Gordon Ramsay’s orzo pasta salad recipe tosses warm orzo with rocket (arugula), fresh basil, toasted pine nuts and a Parmesan lemon dressing. It takes about 20 minutes and serves 4.
This recipe comes from Gordon Ramsay’s Ultimate Home Cooking, where he writes: “The pepperiness of the rocket, the perfume of the basil and the acidity of the dressing work beautifully together in this salad.” It also appears on gordonramsay.com and in his YouTube video, where he calls orzo “one of the hidden delicacies of Italian pasta.”
The technique that makes his version work: he dresses the orzo while it’s still warm. In the video he explains why: “the warmer the pasta, the more it absorbs the vinaigrette.” Cold pasta just sits in the dressing, warm pasta drinks it in.
Gordon Ramsay Orzo Pasta Salad Recipe
Course: SaladsCuisine: AmericanDifficulty: Easy4
5
minutes15
420
kcal20
A warm-dressed orzo salad with rocket, basil and pine nuts from Gordon Ramsay’s Ultimate Home Cooking. He cooks the pasta with a bay leaf in the water for a subtle background flavour most orzo recipes skip entirely.
Ingredients
7 oz (200g) orzo
1 bay leaf
1.75 to 3.5 oz (50 to 100g) pine nuts
Large bunch of basil, chopped
3.5 oz (100g) rocket (arugula), roughly chopped
Olive oil, for drizzling
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- For the dressing:
1 oz (30g) Parmesan cheese, finely grated
Zest and juice of 1 lemon
6 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Directions
- Cook the orzo: Cook according to packet instructions, adding the bay leaf and a pinch of salt to the boiling water. In his video, Ramsay stresses using a gentle rolling boil, not a rapid one, because “boiling pasta rapidly tends to destroy the outside texture” and stops it absorbing the dressing later. When al dente, about 8 minutes, drain and hold under running cold water for about 10 seconds to stop the cooking process. Discard the bay leaf, then drizzle with a little olive oil and mix through to stop the grains sticking together.
- Make the dressing: While the orzo cooks, make the dressing directly in your serving bowl. Mix the Parmesan with the lemon zest and juice. Add 3 tablespoons of the oil and mix well. Taste and season as necessary, adding a little more oil if needed.
- Toast the pine nuts: Toast in a dry frying pan over medium heat until golden. Remove and set aside until cool. No oil needed because the nuts release their own fat as they heat.
- Dress and serve: While the orzo is still slightly warm, add it to the dressing, then mix through the rocket, basil and pine nuts. Taste and adjust the seasoning as necessary, and serve.
FAQs
Why does Ramsay add a bay leaf to the pasta water?
Most pasta recipes just salt the water. Adding a bay leaf gives the orzo a subtle herbal background that you can’t quite identify in the finished dish but would miss if it wasn’t there. He mentions this specifically in the cookbook headnote as giving the salad “an intriguing background flavour.”
Why use a gentle boil instead of a rapid one?
In his youtube video, Ramsay explains that rapidly boiling pasta damages the outside texture. Rough surfaces can’t hold dressing properly, so the vinaigrette slides off instead of clinging to each grain. A gentle rolling boil keeps the orzo smooth enough to absorb the Parmesan and lemon.
Why dress the orzo while it’s still warm?
Warm pasta is porous and actively absorbs liquid. Once it cools completely, the surface tightens and the dressing just coats the outside. By mixing the orzo into the Parmesan lemon dressing while still slightly warm, the flavour gets pulled into each grain rather than sitting on top.
How is this different from his saffron orzo in Quick and Delicious?
Completely different dish. The Quick and Delicious version cooks orzo risotto-style, stirring it in saffron stock with butter and finishing with Parmesan, like a creamy warm grain bowl. This Ultimate Home Cooking version is a cold salad dressed with a light vinaigrette. Same pasta shape, two opposite approaches.
Why does he rinse the orzo for only 10 seconds?
A long rinse under cold water washes away the starch completely, which kills the slight creaminess that helps the dressing cling. Ten seconds is just enough to stop the cooking without stripping the surface. It also leaves the orzo slightly warm, which ties back to his technique of dressing it before it cools down.
What does Ramsay serve this with?
He pairs it with his griddled sardines with gremolata from the same chapter, calling them “my ultimate Italian lunch” in the video. The lemon in both dishes ties them together. Any simply grilled fish or roast chicken works well since the salad is light enough to sit alongside without competing.
I’m Ava Taylor. I’m A Self-taught Home Cook Who Loves Gordon Ramsay Recipes. I Try Every Dish In My Small Apartment Kitchen And Tweak It Until It Works. I Write Clear Steps With Simple Words So Anyone Can Follow. I Share Honest Wins, Mistakes, And Quick Tips To Help You Cook With Confidence.