A cold pasta salad is one of those dishes that always comes in handy. As an easy lunch, for a summer evening, to take to a picnic or as a side dish at the BBQ. You can also make it well in advance and vary endlessly with vegetables, chicken, tuna, cheese, herbs and different dressings.

Still, surprisingly many things can go wrong with something as simple as a pasta salad. The pasta becomes dry, the lettuce goes limp, or after a few hours a layer of liquid suddenly appears at the bottom of the bowl. Fortunately, all those problems are easy to prevent.

In this blog we explain how to make a good cold pasta salad and share seven tasty variations to try yourself.

Which pasta should you use for a cold pasta salad?

In principle you can use almost any pasta, but short pasta shapes are the easiest. Think fusilli, penne, farfalle or orecchiette. Because of their shape they hold dressing and herbs well and are easy to mix with vegetables and other ingredients.

Cook the pasta according to the instructions on the package and make sure it does not become too soft. Pasta that is just firm will keep its structure better when you later mix it with dressing and vegetables.

Should you rinse pasta for a cold pasta salad?

Opinions differ on this. Normally you don’t rinse pasta because the starch on the outside helps sauce adhere. For a cold pasta salad, however, a quick rinse with cold water can be useful if you want to cool the pasta quickly and prevent it from cooking further or sticking together.

Do you have a bit more time? Then you can also drain the pasta, let it steam off well and spread it out to cool. You can mix it with a small splash of olive oil if you like.

The important thing is that the pasta is completely cooled before you add ingredients like lettuce.

How much pasta do you need per person?

If you serve the pasta salad as a side dish, for example at a BBQ, calculate about 60 to 75 grams of dry pasta per person.

If the cold pasta salad is the main meal, you can allow about 80 to 100 grams of dry pasta per person, depending on how many vegetables, chicken, fish, cheese or legumes you add.

How to build a tasty cold pasta salad

A good pasta salad is about balance. Pasta forms the base, but it’s the combination with crunchy vegetables, something creamy or savory, a nice dressing and enough herbs that makes it interesting.

Start for example with pasta and add vegetables such as bell pepper, tomato, cucumber, zucchini or red onion. For extra bite you can use nuts, seeds or roasted chickpeas. Chicken, tuna, mozzarella, feta or legumes make the salad more filling.

And don’t forget the herbs. Oregano and basil give the same bowl of pasta a very different character than dill, smoked paprika powder, Za'atar or Herbes de Provence.

How do you prevent a cold pasta salad from becoming too wet?

A pasta salad can be nicely creamy, but you want to avoid a layer of liquid at the bottom of the bowl. Especially when you make the salad a few hours in advance, vegetables can release quite a lot of water.

Let the pasta cool completely first

Do not mix warm pasta directly with lettuce or raw vegetables. The warmth causes vegetables to soften faster and release moisture. Therefore, let the pasta cool thoroughly first.

Dry lettuce very well after washing

Iceberg, romaine, little gem or other regular lettuce can be fine in a pasta salad, but make sure the leaves are very dry. A salad spinner is ideal for this. Water that remains between the leaves will otherwise end up in your pasta salad.

Add lettuce only just before serving

Are you making the pasta salad in the morning for the evening or preparing it as meal prep? Store the lettuce separately. Mix it in only just before eating. This not only prevents excess moisture but also keeps the lettuce much crisper.

The same goes for very delicate leafy greens such as arugula and lamb's lettuce.

Be careful with cucumber

Cucumber consists largely of water. If you want to prevent your pasta salad from becoming watery, cut the cucumber lengthwise and remove the soft part with the seed cavities using a spoon. Then cut the firm flesh into pieces.

Let tomatoes drain if necessary

Tomatoes can also release quite a bit of moisture. Small, firm cherry tomatoes are therefore ideal for a pasta salad. If you halve them well in advance, let them drain briefly before adding them.

Let roasted vegetables cool

Zucchini, eggplant and bell pepper from the oven or airfryer are delicious in a cold pasta salad. Just don’t add them warm. Let them cool completely first and drain any liquid that has accumulated.

