Italian Pasta Salad
This Italian Pasta Salad is the perfect side dish. It’s fully loaded with tender pasta, fresh veggies, chopped salami, olives, and cheese, then tossed in a tangy homemade dressing. It’s always a big hit!
For more delicious side dish recipes, be sure to check out my Strawberry Spinach Salad, Instant Pot Carrots, and Fried Cabbage with Bacon.
With summer days just around the corner, I knew it was time to share one of my favorite recipes of the season; Italian Pasta Salad.
When the temperatures soar, especially as they tend to do here in Texas, there is really nothing better than digging into a big cold bowl of Italian Pasta Salad to beat the heat.
Whether you’re making it for the 4th of July, a summer barbecue, or to serve alongside grilled burgers or chicken, this recipe is always a winner and makes enough to serve a crowd, or to save for leftovers the next day.
Ingredients for Italian Pasta Salad (See measurements in recipe card below!)
- tricolor pasta
- salami
- grape tomatoes
- mozzarella
- green bell pepper
- red onion
- olives
- olive oil
- red wine vinegar
- parmesan cheese
- dijon mustard
- garlic
- sugar
- salt + pepper
- celery seed
How to Make Italian Pasta Salad – Step by Step
Step 1: Cook pasta
Cook the pasta according to the package directions until al dente. Drain and rinse well with cold water. Place in a large bowl.
Step 2: Add ingredients
Cut the salami into small pieces then add to the bowl with the pasta. Stir in the tomatoes, mozzarella, bell pepper, red onion, black olives, and green olives.
Step 3: Make dressing
In a separate medium-sized bowl, whisk together the olive oil, vinegar, mustard, garlic, parmesan cheese, sugar, salt, pepper, and celery seed until combined.
Step 4: Chill and serve
Pour the dressing over the Italian pasta salad and toss, making sure all ingredients are coated in the dressing. Cover the bowl and place in the fridge for at least one hour before serving, but ideally for 3-4 hours or more. The longer it sits, the better it will taste!
Italian Pasta Salad – Tips and Notes
- Don’t overcook your pasta. Only cook your pasta until it’s al dente so that it still has a bit of bite. Otherwise it can get too soft and mushy when mixed with the veggies and the dressing.
- Allow the pasta salad to marinate for a few hours in the fridge. I like to make mine at least 3-4 hours in advance if I have the time. The longer your Italian pasta salad can sit and absorb the flavors of the dressing and veggies, the better it will taste! 1 hour will suffice in a pinch, but give it more time if you can!
- Other pasta options: feel free to use another kind of pasta like bowtie, macaroni, or cavatappi. I like to use tricolor rotini because it adds even more color to the salad.
- Meat and veggie additions: in place of the salami, you could try ham or pepperoni, or leave it out completely for a vegetarian Italian pasta salad. Artichokes, broccoli, red bell pepper, or peperoncini peppers would also make great fresh veggie additions to this salad.
- Not a fan of olives? Just leave them out! To be honest, I am not an olive lover. My husband is, though, so I like to make this with olives for him a lot of the time. But it tastes delicious without them, too, so just know that is an option!
Making in Advance
This Italian Pasta Salad can be made up to 24 hours in advance. Store it in an airtight container in the fridge until ready to serve. It may need to be stirred a bit before serving as some of the dressing may pool at the bottom of the bowl.
Storing Leftover Italian Pasta Salad
Any leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to three days.
More Fresh Salad Recipes You Should Try!
- Cucumber Greek Salad
- Caprese Pasta Salad
- Greek Yogurt Fruit Salad
- Creamy Cheddar and Pea Salad
- Caprese Chickpea Salad
- Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad
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*If you try this recipe, please leave a comment and rating below. I love to hear from you and always appreciate your feedback!
Recipe: Italian Pasta Salad
Ingredients
For the salad
- 12 ounces tricolor pasta, I used rotini
- 4 ounces Genoa salami, chopped
- 1 pound grape tomatoes, cut in half
- 8 ounce block of mozzarella cheese, diced into small cubes
- 1 cup green bell pepper, diced
- 1/4 cup red onion, thinly sliced
- 1/4 cup sliced, canned black olives, drained
- 1/4 cup sliced, canned green olives with pimento, drained
For the dressing
- 3/4 cup olive oil
- 1/3 cup red wine vinegar
- 1 Tablespoon dijon mustard
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 Tablespoons grated parmesan cheese
- 2 teaspoons granulated white sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon celery seed
Instructions
- Cook the pasta according to the package directions until al dente. Drain and rinse well with cold water. Place in a large bowl.
- Cut the salami into small pieces then add to the bowl with the pasta. Stir in the tomatoes, mozzarella, bell pepper, red onion, black olives, and green olives.
- In a separate medium-sized bowl, whisk together the olive oil, vinegar, mustard, garlic, parmesan cheese, sugar, salt, pepper, and celery seed until combined.
- Pour the dressing over the pasta salad and toss, making sure all ingredients are coated in the dressing. Cover the bowl and place in the fridge for at least one hour before serving, but ideally for 3-4 hours or more. The longer it sits, the better it will taste!
Notes
- Don't overcook your pasta. Only cook your pasta until al dente so that it still has a bit of bite. Otherwise it can get too soft and mushy when mixed with the veggies and the dressing.
- Allow the pasta salad to marinate for a few hours in the fridge. I like to make mine at least 3-4 hours in advance if I have the time. The longer your Italian pasta salad can sit and absorb the flavors of the dressing and veggies, the better it will taste! 1 hour will suffice in a pinch, but give it more time if you can!
- Other pasta options: feel free to use another kind of pasta like bowtie, macaroni, or cavatappi. I like to use tricolor rotini because it adds even more color to the salad.
- Meat and veggie additions: in place of the salami, you could try ham or pepperoni, or leave it out completely for a vegetarian Italian pasta salad. Artichokes, broccoli, red bell pepper, or peperoncini peppers would also make great fresh veggie additions to this salad.
- Not a fan of olives? Just leave them out! To be honest, I am not an olive lover. My husband is, though, so I like to make this with olives for him a lot of the time. But it tastes delicious without them, too, so just know that is an option!
- Storing Leftovers: any leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to three days.
Such a great classic recipe! I love the dressing on this and the combo of fresh veggies. I’ll be making this one again for a party this weekend.
I will never say no to pasta, I LOVE trying new pasta recipes so thank you for sharing this one. It looks yummy and super easy to make!
This salad looks awesome! A full packed salad like this can go on its own! Love it!
The dressing can really make or break a pasta salad. This one sounds perfect. I like that you added celery salt!
I love pasta salad! I need to make this minus olives. I have never liked olives.
This was a great meal I added cooked chicken black olives some other vegetables and made it a meal and also had a side salad thank you so much
We actually have something like this in Italy but it’s more a “throw all the leftover veggies and cheese and canned stuff” with pasta and serve it cold kind of thing! It looks so yummy your way too