I love pasta salad. It’s one of those recipes you can customize a million different ways, it’s easy to make and it makes great leftovers. I also love that pasta salad can be a meal or a side dish, depending how you make it. It’s also perfect for a barbecue.
One of the most important parts of pasta salad is the dressing! I thought I’d share my favorite three easy pasta salad dressing recipes.
You can use any of these pasta salad dressings in a simple pasta salad with cooked pasta, cut vegetables and cheese.
Related: Creamy Pasta Salad, Easy Broccoli Salad, Classic Pea Salad with Bacon, 40+ Picnic Food Ideas and 50+ BBQ Side Dishes.
The three pasta salad dressings I use most often are homemade balsamic, Italian, and a creamy option. These all go well with about 8-10 ounces of cooked pasta plus whatever other ingredients you are throwing in.
I most often use one of the two oil-based dressings, but if I’m making a pasta salad that has more vegetables/crunch, then I often opt for the creamy (like this creamy winter pasta salad).
Creamy Pasta Salad Dressing Ingredients:
- Mayo
- Greek yogurt
- Apple cider vinegar
- Olive oil
- Garlic powder
- Salt & Pepper
Balsamic Pasta Salad Dressing Ingredients:
- Olive oil
- Balsamic vinegar
- Honey
- Mustard
- Salt & Pepper
Italian Pasta Salad Dressing Ingredients:
- Olive oil
- Apple cider vinegar
- Lemon juice
- Garlic powder
- Italian seasoning
To make any of these pasta salad dressing recipes you simply combine all the ingredients in a small bowl and whisk to combine, or in a jar with a lid and shake well.
You can customize these three dressings further if you want to add a handful of chopped fresh herbs or a little heat with some red pepper flakes or cayenne.
And if you’re mostly still reading because you want to know where I bought that rainbow pasta, here it is. 🙂
The basic recipe for pasta salad is cooked pasta, one of these dressings, a few chopped vegetables (cherry tomatoes, bell pepper, broccoli, etc.), some cheese, and a few chopped fresh herbs.
Sometimes I’ll add pepperoni if I’m feeling wild. Ha. Enjoy! xo. Emma
More Salad Dressing Recipes:
- Lemon Vinaigrette Salad Dressing
- Poppy Seed Dressing
- Green Goddess Salad Dressing
- Honey Mustard Dressing
- The Best Homemade Ranch
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Ingredients
Creamy Dressing:
- ¼ cup mayo
- ¼ cup greek yogurt
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- salt + pepper
Balsamic Dressing:
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1 tablespoon mustard (dijon)
- salt + pepper
Italian Dressing:
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- ½ lemon (juiced)
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
Instructions
- For each of the dressings, simply combine all the ingredients in a small mixing bowl and whisk until well combined.
Looks so delicious!
Thank you! I have been looking for good dressings for pasta salads for a few years! Not looking very hard, but so glad to have these. Will be trying out soon!
Perfect summer recipe for guests.
How much dry pasta do you cook?? Thanks!
For any of these I usually cook 10 ounces of pasta to go with it. But you could do anywhere from 8-12 ounces, especially if you add other things to your pasta salad like cucumbers or olives, etc.
I made a pasta salad with the Italian dressing. It was delicious and easy. I like the flexibility of making a pasta salad with whatever veg I have on hand with one of these dressings.