Don’t mix all the dressing into the salad at once

Preferably start with a little less dressing than you think you’ll need. You can always add more just before serving.

That brings us straight to the opposite problem.

How do you prevent pasta salad from becoming dry?

Maybe you recognize this: you make a delicious creamy pasta salad, put it in the fridge and a few hours later almost all the dressing seems to have disappeared.

That’s because pasta continues to absorb moisture and dressing while standing.

The easiest solution is to keep part of the dressing separate. Take the pasta salad out of the fridge about 15 to 20 minutes before serving, stir it well and then add the remaining dressing.

A small splash of olive oil, lemon juice or a spoonful of sauce can also quickly revive a salad that has become a bit dry.

7 tasty ideas for cold pasta salad

Now that the basics are covered, you can start to vary. With different vegetables, herbs and dressings you can make the same pasta taste completely different each time.

1. Italian cold pasta salad with mozzarella

A classic that almost always pleases.

Mix cooled pasta with cherry tomatoes, small mozzarella balls, bell pepper, arugula and black olives. Make a simple dressing of olive oil, lemon juice or balsamic and season generously with oregano, basil, black pepper and a little garlic.

Add the arugula only just before serving.

Nice with: roasted pine nuts or fresh basil.

2. Cold pasta salad with pesto and chicken

Pesto and pasta are of course good friends. Add grilled chicken and you have a simple, filling meal salad.

Mix pasta with pieces of grilled chicken, green pesto, cherry tomatoes and grilled zucchini. Optionally add some Parmesan and pine nuts.

Extra basil, black pepper and a little garlic give the salad even more flavor.

If you find the pesto a bit heavy, mix it with a little lemon juice and olive oil before stirring it through the pasta.

3. Greek cold pasta salad with feta

Fresh, salty and delicious on warm days.

Combine pasta with cucumber, cherry tomatoes, red onion, black olives and crumbled feta. Make a dressing of olive oil and lemon juice and season with oregano, garlic, black pepper and optionally a little dill.

Are you making the salad in advance? Store the cucumber separately and stir it in shortly before serving.

4. Mediterranean pasta salad with roasted vegetables

For this variant we roast bell pepper, zucchini, eggplant and red onion in the oven or airfryer.

Season the vegetables before roasting with Herbes de Provence, a little olive oil and black pepper. Then let them cool completely.

Mix with the pasta and finish with feta or mozzarella and optionally some arugula. A simple dressing of olive oil, lemon and a little mustard is already sufficient here.

The roasted vegetables and herbs provide plenty of flavor on their own.

5. Creamy cold pasta salad with tuna

This salad is ideal as an easy lunch.

Mix pasta with tuna, corn, cucumber, red onion and optionally some finely chopped pickles. Make a creamy dressing from, for example, yogurt and mayonnaise and season it with dill, chives, black pepper and a little lemon juice.

Let tuna, corn and pickles drain well before adding them. This prevents the salad from becoming too wet.

6. Spicy cold pasta salad with chicken

Want a bit more heat? Combine pasta with grilled chicken, bell pepper, corn, red onion and spring onion.

Season the chicken with smoked paprika powder, garlic and a little chili. Then make a creamy, lightly spicy dressing. A hot sauce such as sriracha or chili sauce can be mixed with a little yogurt or mayonnaise for this.

One of our Natural Zero Sauces can also form an easy base for a quick dressing. That way you can easily play with different flavors using the same ingredients.

7. Cold pasta salad with chickpeas and Za'atar

No meat or fish needed for a tasty, filling pasta salad.

Mix pasta with well-drained chickpeas, cherry tomatoes, cucumber, bell pepper, red onion and optionally feta.

Season the salad with Za'atar, olive oil and lemon juice. The herby, fresh flavor of Za'atar pairs particularly well with chickpeas and vegetables.

