Fajita-Style Orzo

This orzo salad pulls fajita flavors off the flour tortilla and onto a pasta plate. Grilled red bell peppers and red onions get charred until sweet and slumped, then chopped thin and folded into warm pasta with fresh tomato salsa. It’s a great way to use the grill for a carb-heavy meal without ever reaching for a grain of ground beef.

The fresh salsa that dresses everything is mostly raw: minced tomato, scallions, minced jalapenos and enough lime juice to make the whole dish taste alive. A full half cup of lime juice might look aggressive on paper, but it’s what turns this from bland pasta-and-veg into something genuinely bright.

Grilling is the method that matters. Eight or nine minutes over medium-hot coals coaxes natural sweetness out of the peppers and onions while adding that smoky, slightly bitter char that fajita flavor relies on. If you’re stuck indoors, broil for a similar effect.

A spoonful of sour cream on each bowl cools things down and adds the creamy tang fajitas always get from guacamole or crema.

Chef Tips

• Cook the orzo just short of al dente, it continues to soften as it sits in the salsa
• Toss the pasta in a little oil before it cools completely, this stops grains from clumping into a single mass
• Keep the jalapeno seeds in for more heat, or remove for a milder version
• Let the salsa sit ten minutes before adding to the pasta, resting time draws out the tomato juice and unifies the flavors
• Serve warm, not hot, overcooked lime juice loses its freshness

Variations

• Add a cup of grilled corn kernels for summer sweetness and texture
• Top with crumbled queso fresco or cotija instead of sour cream for a drier Mexican-style finish
• Fold in shredded grilled chicken or sliced skirt steak for a heartier main-course version