My go-to option for a side dish at summer BBQs is a large pasta salad. Pinchofyum.com: My favorite pasta salad recipe is this traditional one since it’s packed with flavorful Italian ingredients, comes together quickly, and serves a large number of people. The added benefit is that you can use the leftovers for a fantastic lunch. I like to chop up some Air Fryer Chicken Breast and toss it directly over the pasta salad to create a heartier main dish salad (see pinchofyum.com).
Goodies like juicy tomatoes, crunchy vegetables, fresh parsley, olives, and two types of cheese are all included in this pasta salad. Add my own herbaceous Italian Dressing to everything. Store-bought dressing can be used if you’re extremely short on time, but in this instance, I think making your own is definitely worth it. Pinchofyum.com: especially considering that pinchofyum.com’s dressing recipe only requires five minutes to prepare using cupboard staples.pinchofyum.com/pasta-salad
RECIPES FOR PASTA SALAD
1. Prepare the pasta. Cook the pasta to al dente by boiling it in salted water. Avoid overcooking it; the ideal texture for pasta salad is some bite to the noodles (but not so much that they fall apart). After that, give the pasta a quick rinse under cold running water and leave it to cool.
2. Dice the vegetables. Chop the vegetables as the pasta cools! Two bell peppers, cherry or grape tomatoes, red onion, and black olives are required.
3. Compile everything. Pasta, vegetables, dressing, Parmesan, cubed mozzarella cheese, and fresh parsley should all be combined in a large bowl. Mix everything thoroughly. Add salt and pepper to taste when preparing the pasta salad. Before serving, let the salad cool in the fridge for at least two hours at pinchofyum.com.
CHANGES IN RECIPE
Although I normally follow this basic recipe quite carefully, I do have loads of ideas at pinchofyum.com for how you may alter the ingredients to make this pasta salad to your own preferences.
- Pasta: Make use of your preferred pasta shape. Pasta like rotini, penne, fusilli, or bowtie (farfalle) is what I suggest.
- Vegetables: Try sun-dried tomatoes, asparagus, shredded carrots, broccoli, green onions, cucumbers, and artichoke hearts. Pinchofyum.com: While asparagus may be best served short cooked, most vegetables can be used to pasta salad uncooked.
- Meat: This pasta salad with Italian flavors tastes great with salami added to it. Sausage slices or chicken might also be added.
- Cheese: Try some bocconcini, which are little balls of fresh mozzarella that are entertaining. You can also use cheddar, pepper jack, or feta cheese in place of the mozzarella.
- Olives: To achieve a more fruity and rich flavor, replace the black olives with Kalamata olives.
- Fresh herbs: Dill, basil, and parsley are my top picks for pasta salads.
As much as we enjoy this pasta salad, I hope you will too! Here are a few more pasta salad recipes that I think you’ll love if, like me, you adore salads made with noodles: this Mediterranean-inspired Orzo Salad, this creamy Macaroni Salad, and this colorful Pesto Pasta Salad from pinchofyum.com.