Tortellini Pasta Salad

Prep: 20 mins

Cook: 8 mins

Chill: 60 mins

Total: 88 mins

Servings: 8 to 10 servings

Yield: 2 1/2 to 3 quarts

A delicious, crowd-pleasing tortellini salad is a snap to make with fresh pasta, chopped vegetables, and a simple semi-homemade salad dressing. The pasta salad is perfect for a cookout, picnic, or potluck. The sky's the limit when it comes to variations. Increase the vegetables if you like, or use more meat for a heartier dish. If you're serving vegetarians, feel free to omit the meat or serve it separately on the side.

With the salami and cheese, the salad packs enough protein to make it a satisfying dinner or lunch dish. This robust salad is an excellent choice for a hot-weather meal.

Why Do You Rinse Pasta For Salad?

Rinsing the pasta cools it down for the cold salad and helps keep it from sticking together.

How Should Pasta Be Cooked For A Pasta Salad?

For pasta salad, the pasta should be fully cooked, or slightly over. Chilling will firm it up to the perfect texture.

Make Ahead

The pasta and vegetables may be prepared and tossed together a few days ahead of time. For the best flavor and texture, dress the salad just before serving or no more than 1 day before serving.

Ingredients

For the Salad:

20 ounces cheese tortellini (tri-color or plain)
2 cups grape tomatoes (halved)
6 to 8 ounces salami or ham (diced)
1 cup cucumber (diced)
1 cup spinach (fresh, coarsely chopped)
1/2 cup red onion (thinly sliced)
1/2 cup black olives (or more, sliced or halved)
4 to 6 ounces mozzarella cheese (pearls, balls, shreds, or cubes)
1/4 teaspoon black pepper (or to taste)
1 dash kosher salt (or to taste)
2 to 3 tablespoons chopped basil
1/2 cup pepperoncini (or 8 to 10 peppers)

For the Dressing:

1 1/2 cups Italian salad dressing
3 tablespoons Parmesan cheese (freshly grated)
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon onion powder

Steps to Make It

Prepare the Salad

Gather the salad ingredients.
Cook 20 ounces cheese tortellini in salted water following the package directions. Transfer the pasta to a colander and rinse with cold water to stop any carryover cooking.
In a large bowl, combine the tortellini, 2 cups grape tomatoes (halved), 6 to 8 ounces salami or ham, 1 cup cucumber (diced), 1 cup spinach (fresh, coarsely chopped), 1/2 cup red onion (thinly sliced), 1/2 cup black olives (sliced or halved), and 4 to 6 ounces mozzarella cheese. Gently fold the ingredients together, then season to taste with 1/4 teaspoon black pepper and 1 dash kosher salt. Add 1/2 cup pepperoncini and basil, if desired. Refrigerate the salad until about an hour before you plan to serve it.

Prepare the Dressing and Assemble the Salad

Gather the salad dressing ingredients.
Combine 1 1/2 cups Italian salad dressing, 3 tablespoons Parmesan cheese, 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder, and 1/4 teaspoon onion powder in a large screw-top jar, cruet, or bowl. Shake or whisk to combine the ingredients thoroughly.
Pour the dressing over the salad and gently toss to combine.
Refrigerate the salad for at least 1 hour before serving. Toss again, then add any garnishes if desired. Enjoy!

How to Store Tortellini Pasta

Refrigerate leftover tortellini salad in a covered airtight container. Refrigerated pasta salad will keep for up to 4 days.
For outdoor serving, make sure to keep the tortellini salad cold at all times. It should not be left under 40 F for more than 2 hours—1 hour if the temperature is 90 F or hotter. Ideally, keep the salad in a well-insulated cooler on ice or nestle the bowl in a larger bowl filled with ice.

Feeling Adventurous? Try This:

Add veggies – For more veggies, consider adding shredded carrots, a cup or more of marinated quartered artichoke hearts (drained), fresh or roasted red bell pepper strips, or add about 1/2 cup of chopped sun-dried tomatoes in oil.
No black olives, no problem – Replace the black olives with Kalamata olives.
No mozzarella, no problem – Replace the mozzarella cheese with provolone, cheddar, feta, or fontina cheese.
Have the protein on the side – Omit the salami or ham or serve it on the side.
Add capers – Add a few tablespoons of chopped capers to the salad or blend them into the dressing.