I love pasta salad just as much as the next person. But the one thing that I always thought it lacked was flavor and texture.
Most pasta salads I had growing up were relatively bland, not too much flavor and every ingredient in the salad tasted the same.
Enter this vegan pasta salad recipe that imo is the absolutely best vegan pasta salad.
Drawing on the same core ingredients used in a classic italian vegan pasta salad, I used different techniques in the salad recipe to optimize each ingredients flavor AND create different texture in the salad.
I opted to salt the onions and cherry tomatoes, in order for the salt to draw out any excess water and deepen the flavor of both the red onions and tomatoes. The salting process facilitates osmosis, which essentially draws the water from out of the tomatoes and onions. Making them both less watery and more intensely flavor!
And, instead of a traditional lemon herb vinaigrette, I opted to fry the olives, spices and aromatics together, creating a hot and spicy vinaigrette. If you’re at all familiar with tadka (linking more info here), I essentially made tadka as a replacement for the dressing in this salad. Trust me, it’s SO much better!
Lastly, like all good vegan summer pasta salads, I used tons of fresh herbs, like basil, oregano and parsley.
Ok, enough said. Let’s get into this recipe!
Vegan Pasta Salad Ingredients
Here’s everything you’ll need to make this healthy vegan pasta salad.
- Fusilli pasta: I used Jovial fusilli pasta; it’s gluten-free and vegan. But any fusilli pasta will work here. The pasta shape is the most important part!
- Cherry tomatoes: I cannot stress the importance of using local and in-season cherry tomatoes here. Obviously, they’ll not only taste better, but the texture will be much sharper and crisp. One other note, grape tomatoes can easily be mistaken for cherry tomatoes, so make sure you’re picking up the right variety.
- Red onion
- Green olives: Save yourself some time (and headache) and pick up a jar of pitted green olives
- Lemons
- Fresh basil
- Fresh oregano
- Parsley
- Walnuts
- Red pepper flakes
- Garlic cloves
- Honey
- Kosher salt
Cheat Sheet to this Recipe
Outlining a few notes/tips so you can make the best cold vegan pasta salad ever!
- Start by salting the onion and tomatoes so they can sit while you prep the rest of the salad. This will help so much with efficiency!
- If you want, you can easily make this vegan pasta salad gluten free by using Jovial brown rice fusilli pasta. So for all my GF girlies, you can still make this recipe! In fact, I use brown rice pasta myself; it tastes just as good and my stomach feels better on it as opposed to regular wheat pasta.
- Speaking of pasta, once it has been cooked, drain and rinse the pasta with cold water to stop the cooking process. This is super important for the pasta to retain some of its bite.
- To save on dishes, I use the same pot for cooking the pasta and making the spicy vinaigrette. Just make sure to dry the pot really well, otherwise the oil for the vinaigrette will splatter and make a mess of your stove.
- Easily make this into a high-protein vegan pasta salad by adding in some chickpeas or my crispy tofu.
How to Serve this Vegan Pasta Salad
I like to enjoy this Mediterranean vegan pasta salad on its own. It’s super filling and packed with enough veggies to make it appropriate to eat as an entree.
That said, it pairs well with most summer dishes. Treat this recipe as an appetizer, or a side dish at your summer bbq. Or, pack it up and take with you on a fun hike or weekend camping trip!
One note, when serving this dish, I like to sprinkle extra chopped toasted walnuts and freshly minced basil for presentation. It just makes this pasta salad look extra fancy!
Even More Summer Salad Recipes
If you make this recipe, please leave a review and rating below. And don’t forget to snap a picture and tag me on either Instagram or TikTok (if you’re not already following me, make sure to for new recipes and wellness tips)!
PrintVegan Pasta Salad
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 2 1x
- Category: Main Course
- Cuisine: American
Description
This vegan pasta salad recipe that imo is the absolutely best vegan pasta salad. Drawing on the same core ingredients used in a classic italian vegan pasta salad, I used different techniques in this recipe to optimize each ingredients flavor AND create different textures.
Ingredients
Pasta
- 1 box Fusilli pasta ((about 8 oz or 2 heaping cups))
Tomatoes & Onions
- 1 cup Cherry tomatoes ((about 20))
- ½ medium Red onion
- 4 tbsp Lemon juice
- 2 tsp Kosher salt
Spicy Vinaigrette
- 1 cup sliced Green olives
- 1 medium Lemons worth of zest
- ¼ cup Olive oil
- 3 cloves Garlic, finely minced
- 2 tsp Red pepper flakes
- 1 tsp Honey
Greens
- ½ cup finely chopped Basil
- ½ cup finely chopped Parsley
- ¼ cup finely chopped Oregano
- 2 tbsp chopped toasted Walnuts ((optional, pine nuts are also great))
Instructions
- Start by cooking the pasta according to package instructions; once the pasta is al dente, rain and rinse immediately with cold water and set aside.
- While the pasta is cooking, slice the onion very thin, and slice the cherry tomatoes in half; add to a bowl. Pour over the lemon juice and sprinkle over the salt, mix to combine using your hands. Let sit and macerate for 10 minutes.
- Next, add the olives, lemon zest, olive oil, minced garlic, red pepper flakes and honey into a pot. I like to wait for the pasta to be done cooking to use the same pot and save on dishes. Place the pot on the stove and turn the heat to medium. Fry the spices and aromatics, stirring occasionally, for about 4-5 minutes. The oil will take on a golden-orange hue and the garlic will become transparent; that’s when the vinaigrette is ready.
- Pour the spicy vinaigrette and olive mixture over the tomatoes and onions. Toss to combine. Add the pasta, basil, parsley, oregano and walnuts to the bowl and toss to combine. Taste and adjust seasoning with extra kosher salt or cracked black pepper as needed.
- Let the pasta salad sit in the fridge for 30 minutes before serving to allow the flavors to mellow out and meld together. To serve, add some additional chopped and toasted walnuts and vegan parmesan.
- Store the pasta salad in a glass tupperware in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Notes
You can save this pasta salad in a glass tupperware in the fridge for up to 3 days.
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