Mediterranean Pasta Salad is not only easy to make but also a delicious Summer treat. I make it by tossing pasta, tomatoes, cucumber, olives, onions, arugula, and feta cheese with homemade Greek Dressing.
This salad is a perfect food for any picnic or outdoor fun. It is colorful, and it takes only 20 minutes from start to finish. It is filled with all the colorful ingredients & tastes incredible every single time.
Apart from being the salad so flavorful, it is also so vibrant & colorful. Just like this Pasta Salad, Thai Noodle Salad is also my favorite. Also, this Orzo Pasta Salad is quite popular at my home. And who doesn't like a good & simple Pesto Pasta Salad? Sometimes I also love to have Green Masala Chickpeas, as it is bursting with flavors. And when it's Summer, you need to try this delicious Mango Quinoa Salad.
I was thinking of posting this simple & easy Greek salad. It is filled with fresh produce and topped with feta cheese with a generous drizzle of vinaigrette. You will love this salad as it has a lot of crunchy and colorful veggies. I like adding cherry tomatoes, cucumber, red onion, kalamata olives, and red onions, which give a nice flavor to the salad.
INGREDIENTS
For a good salad, all you need is just a handful of ingredients. However, Mediterranean Pasta Salad needs more ingredients like olives and feta cheese for a more flavor and crunch.
- PASTA: For this recipe, I have used Trader Joe's Trofie Colore. I came across this colorful semolina pasta during my last visit there. They are spiral-shaped and go great in any recipe. This pasta salad also goes great with Farfalle Pasta, Rotini Pasta, or Cellentani Pasta.
- VEGGIES: Summer Salad is incomplete without the sweetness of cherry tomatoes, cucumbers. Also toss some red onions, and arugula, and you will get a great & flavorful salad.
- OLIVES: Choose a can of olives or head over to olive bar in your grocery store. Get pitted olives like Kalamata Olives for the recipe.
- FETA CHEESE: You can add mayo for a creamy salad. But believe me Feta Cheese tastes way better with some lemony Greek Salad dressing.
- DRESSING: You can make a dressing of your own or make a store-bought dressing. Tastes better with some lemony Greek Salad dressing. All you need is olive oil, lemon juice, dried oregano, dried cilantro, minced garlic, honey, mustard, and red wine vinegar.
STEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTIONS
BOIL THE PASTA: Add pasta to the instant pot and cover them with water. Pressure cook 4-5 minutes or as per packet instructions. (Note: Pressure Cook Timer depends on the pasta. Check the instruction on the pasta bag. Divide the cooking time by half (½) and -1. That is, Cook Time for pasta is 12. Divided by ½= 6. Then -1= 6-1=5).
Or you also boil the pasta on the stove-top. Add 1 cup of pasta to boiling water. And cook for 8-9 minutes or as per instructions.
Once pasta is boiled, strain the water. You can use a strainer to drain out the water from the pasta.
Cut the veggies. Cut the tomatoes in half, dice the cucumbers, and slice the onions.
Add boiled pasta to a bowl. Then add the veggies, olives, arugula/ spinach, and feta cheese.
MAKE THE DRESSING: Make the dressing by add extra virgin olive oil to a bowl. Also, add lemon juice, mustard, honey, dried oregano, dried cilantro, minced garlic, and red wine vinegar. Whisk until all the ingredients are combined well.
Let the dressing sit for 10-15 minutes so that all the flavors are appropriately combined.
TOSS THE INGREDIENTS: Toss the dressing with pasta and veggies until all the ingredients are combined correctly.
Finally, adjust the flavors and serve.
COMMONLY ASKED QUESTIONS
This pasta salad has around 122 calories, & it is light & healthy to eat. To make it healthier, you can add lots of colorful veggies. And instead of extra virgin olive oil, you can also add flavored juice like orange juice, strawberry juice in the dressing.
You can serve this Greek Pasta Salad with burgers, sandwiches, corn on the cob, roasted potatoes, grilled protein, grilled pineapple, and many more.
You can store pasta salad with dressing in the refrigerator for up to 3-4 days. First, keep the salad in an air-tight container and then store it in the fridge. I won't recommend storing the salad in the freezer.
Usually, when you make pasta, it is recommended not to rinse the pasta. But when making cold pasta salad, rinse the pasta with cold water. When you rinse the pasta with cold water, the cooking process will stop.
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MEDITERRANEAN PASTA SALAD
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 cup Trofie Colore Pasta or Farfalle Pasta, Rotini Pasta, or Cellentani Pasta.
- ½ Red Onion sliced
- 1 Cucumber diced
- 10-15 Cherry Tomatoes cut in half
- 1 handful Arugula
- ½ Red & Green Bell Pepper or mini peppers
- ¼ cup Olives optional
Lemon Vinaigrette
- 1-2 tablespoon Lemon Juice
- ¼ cup Olive Oil Extra Virgin
- 1 clove Galic minced
- 1 tablespoon Honey or Maple Syrup
- ½ teaspoon Oregano dried
- ½ teaspoon Cilantro/ Parsley dried
- 1 tablespoon Mustard Sauce
- 2-3 tablespoon Red Wine Vinegar
- Salt & Pepper
Instructions
How to cook Pasta:
- Instant Pot: Add pasta to the instant pot and cover them with water. Pressure cook 4-5 minutes or as per packet instructions. (Note: Pressure Cook Timer depends on the pasta. Check the instruction on the pasta bag. Divide the cooking time by half (½) and -1. That is, Cook Time for pasta is 12. Divided by ½= 6. Then -1= 6-1=5).
- Stove-Top: Add 1 cup of Pasta in boiling water. And boil for 8-9 minutes or as per instructions.
- Strain the leftover water and transfer the pasta to cold icy water. Leave it for 2-3 minutes or until it's chilled.(Note: This will stop the cooking process and also it will not stick).
Lemon Vinaigrette:
- Toss all the ingredients in a mixing bowl. Whisk all the ingredients until well combined and keep it aside.
Mediterranean Pasta Salad:
- Transfer cooked pasta to a bowl after draining the water. You can use any other pasta too in the recipe.
- Then add all other ingredients (red onions, bell pepper, arugula, cucumber, and tomatoes) to the bowl. Then add Lemony Vinaigrette in the bowl and toss until combined properly.
- Adjust the flavors and serve immediately.
Notes
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