This Sun-Dried Tomato Pasta Salad recipe is packed with bright, fresh vegetables and features a robust sun-dried tomato dressing. It is perfect for a summer cookout, busy weeknight dinner or even meal prep lunches.
We eat a lot of pasta in our house. With two young carb-loving daughters, it seems I’m cooking pasta at least a few times a week, like our weeknight-friendly Lemon Caper Pasta, this classic baked Rigatoni Al Forno and even our make-ahead Easy Vegetable Lasagna recipes. And making pasta salads is a great way to put together a fast, simple and flavorful meal that you can enjoy for multiple days. Another one of our favorite dinners is our Easy Tuna Pesto Pasta, featuring a simple Homemade Basil Pesto.
This sun-dried tomato pasta salad leans into utilizing a single jar of oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes. These plump, sweet tomatoes are sliced and mixed with fresh vegetables, cheese and basil for a bright, fresh salad. Plus, the homemade Sun-Dried Tomatoes Vinaigrette for this salad uses more sun-dried tomatoes and some of the oil from the jar. No waste!
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Ingredients that Matter
There is plenty of flexibility in this recipe based on what produce is available and fresh, but here are the ingredients I love to use for this pasta salad:
- Sun-Dried Tomatoes. I recommend using a jar of oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes. They are often sold alongside pasta, tomato paste or other tomato products in the grocery store. Choose oil-packed as they are plump and ready to enjoy out of the jar, plus we’ll use that flavorful oil in the dressing.
- Pasta. Pick your go-to brand of pasta and favorite shape. I like gemelli, penne, farfalle, fusilli, rotini and orecchiette.
- Vegetables. I like to use a couple different vegetables in this pasta salad and my favorites are fresh chopped tomatoes and green bell pepper. But, here you can get creative and use your favorite pasta salad vegetables.
- Olives. Toss the salad with some chopped olives, like kalamata, for a briny bite.
- Cheese. I like to use mozzarella in this pasta salad, either an 8 ounce ball of fresh mozzarella or small pearls or ciliegine.
- Basil. Load the salad up with lots of fresh basil.
- Red Wine Vinegar. The dressing is made with red wine vinegar for its red color (which compliments the red sun-dried tomatoes) and its bright, acidic flavor.
- Mustard. The dressing also uses a bit of Dijon mustard for its pungent flavor and to emulsify the oil and vinegar.
- Olive Oil. Use regular or extra-virgin olive oil for the dressing.
- Aromatics. The dressing has a small clove of garlic and a shallot to provide lots of flavor, plus the salad gets a couple small shallots, thinly sliced, for even more flavor.
See recipe card for quantities.
Instructions
This recipe is super easy to make and requires making a dressing (which can easily be made a few days ahead), chopping the salad mix-ins, cooking pasta and tossing it all together. That’s it! Here is how it comes together:
Start by making the homemade sun-dried tomato dressing. Add sun-dried tomatoes, some of the oil from the jar of tomatoes, red wine vinegar, some water, garlic, salt and pepper to the base of a small food processor or blender and blend until the tomatoes are finely chopped. Continue to blend and drizzle in the olive oil until the sauce is emulsified. Adjust the consistency with water, if desired, and stir in the basil and minced shallot. Store in an airtight container for up to 4-5 days.
Next, prep the salad mix-ins. Thinly slice the rest of the sun-dried tomatoes and shallots, then chop the fresh tomatoes, bell pepper, olives and basil. Finally, tear the mozzarella (or cut pearls in half, if desired) or roughly chop into bite-sized pieces.
Cook pasta according to package instructions, drain then cool for 2 minutes. Transfer to a large mixing bowl and add some of the sun-dried tomato dressing while the pasta is still warm. Toss well and cool another 5 minutes.
Add the mix-ins to the pasta and toss well. Add more sauce, to taste. The salad is ready to eat or stored in an airtight container for up to 4 days. Store leftover sauce separately and add more sauce before serving (the sauce will thicken as it sits so thin it out with a bit of cold water).
Hint: The pasta salad will absorb the sauce better if the pasta is still warm. You should let the pasta cool just a couple minutes before adding the sauce to get the most flavor into the salad as possible.
Substitutions
There is plenty of room for tweaks to this recipe based on your dietary restrictions or flavor preferences. Here are some suggested substitutions:
- Gluten-Free – Use a gluten-free pasta to make this recipe gluten-free. All other ingredients are gluten-free.
- Dairy-Free – You can make this recipe dairy-free (and vegan) by leaving out the mozzarella cheese.
- Cheese – Want to try a different cheese? Try instead using crumbled feta cheese, shaved parmesan or chopped cheddar cheese.
- Vegetables – There are a lot of vegetables you can use in this salad. Consider adding chopped cucumbers, jarred roasted red peppers, red onions, cauliflower, zucchini, roasted eggplant, baby spinach, sprouts or even fennel.
- Herbs – If you don’t like basil, you can instead use fresh parsley, chives, scallions, tarragon, etc.
- Dried Sun-Dried tomatoes – If you want to use dried sun-dried tomatoes, you’ll need to soak them in warm water for about 30 minutes before making this recipe. Sub in regular olive oil for the jarred oil in the dressing.
- Proteins – Mix in your favorite protein, like canned white beans or garbanzo beans, tuna, shredded chicken, chopped tofu or even sardines.
