Pasta Salad
Summer has some of the tastiest foods. Meaning, some food just tastes better outside enjoyed with friends and family. We made it to June and now every weekend until September will not be marked by traditional time but by how many pasta salads we have eaten. Pasta salad is both pretty boring and the most popular dish at every summer get-together you go to. Frankly, I used to never even think about making pasta salad from scratch. That’s what the boxes were for, the kind where you “just add oil and water” to the seasoning packet.
In my mind, a nice classic pasta salad serves one of two scenarios: Attending a picnic, potluck, or other summer-everyone-bring-something type party when you need to bring a side dish; Addressing the leftover meat, cheese, and vegetables in my fridge and making them into a meal that I pretty much want to eat all week. Pasta salad can be great if done well but usually falls flat by containing too much pasta and being underdressed or dressing heavy. I am not sure which is worse! Will I still eat multiple servings while drinking ice cold sweet tea? Happily! But I will spend time thinking about how it could be better next time.
This pasta salad is what I want to eat at the picnic, and also what I want to eat straight from the fridge when I get home after being outside all day, a little day drunk, a little sunburned, and very hungry, and the good news is that this pasta salad makes it all better. Aside from being super easy, I love homemade pasta salad because: You control the ingredients. Need gluten-free noodles or dairy-free dressing? No problem! And it’s quick. When the noodles are cooked, a quick stir means dinner is ready. It’s versatile. Seriously, use what you have. No extra trips to the store! There are so many yummy combinations. Understanding how the components of a pasta salad work together means you’ll always be able to come up with a yummy dish.
A great pasta salad recipe starts with great noodles. There are many types of noodles available; including gluten free, rice, and protein varieties. Smaller noodles tend to work better than bigger ones. For a heavy salad that could be a main dish, try noodles where the dressing can hide such as shells, penne, fusilli, or rotini. For lighter, side dish salads, use shaped noodles or noodles that don’t have as many nooks and crannies like bowties or farfalle.
Cook the noodles appropriately. For serving cold pasta dishes (chilled in the fridge and then brought to the party), cook the noodles 1-2 minutes beyond the al dente stage (check the package for the exact time on the al dente stage for the pasta you chose). This makes the noodles soft but not mushy and prevents the noodles from developing a crunchy texture after they’ve cooled. For serving warm pasta salads immediately, cook the noodles al dente according to package instructions.
Toss the warm pasta mixture with just half of the dressing. This bit of dressing will flavor the pasta and vegetables from the inside out as the salad sits in the refrigerator. Pasta salads always taste better in the kitchen when they’re freshly made than they do after sitting on the picnic table a few hours later. The salads inevitably turn drier and less flavorful because the pasta soaks up the dressing as it sits. Some recipes and store-bought pasta salads try to counteract this phenomenon by upping the oil to create a barrier between the noodles and seasonings, but that just results in a slimy salad.
Whether it’s a few hours or a few days later, much of the dressing will have been absorbed into the pasta. So, when you’re ready to serve, toss the pasta salad with the rest of the dressing. This round of seasoning adds much-needed moisture and bold flavor to the side dish that simply isn’t achievable when dressed all at once.
For pasta salad, it’s important to use a light touch when it comes to the acidic ingredients, especially vinegar. As the pasta salad sits, the vinegar begins to take on a metallic aftertaste that’s, I’m almost certain, not what you’re going for.
Because pasta salad wants to dry out as it sits, I like to use ingredients that deliver both flavor and moisture such as olives, capers, pickles, and peppers. These can help build flavor (zippy! Briny! Spicy!) and textural appeal without messing with the integrity of the pasta the way vinegar and lemon juice would.
Italian Pasta Salad
Dressing:
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 1/4 cup white vinegar (red wine vinegar works too)
- 1/4 cup water
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt (see notes)
- 2 cloves garlic (or 1 teaspoon garlic powder)
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 2 teaspoons each dry oregano and dry basil
- black pepper to taste
- fresh herbs if you want, sometimes I add fresh parsley, basil, or chives.
Salad Ingredients:
- 1-pound uncooked pasta (preferably rotini)
- one 10-oz. package cherry tomatoes, halved (2 cups)
- 8 ounces fresh mozzarella cheese balls, cut in half if needed
- 8 ounces salami, cut into cubes or thin strips (see notes for types)
- 1/2 cup pitted kalamata olives, sliced
- 1 cup sliced pepperoncini
- 1/2 cup thinly sliced red onion
- 1/2 cup fresh parsley, chopped
Make Dressing: Blend up the dressing ingredients in a small blender or food processor.
Cook Pasta: Bring 4 quarts water + 1 tablespoon kosher salt to a large pot and bring to a boil – salting the water gives more flavor to the pasta itself. Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain pasta.
Add warm pasta and remaining ingredients to a very large bowl. Cover with ½ dressing and toss to combine. Let sit for a few minutes so dressing can soak in before tossing with remaining dressing. If not eating right away, refrigerate and then toss with last ½ of dressing just before serving.
Shelly Koon Contributing Writer
