This fresh, easy pasta salad recipe comes together in under 30 minutes! Tossed in a tangy vinaigrette & filled with veggies, it's a sure cookout hit.
Today’s recipe is a picnic-perfect pasta salad! Every cookout needs a great pasta salad, and this is the one that I’ll be making all summer long. It comes together in no time, it’s full of fresh ingredients, and it packs a flavorful punch.
I took extra care to make sure that all of this week’s recipes are not just easy, but also easy to make in advance… because I totally get that you don’t want to be futzing with your salad when you could be spending time outside with your friends.
Note: if you do decide to make this in advance, toss on some whole basil leaves before serving to make your salad instantly prettier.
Pasta Salad Ingredients
I’ve made many pasta salads before (see here and here), but I realized that I didn’t have a really good classic pasta salad with a vinaigrette dressing on the site. This recipe is easy and fresh – along with the pasta, I toss in juicy cherry tomatoes, tangy feta cheese, a generous handful of arugula, chickpeas for protein, pine nuts & little cucumbers for crunch, and lots of fresh parsley and basil.
The dressing is easy to make: it’s a zesty mix of olive oil, lemon, garlic, Dijon, herbs & seasonings – I like to use herbes de Provence but Italian seasoning would be equally good in its place.
How to Make Pasta Salad
Making this recipe is a breeze! Just follow these simple steps:
- Cook your pasta in a large pot of salted boiling water. Drain it, toss it with some olive oil, and set it aside to cool.
- Chop your cherry tomatoes and cucumbers, mince the parsley, and crumble the feta.
- Whisk together the dressing ingredients.
- And toss everything together in a big bowl! Season to taste and dig in.
My Best Pasta Salad Tips
- Cook your pasta a little longer than normal. It should be just a tad past al dente (but not mushy) so that the pasta stays soft when it cools. I find that the higher time range listed on box instructions is usually just about right for pasta salad.
- Let your pasta cool completely before tossing it with the other ingredients. If it’s still warm, the hot pasta will start to cook and wilt the veggies. No one’s a fan of warm cucumber, so make sure you’re tossing cold pasta into this dish.
- Save some herbs for garnish! This pasta salad recipe is a great one to make ahead, but if you do, save some of the herbs and pine nuts for garnish. The pine nuts will keep their crunchy texture and the herbs will be extra fresh, pretty, and flavorful.
- Taste and adjust. Like most salad recipes, this one is super flexible, so be sure to taste and adjust it to your liking before serving. Add more lemon if you prefer a tangier salad, toss in more greens if you’re all about the veggies, and always, always salt to taste.
Easy Pasta Salad Recipe Variations
This pasta salad is fantastic as-is, but feel free to change it up to match your tastes or the ingredients in your pantry. Here are a few suggestions:
- Make it vegan! Use olives or sun dried tomatoes in place of the feta.
- Make it gluten-free! Use gluten-free pasta or quinoa in place of traditional noodles.
- Go Greek. To make this recipe more of a Greek pasta salad, add kalamata or black olives and a half cup of thinly sliced red onion.
- Try a caprese combo. Use halved mini mozzarella balls in place of the feta.
- Try another herb. Fresh oregano would be lovely in place of the mint in this salad, and thyme would also be a great addition.
- Swap out the arugula for spinach, or leave it out altogether if you prefer a higher pasta: veggie ratio.
- Or roast your chickpeas for extra crunch.
If you love this pasta salad recipe…
Try this broccoli salad, this watermelon salad, this couscous salad, or this summer slaw next!
Easy Pasta Salad
Equipment
Ingredients
- 3 cups uncooked fusilli pasta
- 2 heaping cups halved cherry tomatoes
- 1 ½ cups cooked chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 2 cups arugula
- 1 cup Persian cucumbers, sliced into thin half moons
- 1 cup crumbled feta cheese
- 1 cup basil leaves, torn
- ½ cup minced parsley
- ½ cup chopped mint
- ¼ cup toasted pine nuts
Dressing
- ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil, more for drizzling
- 3 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 teaspoon herbes de Provence, or dried Italian seasoning
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- ¾ teaspoon sea salt
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Prepare the pasta according to the package directions, or until slightly past al dente.