Equipment
The only special equipment you need for this recipe is a mini food processor or high-speed blender like a Vitamix Propel 510 Blender for making the dressing. For a mini food processor, I recommend this KitchenAid 5 Cup Food Chopper, which is small and has a spout to pour in the oil.
Storage
Store leftover pasta salad in a airtight container for up to 4-5 days. Note that it tastes best consumed within 1-2 days as the longer it sits the stronger the flavor of shallots will impart into the salad. I do not recommend freezing this recipe.
You can also make this recipe ahead by mixing up the dressing a few days in advance, chopping the vegetables, cheese and olives a day or two ahead and then cooking the pasta up to 2 hours before ready to serve. Then toss with the pre-made dressing and stir in the pre-chopped mix-ins.
Top tip
This recipe makes enough dressing to have some leftover. You’ll want to add a splash more dressing just before serving as the pasta will soak up the dressing the longer it sits. You can use leftover dressing on a green salad, grain bowl or as a dip for bread or chopped vegetables.
FAQ
Pasta salad can be made 3-4 days ahead of time but tastes best used within 1-2 days. Store the salad in an airtight container in the refrigerator and be sure to save some of the dressing as you’ll want to toss the salad with more dressing after it sits in the refrigerator.
Use an assortment of textures and flavors, like bell peppers, fresh tomatoes, onions, baby spinach, zucchini, cucumbers, fennel and cauliflower. You can also use cooked vegetables like grilled yellow squash or roasted eggplant.
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Recipe
Sun-Dried Tomato Pasta Salad
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 8 cups 1x
Description
This Sun-Dried Tomato Pasta Salad recipe is packed with bright, fresh vegetables and features a robust sun-dried tomato dressing. It is perfect for a summer cookout, busy weeknight dinner or even meal prep lunches.
Ingredients
Sun-Dried Tomato Vinaigrette
- 10 sun-dried tomatoes (from a jar of oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes), about ½ cup loosely packed up
- ¼ cup oil from the sun-dried tomato jar
- ¼ cup red wine vinegar
- ¼ cup water (plus more as needed)
- 1 small garlic clove, finely grated
- 1 tsp. Dijon mustard
- ¼ tsp. table salt
- 1 pinch black pepper
- ½ cup olive oil
- 2 Tbsp. finely chopped fresh basil leaves
- 1 small shallot, minced
Pasta Salad
- 8 oz. pasta, such as gemelli, penne, fusilli, etc.
- ½ cup sun-dried tomato vinaigrette, plus more as needed
- 1 cup chopped fresh tomatoes (from 2 medium or 3 small tomatoes), about 8 ounces
- 1 cup chopped green bell pepper (from 1 medium pepper)
- 8 oz. fresh mozzarella, torn or chopped into bite-sized pieces (or pearls or ciliegine)
- ½ cup (2.5 oz.) kalamata olives, chopped
- 10 each sun-dried tomatoes, thinly sliced (from a jar of oil-packed tomatoes)
- ½ cup chopped fresh basil, plus more for serving
- 2 small shallots, thinly sliced
Instructions
Sun-Dried Tomato Vinaigrette
- Transfer tomatoes and the ¼ cup oil from the jar to the base of a mini food processor or high-speed blender and add the vinegar, ¼ cup water, garlic, mustard, salt and pepper and pulse or blend on low until the tomatoes are finely chopped, about 30 seconds. With the blender or food processor running, slowly pour in the olive oil until the mixture is well blended and mostly smooth (continue to blend for a silky smooth texture, if desired).
- Transfer mixture to a bowl or mason jar and add the basil and shallots. Adjust consistency with more water, if desired. Store leftovers in an airtight container for up to 5 days. Makes 1 ¼ cup dressing.
Pasta Salad
- Cook pasta according to package instructions, drain then cool at room temperature for about 2 minutes. Transfer pasta to a large mixing bowl then add ½ cup of the vinaigrette and toss well to coat. Add the fresh tomatoes, pepper, mozzarella, olives, sun-dried tomatoes, basil and shallots and toss well to combine. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper and add more sauce, if desired. Serve with more basil for garnish.
Notes
- Store leftover pasta salad in an airtight container for up to 5 days, though note the salad is best enjoyed within 2 days.
- Add more dressing right out of the refrigerator as the pasta will dry-out a bit once refrigerated.
- The dressing will thicken as it sits in the refrigerator so adjust consistency by adding some cold water.
- Try adding some protein with a can of white beans or garbanzo beans, tuna, sardines, chicken (try our recipe for pulled chicken in a Dutch oven) or chopped tofu.
- Try using a variety of textures and flavors for the vegetables, like baby spinach, cucumbers, jarred roasted red peppers, artichokes, zucchini or fennel. You can even use chilled grilled vegetables like summer squash or eggplant.
- Substitute the fresh mozzarella for feta cheese, cheddar or even grated parmesan.
- If you don’t want to use fresh basil, instead use parsley, chives, scallions or tarragon.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Category: pasta
- Method: boiling/no cook
- Cuisine: American/Mediterranean
Ruthie G.
BEST PASTA SALAD EVER!!!! Tastes like summer in a bowl and I will be making this one over and over.
Adam Dolge
Awesome!! Glad you liked it!!