There's a reason that pasta salad is a summertime, cookout, block party go-to. No heating up your kitchen, takes just minutes to toss together, and is best served straight from the fridge. Where could you go wrong? I love making this Italian Pasta Salad for not just summertime gatherings, but also just, you know, a Tuesday. Because of that super quick to toss together thing I mentioned 🙂
Ingredients for Italian Pasta Salad:
- Pasta - I used Banza pasta for this one to up the protein content. I used fusilli noodles, but penne is another great choice!
- Grape Tomatoes
- Black Olives
- Fresh Mozzarella. Use the pearls to make prep easy.
- Salami
- Italian Dressing - or make your own with my easy recipe below
Easy to Customize
I love this recipe because it is SUPER customizable! Don't like olives? Leave them out! Love olives? Add more! Dairy free? It's still great without the cheese.
Perfect for a Potluck
A pasta salad is a classic option for a potluck or backyard barbecue. Some other great recipes to bring are this Crunchy Ramen Noodle Salad, S'Mores Bars, Healthy Buffalo Chicken served with chips or crackers, and Brown Butter Rice Krispie Treats.
Now that I've got pasta salad firmly on my mind, what mix-ins would be in your DREAM salad? Let me know in the comments!
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PrintRecipe
Italian Pasta Salad
Italian Pasta Salad is the perfect easy dish to whip together for your next summer potluck. Customize the mix-ins to make your dream salad.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 5 servings
- Category: Main Dish
- Method: Stove
- Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients
Italian Dressing (or ½ cup pre-made)
- ⅓ cup olive oil
- 1.5 tablespoons red wine vinegar (or white vinegar)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon dried basil
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ground black pepper
Pasta Salad
- 8 ounces pasta (cooked according to package directions)
- 4-6 ounces fresh mozzarella (diced, or pearls cut in half)
- ½ lbs salami (casing removed and diced)
- ⅓-½ cup black olives (to taste)
- 3 tablespoons fresh parsley (minced)
- 1 pint cherry tomatoes (halved)
Instructions
- In a small bowl, whisk together the Italian Dressing ingredients. Add pepper to taste (I like to do a big pinch's worth!).
- In a large bowl mix together the pasta salad ingredients. Mix gently so you don't break up the pasta too much. Pour over the dressing and toss to combine.
Notes
My pasta shapes of choice for this salad are fusilli and penne. But use your fave!
Have a favorite store-bought Italian dressing? Use it! Or the dressing recipe I laid out can be stored in the fridge for about 3 days.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: ⅕ of recipe
- Calories: 569
- Sugar: 5.9 g
- Sodium: 963.3 mg
- Fat: 35.6 g
- Carbohydrates: 44.9 g
- Fiber: 2.8 g
- Protein: 18.5 g
- Cholesterol: 58.7 mg
Katie says
The family loved this pasta salad. We left out the olives and did a little extra of everything else