Julie Clark
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Greek Pasta Salad
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This Greek Pasta Salad recipe is a light, flavorful, pasta salad with minimal ingredients. It makes for a quick, tasty dinner or side dish.
This Mediterranean-inspired pasta salad is a tasty make-ahead side dish to accompany grilled chicken or fish. The recipe calls for lemon juice, olive oil, cucumbers and fresh tomatoes, so it’s healthy, too.
Whether it is for your next family reunion, summer picnic or holiday buffet, your family will love this easy recipe.
About this Greek Pasta Salad Recipe
- Flavor: If you love Greek salad, you’ll enjoy this recipe. It has all the flavors you know and love in a salad, but there’s pasta instead of lettuce. The dressing is tangy thanks to the red wine vinegar and lemon juice.
- Texture: Crunchy cucumbers and cool tomatoes pair well with the creamy feta cheese. There’s a lot of texture in this salad, but it is light and fresh.
What are the ingredients for a Greek Pasta Salad?
- Pasta: I love gemelli pasta, but bowtie pasta is popular also.
- Grape tomatoes
- Cucumbers: I used the mini cucumbers. If yours are larger, cut them in bite size pieces.
- Feta: The more feta, the better. I buy pre-crumbled feta cheese.
- Red onion
- Olives: Kalamata olives are traditional, but black olives work as well.
- Pepperoncini peppers: You can slice the peppers or leave them whole to decorate the top.
- Greek salad dressing: Ours is simple and you most likely have the ingredients on hand. It’s great on just about any salad.
How to Make Greek Pasta Salad
- Prepare pasta. Boil pasta according to package instructions to al dente. Drain and rinse with cool water, then set aside to cool completely.
- Mix in other ingredients. Once the pasta is cooled completely, place it in a large bowl and add the tomatoes, cucumber, feta, onion and olives. Mix to combine. Refrigerate the salad until right before serving.
- Make the dressing. To a small bowl or mason jar, add the vinaigrette ingredients. Whisk or shake to mix.
- Toss to coat. Right before serving, pour the dressing over the pasta salad and mix to coat. Top with pepperoncini peppers and freshly snipped basil.
Make it a Meal.
Wondering what to serve with this Greek pasta salad recipe? Try one of these:
Storage Instructions
This salad is best when served right after chilling it through and mixing in the dressing. The leftovers still get eaten in our house though when kept in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
Greek Pasta Salad
This Greek Pasta Salad recipe is a light, flavorful, pasta salad with minimal ingredients. It makes for a quick, tasty dinner or side dish.
Servings 8
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Chill Time 2 hours
Total Time 2 hours 30 minutes
Ingredients
For the salad:
- 16 ounces Gemelli pasta
- 2 cups grape tomatoes halved, or cherry tomatoes
- 3 small cucumbers sliced
- 1 cup feta cheese crumbled
- ½ cup diced red onion
- ½ cup Kalamata olives
- 5 Pepperoncini peppers for topping
- fresh basil for topping
For the Greek vinaigrette:
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 1/2 cup red wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon dried tarragon
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ¼ teaspoon dried rosemary
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- Boil pasta according to package instructions to al dente. Drain and rinse with cool water, then set aside to cool completely.
- Once the pasta is cooled completely, place it in a large bowl and add the tomatoes, cucumber, feta, onion and olives. Mix to combine. Refrigerate the salad until right before serving.
- To a small bowl or mason jar, add the vinaigrette ingredients. Whisk or shake to mix.
- Right before serving, pour the dressing over the pasta salad and mix to coat.
- Top with pepperoncini peppers and freshly snipped basil.
- Serve immediately. Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
Notes
Refer to the article above for more tips and tricks.
The calories shown are based on the recipe serving 8, with 1 serving being ⅛ of the salad. Since different brands of ingredients have different nutritional information, the calories shown are just an estimate. **We are not dietitians and recommend you seek a nutritionist for exact nutritional information. The information in the nutrition box are calculated through a program and there is room for error. If you need an accurate count, I recommend running the ingredients through your favorite nutrition calculator.**
Nutrition
Calories: 408kcal | Carbohydrates: 47g | Protein: 11g | Fat: 20g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 12g | Cholesterol: 17mg | Sodium: 426mg | Potassium: 275mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 450IU | Vitamin C: 12mg | Calcium: 119mg | Iron: 1mg
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does Greek vinaigrette last?
We’ve kept this vinaigrette in our fridge for up to 2 weeks in an airtight container.
How does Greek salad keep in the fridge?
This keeps ok in the fridge for up to 3 days. The veggies may not be quite as crisp on day 2 and 3, but the flavor will still be good.
Can I use banana peppers instead of pepperoncini peppers?
Yes. Pepperoncini peppers have a little bit of heat that you may miss, but banana peppers will work.
Can I use Italian dressing instead of Greek dressing?
Yes, you can use Italian dressing or even a store bought Greek salad dressing. We love the Panera Greek dressing.
Can you make this salad in advance?
You can make the pasta a day in advance, then cut the veggies up in advance as well. Don’t mix it all together until the day you want to serve it though.
Other Favorite Salad Recipes
Salads are some of our favorite recipes to make! Whether they are loaded with meat, potatoes, veggies or a combination of all three, you’re sure to find a new one to love.
