This Pasta Salad recipe is one you can whip together in minutes … perfect for a mid week dinner or an impromptu get together!
We love that this Pasta Salad recipe is light and filled with salad crunch. Because if you’re anything like us, you might think that most pasta salad recipes tend to be a little stodgy. Too much straight mayonnaise and not enough salad vegetables – basically just pasta mixed with mayo!
Oh when you find the perfect Pasta Salad …
There’s nothing better than discovering a really goooood Pasta Salad when you’re at a barbecue! It’s the perfect accompaniment to any meat that comes off the barbecue and the perfect pasta salad includes a few vegetables too so you could be excused for not worrying about a pile of boring lettuce leaves from another salad bowl.
What’s the key to the all time best Creamy Pasta Salad?
- We think creating a creamy but not too heavy and creamy dressing for your Pasta Salad is critical. Check out how we cut the heaviness of the creamy dressing in the recipe below.
- Another key is the pasta. The type of pasta and the way that pasta is cooked. We like to use small penne or elbows. In terms of cooking, we don’t overcook pasta anytime really but especially in a Pasta Salad. Aim to cook your pasta until it is just al dente and then as soon as you strain the water away, rinse in cold water to ensure the pasta doesn’t continue to cook.
- The final key is a little crunch – in this recipe we’ve added the crunch with freshly chopped veges that are added just before serving. You could also add even more crunch with some toasted pine nuts or toasted slivered almonds.
We’d love to hear your comments on our Pasta Salad recipe. Is there any you’d change about it?
Ingredients (serves 6 | makes 1 Large Salad to Share)
- 500g Penne Pasta or Pasta Elbows
- 250ml Light Sour Cream
- 1/2 cup Whole Egg Mayonnaise
- 2 tbsp Apple Cider Vinegar
- 2 tsps Dijon Mustard
- 1 tsp Caster Sugar or Stevia
- 1/2 Capsicum, finely sliced
- 2 sticks Celery, strings removed and finely sliced
- 1 medium Red Salad Onion
- 1/4 cup Italian Flat Leaf Parsley, finely chopped
- Pinch Salt & Pepper
Method
- Cook the pasta in salted water until just al dente. Drain and then rinse in chilled water to remove starch and halt the cooking process.
- While the pasta is cooking: Finely chop the Capsicum Finely dice the Red Salad Onion Finely chop the Celery Finely chop the Parsley
- While the pasta is cooling, make the dressing: Combine the sour cream, mayonnaise, dijon mustard, vinegar and caster sugar and whisk to combine well. Season with salt & pepper to taste.
- Once the pasta is cool, add the salad vegetables (except the parsley) and the dressing and stir through until everything is well combined.
- Transfer to a serving bowl and sprinkle with parsley and extra salt and pepper to taste.
Notes
Don't be afraid to stray from the list of salad veges we've included in this recipe! You might like to add some baby spinach or fresh basil leaves, some toasted pine nuts, semi dried tomatoes, grated carrots or even some finely shredded lightly steamed kale. This salad is great because it will keep well in the refrigerator even once the dressing is on. The only exception to this would be if you added baby spinach leaves - they won't do well for much longer than 24 hours after the dressing is added. This recipe also works beautifully as a 'warm salad' - do everything as per the recipe above - just don't cool the pasta down after cooking. Simply add the vegetables and the dressing, stir and serve with a little parmesan cheese on top. If you want to add some protein, hot smoked salmon would work beautifully.
Here's a few more classic salads you might like to try:- Simple Caesar Salad (so simple you can have it ready in 6 minutes)
- Potato Salad with Egg & Onion
- Greek Salad Traditional Style
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