The Best Easy Pasta Salad

Name: The Best Easy Pasta Salad
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 5 min
Total time: 35 min
Yield: 10
Ingredients: Pasta Salad Essentials:; 1 pound uncooked pasta; 3 cups cherry tomatoes, cut in half; 8 ounces fresh mozzarella cheese balls, cut in half; 1 lb. salami or summer sausage, cut into cubes; 3/4 cup kalamata olives, sliced; 3/4 cup pepperoncini (optional, but do it); 1/2 cup sliced red onion; 1/2 cup fresh parsley, chopped; Italian Pasta Salad Dressing:; 1/2 cup olive oil; 1/4 cup white vinegar (white vinegar or red wine vinegar work); 1/4 cup water; 1–2 tablespoons coarse sea salt (yes, tablespoons – see notes section!); 2 cloves garlic (or 1 teaspoon garlic powder); 1 tablespoon sugar; 2 teaspoons each dry oregano and dry basil; black pepper to taste; fresh herbs if you want! sometimes I add fresh parsley, basil, or chives.

Prep 30m

Cook 5m

Total 35m

This easy pasta salad is bursting with Italian flavors and is perfect for a quick and delicious meal or side dish. With a combination of pasta, cherry tomatoes, mozzarella, salami, olives, and peppers, all tossed in a tangy Italian dressing, this pasta salad is a guaranteed crowd-pleaser.

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Ingredients

Steps

Nutrition Facts

Ingredients

(Servings: 10)

1 pound uncooked pasta

3 cups cherry tomatoes, cut in half

8 ounces fresh mozzarella cheese balls, cut in half

1 lb. salami or summer sausage, cut into cubes

3/4 cup kalamata olives, sliced

3/4 cup pepperoncini (optional, but do it)

1/2 cup sliced red onion

1/2 cup fresh parsley, chopped

1/4 cup white vinegar (white vinegar or red wine vinegar work)

1–2 tablespoons coarse sea salt (yes, tablespoons – see notes section!)

2 cloves garlic (or 1 teaspoon garlic powder)

2 teaspoons each dry oregano and dry basil

black pepper to taste

fresh herbs if you want! sometimes I add fresh parsley, basil, or chives.

Nutrition Facts

Calories

957kcal

47%
Fat

53g

2%
Saturated Fat

16g

0%
Carbohydrates

82g

4%
Fiber

3g

0%
Sugar

4g

0%
Protein

43g

2%
Cholesterol

148mg

7%
Sodium

1,091mg

54%

Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.

Notes

Update 7/12/22: Based on reader feedback and additional testing, the olive oil in the dressing was reduced to 1/2 cup (previous, it was 1 1/2 cups).

Please note that the amount written is for COARSE sea salt. If you are using fine table salt, start with 2 teaspoons and add more to taste.The dressing itself will be very salty. Like, too salty for a normal salad. But in this recipe, that’s what we want! That dressing is going to get tossed with an entire pound of plain pasta, as well as a whole lot of fresh unseasoned vegetables, and it will taste delicious once it’s all tossed up. If you don’t want as salty a dressing, feel free to reduce it to 1 tablespoon.

You can also save time on onion prep with this guide on how to cut an onion.

The Best Easy Pasta Salad

Ingredients

Pasta Salad Essentials

Italian Pasta Salad Dressing

Steps

Nutrition Facts Nutrition facts are based on 1 serving. If servings is not specified, 6 is assumed for the total recipe.

Notes

Nutrition Facts