This delicious Mediterranean Pasta Salad made with Greek ingredients and with Pennette pasta tastes light and fresh dressed in a mediterranean salad dressing made with fresh lemon juice and olive oil.
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It is incredible how many variations of pasta salad recipes you can find on the web. Some include protein by adding pieces of cooked chicken, shrimp, salmon or salami. While others add lettuce and fresh spinach.
With all of these variations, you could easily make a different pasta salad every week of the summer. My favourite combination of ingredients to use in a pasta salad are those typically found in Mediterranean cooking and doesn't include meat.
How to Make a Pennette Pasta Salad
Pasta salads are easy to make and generally involve very little actual cooking. The only ingredient needing to be cooked in this salad recipe is the pasta.
Here are the ingredients you'll find in my vegetarian Mediterranean Pasta Salad:
Ingredients Overview:
- Pennette Rigate. You can use the pasta shape you like, orzo is very popular but I prefer something a bit larger, like Pennette (small Penne).
- Feta cheese. Since I wanted to use Greek flavours for this pasta salad, I opted for Feta cheese, but you could also use crumbled goat cheese, cubed mozzarella, Parmesan shavings, or whatever cheese you like to add to salads. For a vegan pasta salad, you could leave the cheese out or use a vegan cheese.
- Sun-dried tomatoes. I like to use oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes. They're plump and have a softer texture than dry-packed tomatoes which are chewier and need to be hydrated before eating in a salad. If you don't like sun-dried tomatoes you can always use cherry tomatoes.
- Kalamata olives. Lots and lots of olives, use your favourite kind.
- Red onions. I like to add the onions straight into the salad. If you find their taste overpowering, simply add the onions to the dressing so their flavour mellows out a bit.
- Bell pepper. You can use red, green, yellow or orange bell pepper. I like to use a full pepper for a pound (454 grams) of dried pasta. But you could use as much as you like.
- Parsley. Flat-leaf or curly parsley will work here. You could also add more fresh herbs. Fresh oregano, mint or summer savory are also delicious.
- Lemon juice and olive oil dressing. A simple mediterranean salad dressing made of freshly squeezed lemon juice, extra-virgin olive oil, a small clove of garlic (minced) and salt and pepper.
Steps Overview:
- Start by cooking the pasta, adding two minutes to the amount indicated on the package directions for al dente pasta. Why two minutes more? Because the pasta will harden and become chewy when refrigerated. By cooking the pasta an extra two minutes you'll have perfectly tender but firm pasta in your salad.
- Drain the pasta and rinse it under lots of cold water. Let the pasta cool completely while you prepare the remainder of the ingredients.
- Chop the bell pepper, red onion, sun-dried tomatoes and olives. I like to keep everything fairly the same size except for the onions which I chop up into a smaller dice.
- Wash and chop the parsley and other herbs if using any.
- Dice or crumble the Feta cheese.
- Make the dressing. When dressing the salad reserve a bit of the dressing for any leftovers you might have. This will make any leftovers just as delicious as on the day you serve this dish.
- Combine all of the ingredients in a large bowl and add the dressing, toss the salad well and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes to let the flavours develop.
- When ready to serve, remove the salad from the refrigerator toss again and taste to see if more dressing or seasoning is needed and adjust to taste.
How to Store
Leftover pasta salad is great for quick lunches. This salad keeps well in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 4 days.
How to Serve
Since the pasta will absorb much of the dressing you will find the salad needs a bit of freshening up. This is where the reserved mediterranean salad dressing will come in handy.
Use a bit of the leftover dressing to liven the salad up. If you used all of the dressing, simply drizzle a touch of olive oil and a squeeze of lemon juice on the salad to brighten it up again.
Enjoy!
More Mediterranean Salads to Try
Mediterranean Pasta Salad
Ingredients
Mediterranean Pasta Salad
- 454 grams dry pasta pennette, fusilli, rotini, macaroni are all good choices
- 1 large red bell pepper chopped
- ½ medium red onion finely chopped
- ¾ cup pitted kalamata olives halved
- 1 cup Feta cheese crumbled
- ½ cup parsley chopped
- ½ cup sun-dried tomatoes sliced thin
Mediterranean Salad Dressing (Lemon Dressing)
- ⅓ cup olive oil extra-virgin
- 4 tablespoons lemon juice freshly squeezed
- 1 small clove of garlic minced
- ½ teaspoon salt more to taste
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper more to taste
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat.
- Add pasta and cook, stirring occasionally, until pasta is tender or 2 minutes longer than package directions for al dente pasta. Drain the pasta and rinse it under cold water. Once the pasta is drained transfer pasta to a large bowl.
- Meanwhile, prepare all of the salad ingredients.
- Make the salad dressing by adding all of the ingredients to a jar and shaking well.
- Once the pasta is cool add all of the salad ingredients to a large bowl. Top with the dressing (reserving a couple of tablespoons for any leftover salad) and toss well. Salad tastes best if refrigerated at least 30 minutes before serving.
- When ready to serve, toss the salad again and taste to see if more dressing or seasoning is needed. Adjust to taste.
Notes
- Cook pasta for 2 minutes longer than directed on the pasta package. This will ensure the pasta doesn't get hard or stiff after refrigerating.
- Salad keeps well in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
- Serves 10 to 12 as a side.
- Ingredients can be divided in half if cooking for 4 to 6 people.