- Meanwhile, make the dressing. In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, mustard, garlic, herbes de Provence, red pepper flakes, and salt. (Note: the dressing will have a strong flavor, it’ll mellow once it coats all of the pasta salad ingredients).
- Drain the pasta, toss it with a little olive oil (so that it doesn’t stick together) and let it cool to room temp. Transfer to a large bowl with the tomatoes, chickpeas, arugula, cucumbers, feta cheese, basil, parsley, mint, and pine nuts. Pour the dressing and toss to coat. Season to taste with more lemon, salt, pepper, and/or a drizzle of olive oil, if desired, and serve.
Made the pasta salad for lunch today and it did not disappoint. Was perfect for an outdoor lunch on the coast! Thanks for all the great recipes!!!
I’m so glad you loved it!
Oops, forgot to rate it. 5 stars all day!!
OMG, this is so delicious! Much different flavor than traditional pasta salad. The easy dressing makes all the difference! (I made it in the blender so that it wouldn’t separate.) Also threw in some chicken and celery. Yummy dinner! Thanks for sharing this! It will be my new go-to pasta salad!
I’m so glad you loved it!
Delicious! The fresh arugula and herbs were tasty and refreshing!
I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
This was delicious and easy; loved the arugula and fresh herbs as well as the addition of the toasted pine nuts. Added kalamata and green olives and left off the feta so it would be vegan. Definitely will be making again.
I’m so glad you loved it!
I love a good pasta salad in summer. This one did not disappoint! I omitted the chickpeas because I also made some vegan baked beans. I also used sunflower seeds in place of the pine nuts because I had them on hand. I love recipes that let me use lots of herbs from the garden!
I’m so glad you loved it!
I made this today. It is a wonderful full of flavourful happy salad. Very happy I found it!
Love this pasta salad. It feels fresh and a lot lighter than the pasta salads I’m used to. Perfect for summer!
I’m glad you enjoyed it!
Love this pasta salad! I added kalamata olives, bell pepper and artichoke hearts. My partner really likes the mustard vinaigrette.
oh yum! I’m glad you enjoyed it.
How can the color green have so many bursts of flavor?!! This “salad” became our meal! The fresh herbs from my garden combined with the feta and spicy dressing were a perfect match. Thank you for sharing your kitchen creations with us! ~s
I’m so glad you all loved it!
I made the Easy Pasta Salad for dinner tonight, and it was delicious—wonderful flavors and textures. Will definitely make it again.
A definite make again. I love how the cooking club always gives me seasonal inspiration.
I made this recipe for my daughter’s birthday party and it was a hit! The herbs provided a delicious fresh taste. It got dry after a couple days and there were tons of leftovers because I doubled the recipe. I would definitely make it again though!
I’m so glad it was a hit!
I’m al about pasta salads (aka salads with pasta) all summer long! The dressing on this one gave it a good zip and the whole family enjoyed it. Thank you!
I’m so glad it was a hit!
I’m all about pasta salads (aka salads with pasta) all summer long! The dressing on this one gave it a good zip and the whole family enjoyed it. Thank you!
This is the best pasta salad I’ve ever had! I used wasabi arugula instead of regular + added dill in with all the other yummy fresh herbs from my garden. So refreshing! I was skeptical about mint in pasta salad but WOW so glad I included it.
Yum, that sounds delicious!
Amazing pasta salad that has all my favorite flavors 🙂 It’s easy to put together and easy to do ahead of time. We served it with grilled pork tenderloin. I’ll be making this on repeat!
Once again a great side dish for our Father’s Day dinner! Loved it – only change didn’t have the Italian herbs so substituted oregano!
I love the use of arugula and fresh herbs in this salad. I made it with whole wheat pasta because that is what we eat. It worked beautifully. The arugula and herbs lightened up the salad and it was refreshing rather than heavy. I might prefer more of an Italian dressing with this, which I’ll try next time.
This looks delicious! Will it last a few days or get soggy? I want to make it for the Fourth of July weekend at the lake, but I’m hoping it could last as a yummy side for lunch sandwiches at the dock after a cookout night. Thanks!
Hi Lindsey, I think it lasts pretty well for a few days. The arugula and herbs will get a little wilty, but I don’t mind that for lunches on days 2 and 3. If the pasta seems dry, toss it with a little more olive oil.