Orzo salad with bocconcini, pesto and fresh veggies

🌿 Homemade pesto = best, or Pesto Jardin by LeGrand
For this recipe, homemade pesto is the top of the top. If you have the time, make my homemade basil-and-parsley pesto. It’s the way to go for a salad that hits. Short on time? I use Pesto Jardin by LeGrand. Absolutely incredible, my trusted shortcut.

🧀 Big bocconcini balls, NEVER mini ones
Bocconcini is already a mild cheese. In mini-ball or perlini format, it literally tastes like almost nothing. You might as well skip it. Buy big bocconcini balls and tear them by hand into generous pieces. That melty texture against the pesto is where the magic happens. And no, I never keep the brine from the tub. It’s useless in the salad.

🍝 Orzo al dente + cold rinse + drizzle of oil
Always Barilla or Del Verde for me. Authentic Italian pasta makes a real difference. Cook the orzo al dente (not a minute longer), then rinse it under cold water to stop the cooking cold. Always add a good drizzle of olive oil after rinsing so it doesn’t clump into a solid brick. Overcooking the orzo is the fatal mistake. The texture turns mushy like a sad chicken noodle soup, truly not it.

🫑 Cherry tomatoes + cucumber + red pepper = legendary combo
My base trio that works every time. But this recipe is meant to improvise: add grilled zucchini, asparagus tips, artichoke hearts, shredded carrots, diced celery. Don’t hold back. For herbs, go wild: fresh basil, parsley, chives, mint, oregano. The more freshness, the harder it slaps.

💚 Pesto is life. NEVER be afraid to go heavy
The #1 mistake with this salad is being timid with the pesto. You’ll almost never put too much. Pesto ties everything together, coats the orzo, and perfumes the veggies. If there’s some left in the jar the next day, pile it on. That’s the difference between a decent salad and one everyone keeps asking for.

🕐 Make it in the morning for the evening, no problem
This salad keeps beautifully. Make it in the morning for dinner, or the night before for lunch. It even develops flavors in the fridge. Just one trick: pull it out 15-20 minutes before serving so the olive oil tempers (otherwise it firms up and the salad tastes flat). And honestly, my pesto has never browned from air exposure, but if you want to play it safe, press plastic wrap directly on the surface.

🔄 Reviving the salad the next day
The next day, the orzo will have absorbed some of the dressing. My trick: drizzle of olive oil, a little fresh pesto, salt and pepper. Thirty seconds of stirring and it’s as good as day one. Honestly, if you still have pesto in the jar, add more. It’s never too much in this recipe.

🍞 Serve with baguette, brie, boursin or pâté
For entertaining at lunch or for a picnic, serve the salad with a fresh baguette and something indulgent on the side: a runny brie, a good Boursin with garlic and fine herbs, or a foie pâté (rum, whisky, peppercorn. Any pâté works beautifully). A complete summer meal that makes everyone at the table jealous.