of my Best Easy Cauliflower Rice and use that instead of the orzo.

Whole Wheat Orzo and Grilled Vegetable Salad with Feta process shots collage

How to make Grilled Vegetable Salad with Feta:

(This is only a summary of the steps for the recipe; please scroll down for complete printable recipe. Or if you use the JUMP TO RECIPE link at the top of the page, it will take you directly to the complete recipe.)

  1. Cook the orzo until it’s barely al dente (follow package directions for cooking time) and then drain and let cool. (Or make Best Easy Cauliflower Rice if you want a gluten-free or lower-carb version.)
  2. Cut the zucchini and red bell peppers into fourths and brush with olive oil and Italian seasoning. 
  3. Grill the vegetables on high until they are cooked, but still slightly crisp, about 10-15 minutes. Let vegetables cool for a few minutes.
  4. While veggies cool, slice green onions and chop herbs. (I used a combination or oregano and basil and used a good amount of fresh herbs.)
  5. Whisk together olive oil, red wine vinegar, Dijon, and dried oregano to make the dressing.
  6. When vegetables are cool, you should be able to pull the skins right off the red bell peppers (or leave them on if you prefer.) Cut peppers and zucchini into bite-sized pieces.
  7. Put the zucchini and peppers into a bowl large enough to hold all the salad, add about 1/3 of the dressing, and stir so vegetables are coated with dressing.
  8. Let the vegetables marinate in the dressing while you slice the olives in half and crumble the Feta.
  9. Stir in the orzo (or cauliflower rice), green onions, and herbs and add just enough dressing to moisten the salad.
  10. Then gently stir in the olives and crumbled feta. 
  11. Season salad to taste with salt and fresh ground black pepper and serve room temperature or slightly chilled.

Whole Wheat Orzo and Grilled Vegetable Salad with Feta square image of finished salad

More Ideas with Grilled Vegetables:

Check out Low-Carb and Keto Grilled Vegetables or Low-Carb and Keto Grilled Zucchini Recipes for lots more tasty ideas using vegetables cooked on the grill!

Weekend Food Prep:

This recipe has been added to a new category called Weekend Food Prep  to help you find recipes you can prep or cook on the weekend and eat during the week!

Ingredients

  • 1 cup whole wheat orzo, cooked according to package directions (see notes)
  • 2 small zucchini
  • 1 large red bell pepper
  • olive oil, for brushing vegetables
  • 1 tsp. Italian seasoning or other dried herb seasoning
  • 1/4 cup thinly sliced green onions
  • 2 T chopped fresh basil (see notes)
  • 2 T chopped fresh oregano (see notes)
  • 1 can  black olives, drained and cut in half  (6 oz. drained)
  • 1/2 cup Feta cheese, crumbled

Dressing Ingredients:

  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • 2 T red wine vinegar
  • 1 T Dijon mustard
  • 1/2 tsp. dried oregano

Instructions

  1. Preheat grill to high.
  2. Cook orzo according to package directions, being careful not to overcook. Drain and let cool while you prep other ingredients. Or make Best Easy Cauliflower Rice to replace the orzo for a low-carb option, see notes.
  3. Cut the zucchini and red bell pepper lengthwise into fourths and remove seeds and stem from pepper.  Brush the vegetables on both sides with olive oil and sprinkle with dried herb mix.
  4. Turn the grill down to medium-high, then grill vegetables until they are cooked, but still slightly crisp, about 10-15 minutes.  I turned them several times so I had grill marks on all the sides.  Remove vegetables and let them cool.
  5. Thinly slice green onions and chop fresh herbs.
  6. Whisk together the olive oil, red wine vinegar, Dijon, and dried oregano to make the dressing.
  7. When vegetables are cool enough to handle easily, pull the skins off red peppers.  (They should come off fairly easily, but no worries if you prefer to leave them on.)
  8. Cut the zucchini and pepper into bite-sized pieces and put into a plastic bowl large enough to hold all the salad ingredients.
  9. Add about 1/3 of dressing and stir so all the vegetable pieces are coated with dressing.
  10. Let the vegetables marinate while you drain olives, cut them into half, and crumble the feta.
  11. Add the cooked orzo (or cauliflower rice), green onions, and herbs to the vegetables and add enough dressing to moisten all ingredients.  (You may not need all the dressing.)
  12. Gently stir in the olives and crumbled feta.
  13. Serve at room temperature or slightly chilled.
  14. This salad will stay good in the fridge for several days, but only if you’re able to stop eating it!

Notes

Just replace the orzo with Best Easy Cauliflower Rice if you want fewer carbs.

You can use 4 T  of any chopped fresh herbs of your choice such as parsley, mint, thyme, or chives.

Adapted from a recipe by Pamela Anderson for Fine Cooking.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

6

Serving Size:

1

Amount Per Serving:
Calories: 291Total Fat: 13gSaturated Fat: 3.3gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 8.9gCholesterol: 11mgSodium: 192mgCarbohydrates: 37gFiber: 5.7gSugar: 3gProtein: 9.7g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated by the Recipe Plug-In I am using. I am not a nutritionist and cannot guarantee 100% accuracy, since many variables affect those calculations.


Did you make this recipe?

Did you make this recipe? Please leave a star rating (under the PRINT button in the recipe) or share a photo of your results on Instagram! THANKS!

Whole Wheat Orzo and Grilled Vegetable Salad with Feta finished salad in bowl

Low-Carb Diet / Low-Glycemic Diet / South Beach Diet Suggestions:
This Grilled Vegetable Salad with Feta and Orzo could be suitable for phase 2 or 3 of the original South Beach Diet if you use whole wheat orzo and a small amount of pasta in proportion to the other ingredients. For low-carb diets, the version with cauliflower rice would be great.

Find More Recipes Like This One:
Use the Salad Index to find more recipes like this one. Use the Diet Type Index to find more recipes suitable for a specific eating plan. You might also like to follow Kalyn’s Kitchen on Pinterest, on Facebook, on Instagram, on TikTok, or on YouTube to see all the good recipes I’m sharing there.

Historical Notes for this Recipe:
This grilled vegetable salad was first posted in 2011. It was updated with more information and the option to make the salad lower in carbs in 2021 and last updated with more information in 2023.

Pinterest image of Grilled Vegetable Salad with Feta and Orzo (or Cauliflower Rice)

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