Italian Pasta Salad
A classic Pasta Salad with salami, fresh mozzarella, crunchy baby peppers and tangy olives, all tossed in a delicious Italian Dressing. Perfect as a meal on its own or as a side dish, you need this in your pasta salad repertoire.
When it comes to summer dining, pasta salad is always a winner. It is quick to make, easy to scale up for a crowd, and endlessly versatile. Great for picnics, BBQs and pot lucks – everyone loves a good pasta salad at a social gathering. And if you want a pasta salad that will impress a crowd then you need this Italian Salad inspired version.
Why You’ll Love Italian Pasta Salad
- Make Ahead Friendly – Pasta salad tastes even better after sitting for a few hours, making it a great choice for meal prep, picnics or packed lunches.
- Crowd Pleaser – Whether you’re cooking for a BBQ, family gathering or a casual weekday dinner, everyone loves a colourful, flavour-packed pasta salad.
- Flexible & Adaptable – Stick with the classics or mix it up with your favourite veggies, cheese or Italian deli meats. This is the kind of recipe you can tailor to what you have in the fridge.
Ingredients
Full ingredients list with quantities is included in the recipe card below. These are some helpful notes about the main ingredients including some swaps and substitutes where applicable.
- Pasta – a short shape works best for pasta salad. I like farfalle or bow-tie pasta for this Italian salad, but something like fusilli or rigatoni would also work well.
- Salami – thin deli slices work best.
- Sweet Mini Peppers – I like to use mini or baby peppers as they are nice and sweet and compliment the salad flavours well. You can swap for one thinly sliced red or yellow bell pepper instead.
- Cherry Tomatoes – highly recommend a tomato cutter if you use cherry tomatoes in salads often!
- Red Onion – rinse cut red onion under cold water to calm down the flavour if you need. I find red onions are either absolutely huge or teeny tiny, so do use your best judgement on sizing and how much to use.
- Mozzarella Cheese – I prefer mini mozzarella pearls or simply tear up a larger ball.
- Black Olives – regular pitted black olives work best flavour wise, but you can also use green olives or a mixture.
And For the Dressing:
- Olive Oil – or your favourite oil for salad dressing.
- Red Wine Vinegar – red is prefered but white wine vinegar works almost as well.
- Dried Herbs – oregano, basil, garlic and onion. You can switch up the herbs – thyme and parsley would also work well, or try an Italian herb blend.
- Dijon Mustard – as well as flavour the mustard acts as an emulsifier to keep the oil and vinegar combined.
- Honey – optional, or use sugar or your preferred sweetener.
Tips For the Best Pasta Salad
Choose the right pasta – Short shapes like farfalle, fusilli or penne hold onto the dressing and mix-ins best.
Season well – Pasta absorbs flavour as it sits, so do not be shy with seasoning.
Let it chill – A few hours in the fridge helps the flavours develop and makes it extra delicious.
Swaps and Add-Ins
–Swap the salami for another Italian cured meat like mortadella or prosciutto (or even good quality pepperoni), or try a mix of meats.
-Add a sprinkle of grated parmesan cheese (or swap it for the mozzarella).
– For a vegetarian version, skip the salami or replace it with a can of drained chickpeas/garbanzo or another white bean.
How to Serve
Italian Pasta Salad works great as a meal by itself, or with some rocket/arugula or baby leaf greens mixed in to make it more of a proper salad.
Make a big batch to use for grab and go lunches through the week.
Serve it as a side dish for grilled meat, or as part of a buffet style spread – its great for parties or BBQs.
Got Leftovers?
Keep in the Fridge in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
Best served at room temperature.
Dressing tip: If making ahead, reserve a little extra dressing to stir through before serving to freshen it up.
More Pasta Salad Recipes
If you love this Italian-inspired version, try some of my other pasta salad recipes:
- Greek Pasta Salad with Chickpeas
- Mediterranean Tuna Pasta Salad
- Orzo Pesto Pasta Salad
- Grinder Pasta Salad
I hope you like this recipe as much as I do!
Don’t forget to rate the recipe and leave a comment if you make it.
Your feedback is really important and helps me keep making recipes you love!
Italian Pasta Salad
Equipment
- Pasta Pot
- Large Mixing Bowl
Ingredients
- 250 grams pasta I like farfalle or bow tie pasta
- 80 grams salami or another cured meat
- 5 mini peppers thinly sliced
- 10 cherry tomatoes quartered
- ½ red onion thinly sliced
- 200 g mini mozzarella balls
- ½ cup black pitted olives sliced
- small bunch Fresh parsley or basil chopped
Italian Dressing
- 4 tbsp Olive oil
- 2 tbsp Red wine vinegar
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard
- 1 tsp honey or sugar
- ½ tsp dried basil
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- ¼ tsp onion granules
- 1/4 tsp Salt
Instructions
- Cook the pasta according to packet instructions in a large pot of well salted water. Drain and rinse under cold water to stop cooking.
- Meanwhile, prepare the rest of the salad ingredients and add everything to a large bowl.
- Combine the dressing ingredients in a small jar or bowl and mix well to emulsify (I get best results with a jar – pop the lid on securely and shake well).
- Add the paste to the bowl with the other salad ingredients, pour over the dressing and toss to combine.
- Serve at room temperature. For best results, allow the salad to sit for at least 20 minutes before serving, to allow the flavours to meld.
