Vegan Pasta Salad makes for the perfect potluck side dish, filled with olives, peppers, red onion, roasted red peppers, grape tomatoes, and our homemade Italian dressing recipe.
Salads are great for parties and entertaining. We always make a big batch cucumber salad, pasta salad, macaroni salad, or even coleslaw to bring to a party. Cold salads are easy to prep ahead and bring the next day.
VEGAN ITALIAN PASTA SALAD
Both kids and adults will love it! It’s colorful and flavorful. Kids tend to pick out meat and cheese. This recipe is naturally vegan and can also be made gluten-free by using gluten-free pasta. You could serve your favorite plant-based meat and cheese on the side for guests to add in if they’d like or even add in if you prefer.
INGREDIENTS FOR VEGAN PASTA SALAD
- Rotini Pasta – To get a healthy mix of whole grains in we use whole wheat pasta in addition to the traditional tri-color pasta.
- Roasted Red Peppers – We make our homemade roasted red peppers, they’re fresh and flavorful!
- Green Bell Pepper – Peppers add a bit of crunch and color. You could also use other bell pepper colors.
- Red Onions – These onions not only add a pop of purple, but they also give a strong sharp flavor that pairs well with salads.
- Tomatoes – Grape tomatoes or Sprinkles Tomatoes are best. We halve grape tomatoes, sprinkles are smaller, but if choking is a risk for you we recommend slicing them as well.
- Black Olives – These add a salty flavor and can be a bit strong in flavor from the brine. We always drain them and give them a rinse as well.
- Italian Dressing – You could use your favorite store-bought dressing, but we highly recommend trying our homemade Italian dressing recipe if you have time!
HOW TO MAKE PASTA SALAD
Cook the pasta according to the package directions, once cooked strain the pasta and rinse with cool water and pour the pasta into a large bowl.
Make the Italian dressing by pouring the oil, vinegar, water, basil, oregano, parsley, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes in a mason jar. Cover the jar with a lid and then shake until the dressing is combined.
To the pasta add the sliced onions, sliced olives, chopped green peppers, roasted red peppers, and tomatoes. Pour over the homemade dressing and then toss to combine.
Cover the pasta and place it in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
WHAT IS THE BEST PASTA FOR PASTA SALAD?
For a pasta salad like this, we go with rotini pasta. We use a combination of tri-color pasta and whole wheat pasta. When it’s a macaroni salad or a chickpea tuna macaroni we go with elbow noodles.
CAN YOU MAKE PASTA SALAD THE NIGHT BEFORE?
Absolutely, and we encourage you to make it in advance. We serve this as a cold pasta salad and with the homemade Italian dressing you want to let the flavors meld in the refrigerator for a few hours, even overnight.
CAN I ADD OTHER VEGGIES?
Absolutely! Some good ones to add would be broccoli, artichokes, zucchini, sun-dried tomatoes, spinach leaves, eggplant, and even Brussels sprouts.
HOW LONG CAN YOU KEEP PASTA SALAD?
We usually finished it up in 2-3 days. It tastes even better the next day after making it.
MORE PASTA SALAD RECIPES:
- Mexican Pasta Salad
- Vegan Tuna Pasta Salad
- Caprese Pasta Salad – use Miyoko’s Mozzarella to make vegan
RECIPE NOTES:
- You can use a storebought dressing or be sure to try our homemade Italian Dressing.
- You can make this in advance, pasta salad always tastes even better the next day after the flavors meld together.
- We used wide mouth mason jars with reusable plastic lids.
Vegan Pasta Salad
Ingredients
- 1 box Rotini Whole Wheat Pasta
- 1 box Rotini Tri Color Pasta
- 5 Roasted Red Peppers
- 2 Green Bell Peppers chopped
- 1/2 cup Red Onions chopped
- 1 cup Tomatoes grape, sprinkles, or cherry, chopped if too big
- 6 oz Canned Black Olives drained, rinsed, sliced
- 2 cups Italian Dressing
Instructions
- Cook the pasta according to the package directions, once cooked strain the pasta and rinse with cool water and pour the pasta into a large bowl.
- Make the Italian dressing by pouring the oil, vinegar, water, basil, oregano, parsley, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes in a mason jar. Cover the jar with a lid and then shake until the dressing is combined.
- To the pasta add the sliced onions, sliced olives, chopped green peppers, roasted red peppers, and tomatoes. Pour over the homemade dressing and then toss to combine.
- Cover the pasta and place it in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
Notes
- You can use storebought dressing or be sure to try our homemade Italian Dressing.
- You can make this in advance, pasta salad always tastes even better the next day after the flavors meld together.
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