Want extra crunch? Roast the chickpeas first until crisp in the oven or airfryer and sprinkle them over the salad only just before serving.

Which herbs go with pasta salad?

It’s precisely with herbs that you can steer a simple cold pasta salad in a different direction each time.

For an Italian or Mediterranean salad, oregano, basil, thyme and garlic are good flavorings. Dill and chives pair nicely with tuna, cucumber and creamy dressings. Smoked paprika powder and chili give chicken and roasted vegetables more kick.

With herb mixes you can vary even more easily. Herbes de Provence for example goes well with roasted vegetables, while Za'atar is delicious with chickpeas, feta and fresh lemon dressings.

Try different combinations. A good pasta salad doesn’t need a complicated dressing if the ingredients themselves are well seasoned.

Making cold pasta salad for the BBQ

Pasta salad is a classic at the BBQ for good reason. You can prepare a large bowl, it goes well with both meat and fish, and you can easily adapt it to what else is on the table.

If you make the salad well in advance, mix the pasta, sturdy vegetables and flavorings first. Store fragile ingredients such as lettuce, fresh herbs, crunchy toppings and part of the dressing separately.

Just before everyone sits down, you only have to toss everything together.

How long can you keep cold pasta salad?

How long a pasta salad stays good depends on the ingredients you use. Always store a homemade pasta salad covered in the fridge and on warm days don’t leave it out unnecessarily long.

A simple pasta salad with sturdy vegetables can often be prepared in advance. If you use lettuce, fresh herbs or crunchy toppings, store those separately until serving time.

For pasta salads with chicken, tuna, dairy or a creamy dressing it’s especially important to keep them well chilled and follow your senses and the storage recommendations of the ingredients used.

Herbs for your favorite pasta salad

The nice thing about cold pasta salad is that there really is no fixed recipe. Use what you have, swap vegetables and give the salad a different flavor with herbs each time.

From oregano and basil for an Italian salad to dill with tuna, smoked paprika powder with chicken or Za'atar with chickpeas: with a well-stocked spice cabinet you can turn a simple bowl of pasta into something everyone goes back for seconds of.

At Natural Spices you can find loose herbs and spices and various herb mixes (with and without salt) to cook with at home. We also offer herbs, spices and blends in larger packages for professional kitchens and business customers. That way both consumers and business clients can easily buy herbs online.

Frequently asked questions about cold pasta salad

1. Can you make cold pasta salad a day in advance?

Yes, you can easily make a cold pasta salad a day in advance. Mix the pasta already with the dressing and sturdy ingredients like bell pepper, olives and roasted vegetables. Store lettuce, arugula, fresh herbs and crunchy toppings separately and add them only just before serving. Keep some dressing back too, because the pasta absorbs moisture during storage.

2. Why does my pasta salad become watery?

A pasta salad often becomes watery because of ingredients that contain a lot of moisture, such as cucumber, tomato and lettuce. Insufficiently dried lettuce can also add extra water. Optionally remove the seed cavities from the cucumber, let sliced vegetables drain and dry lettuce well after washing. Preferably add lettuce only just before serving.

3. How do you prevent cold pasta salad from becoming dry?

Pasta absorbs more and more of the dressing during storage. Therefore keep part of the dressing separate and mix it through the salad just before serving. A splash of olive oil or lemon juice can also make a dry pasta salad pleasantly creamy again.

4. Which pasta is best for cold pasta salad?

Short pasta shapes such as fusilli, penne, farfalle and orecchiette are ideal for a cold pasta salad. They are easy to mix with vegetables and other ingredients and carry dressing and herbs well. Do not cook the pasta too soft so it keeps enough bite after cooling.

5. Which herbs are nice in a cold pasta salad?

That depends on the ingredients. Oregano, basil, thyme and garlic go well with Italian and Mediterranean pasta salads. Dill and chives combine nicely with tuna and cucumber, while smoked paprika powder and chili are tasty with chicken. Herb mixes like Za'atar and Herbes de Provence can easily give a pasta salad a completely different flavor.