Italian Pasta Salad Recipe
Published June 24, 2024. This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.
This delicious Italian Pasta Salad Recipe is jam-packed with veggies, cured meats, cheese, and herbs in a homemade balsamic vinaigrette. Once you try this salad, it will quickly become a favorite.
Whenever I go to a get-together, I am all about the side dishes. I want to try as many things as possible, and some of my absolute favorites are vinegar coleslaw and Polenta.
Pasta Salad
Pasta salad is a cold Italian salad of cooked and chilled pasta with assorted toppings such as cured meats, veggies, cheese, herbs, tossed in a dressing and served. In Italy this is known as insalata di pasta or pasta fredda. The beauty of this dish is that it can be tailored and altered depending on what’s in season and what you like.
There different theroies about how pasta salad came to be, but in America this classic side dish became popularized during the early to mid 20th century. My version is extremely hearty and filling and I hope you get the opportunity to make it.
Ingredients and Substitutions
- Pasta – Any pasta shape such as fusilli, orzo, farfalle, rotini, or penne can be used.
- Meat – I used a combination of mortadella, ham, and salami. Other meats such as pepperoni, prosciutto, summer sausage, and more can be used.
- Vegetables – I added cucumbers and pepperoncini to the pasta salad. Other great veggies to add are bell peppers, zucchini, squash, eggplant, etc.
- Tomatoes – I prefer cherry tomatoes, but fresh, in-season tomatoes will work.
- Olives – Any pitted olive is good to use in this dish.
- Onion – I used a shallot, but you can use a red, white, or sweet onion.
- Cheese – Mozzarella and Parmigiano Reggiano are amazing in this side dish. However, you can also use fontina, asiago, or pecorino Romano.
- Herbs – Fresh basil goes extremely well in this. You can also use dried oregano or marjoram.
- Dressing – Balsamic vinaigrette is the perfect dressing for this. Other options that would work are Italian dressing, ranch, lemon vinaigrette, or poppy seed.
How to Make Italian Pasta Salad
Start by boiling your pasta in salted water and draining it in the refrigerator while you prepare all the vegetables, dressing, and meats.
Make the vinaigrette and set it aside until ready to use. Often, some vinaigrette will remain.
Slice up all the meats and vegetables and set them aside until the salad is ready.
Add all of the pasta salad ingredients into a very large bowl.
Dress the outside of the bowl with vinaigrette to ensure that when it’s mixed, each ingredient becomes coated in the dressing.
Serve it in a large bowl and garnish with fresh herbs.
Make-Ahead and Storage
Make-Ahead: You can make this salad up to 2 days ahead. Keep all of the ingredients separate before serving.
How to Store: Store in a covered container for up to 4 days. It will not freeze well.
chef notes + tips
- If you want to assemble it later the best way to store the pasta is chilled and coated in a little bit of oil so that the noodles do not stick together.
- I can’t stress enough that you can add more ingredients to this pasta salad, such as zucchini, squash, different olives, etc.
More Side Dishes
Video
Italian Pasta Salad Recipe
Ingredients
- 1- pound fusilli pasta
- 4 ounces sliced mortadella
- 4 ounces sliced ham
- 2 ounces sliced salami
- ½ seeded and sliced cucumber
- 1 cup assorted cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
- ¼ cup sliced pepperoncini’s
- ½ cup sliced green olives
- ½ cup sliced black olives
- ½ peeled and small diced red onion
- 1 cup cilliegine mozzarella
- 2 tablespoons chiffonade basil
- ¼ cup shredded parmesan cheese
- ½ balsamic vinaigrette dressing recipe
- Sea salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- In a large pot of boiling salted water add the pasta and cook them until slightly crunchy or al dente, according to its package. Immediately chill the noodles under cold water and toss with a few tablespoons of olive oil so they do not stick and place in the refrigerator until ready to use.
- To Assemble: Add the cooked noodles, meats, cucumbers, tomatoes, pepperoncini, olives, onions, cilliegine, basil, parmesan cheese, and salt and pepper to a large bowl.
- Add the dressing 1 large spoonful at a time to the outside of the bowl and mix thoroughly using a rubber spatula so that the ingredients don’t break up.
- Serve cold.
I just made some pasta salad. It was delicious. I changed up the tomatoes a bit.
Use grape tomatoes, wash, dry and place on a sheet pan. A small sheet pan works well.
Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Then fire up your grill and roast them for 5-15 minutes on indirect heat until they start to slightly wilt.
The flavor is intense and the texture is wonderful.
Excellent!
Every recipe of Billy’s that I have tried has been a culinary changeover for me. I now use his methods in my cooking!
Excellent!
I loved this great side dish or lunch is better.
Excellent!
I made this twice, so far. It was a BIG hit. And it will be made again!
YOU, ARE AMAZING, TY!
Very tasty and a real summer dish.
This looks great will make this for the 4th July. I have made my own folder for all the recipes I like from you and I made
Awesome!
Just delicious…
Excellent!
Positively the best pasta salad! The dressing is so good with the added basil. My guests rave about this salad.
Awesome!!
Absolutely 💯 loved it!!!
excellent!
This is my now go to pasta salad. I’ve made it for groups of 100 with rave reviews.
Thanks Billy
love it!
Absolutely love this. I love the dressing. I didn’t know it can be so easy 💕
amazing!
This pasta salad is awesome. I’ve made it for two functions and everyone loved it.
I made this a few weeks ago for a camping trip. I prepared ahead as the recipe calls for and got all thumbs up! We loved it!
Excellent!
Make it regularly for pot luck, barbecue and church functions. Always everybody says how much they like it.
Perfect!
This is a family salad that gets made all the time in our family particularly because my youngest adult son is a type one diabetic and cannot eat any mayonnaise, nor does he like it. It’s delicious and uses all kinds of meats. Sometimes I’ll make it with smoked ham cubes, hard salami, red onion cucumber, small cubes of Swiss cheese and small cubes of mild cheddar cheese, Parmesan, basil and homemade Italian dressing. I don’t usually put in the olives or pepperochini’s because some members of the family don’t care for them. Other times I make it exactly like Chef Billy does. “Dang Delicious 😋 “
thanks for giving it a shot!!
I make this salad all the time with the balsamic vinaigrette dressing. People rave about it when I bring it to parties. It’s the first salad to go!
I made this pasta salad for a party of 60 to go along with bbq pulled pork and baked beans. This was a huge hit and will now be part of my menu going forward.
This was really good! I threw in some
chopped arugula, a squeeze of lemon juice, a bit of oregano, and a handful of chopped peppadew peppers. Went very well with the recipe and everyone seemed to like it. Will make again!
This salad is to die for! I served it to guests and the raved. I used white balsamic. This is now a standard at picnics or any time I want a delicious salad.
I made this with the balsamic dressing and it is soooo good. Took some to my neighbors and they finished it right out of the container. I am making the German potato salad next.
I can’t wait to serve this on Sunday, I love that you can make the delicious dressing ahead, and I plan on getting everything prepared on Saturday, and
then assemble and serve it on Sunday, looks delicious!
The summer pasta salad is my menu for tonight. It look so refresing can’t wait for dinner tonight.
Thanks!!
I cannot wait to try this!!!
Thanks Lindsey!