Your new favorite pasta salad recipe is here! This yummy salad has salami, turkey, loads of cheese, lettuce, tomatoes and more with tender pasta in a creamy dressing. It tastes like a yummy sub sandwich, only better!
Summer cookout and potluck season is upon us. So, we need some new pasta salad recipes to make!
If I am being honest, I almost never bring pasta salads to carry-ins. You know I am the dessert committee.
I do, however, love making pasta salads on the weekend and bringing the leftovers to work with me for lunch. This is perfect for either occasion!
It has flavors similar to the TikTok famous chopped grinder sandwich, but it is even more fun. There are so many textures and flavors, it is hard to beat!
I would say it is my favorite salad I’ve made in a while. That is really saying something as I have been on a bit of a salad run lately.
Carlee’s Tips and Tricks
Cook the pasta al dente, or just a little bit firm. Drain the pasta well, then rinse it. That helps to stop the cooking and remove extra starch so the pasta doesn’t stick together.
It also makes cools it down so you can go ahead and make the salad right away. You don’t want to wilt the lettuce in a bowlful of hot pasta!
I used a high protein and fiber pasta so that a bowl would keep me full for the whole afternoon. Feel free to use your favorite kind of pasta.
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Pickled red onions are great in salads like this. They still add a little bit of crunch without having too much bite.
If you don’t have pickled onions, soak them in ice water for about 10 minutes to tame them a bit. Or just add a diced onion if you like the raw onion bite.
While the leftovers do keep for a few days, I would try to make it just an hour or two early if I was serving it to a crowd. That will keep the veggies at their freshest and keep plenty of creamy dressing on the pasta.
After a couple of days in the fridge, the lettuce will wilt a bit and the dressing will start to soak into the pasta. It will still taste good, but won’t be quite as good as when you started.
Make It Your Own
As with most salads, this grinder pasta salad recipe is super customizable. If you don’t like an ingredient, you can almost always omit it or substitute it with something else.
Here are a few more ideas if you want to add more to the salad:
- Diced cucumbers would add more crunch and a fresh pop.
- A lot of recipes add some pepperoni. I thought it was unnecessary with the salami, but feel free to chop some up and toss it in!
- If you like olives, add away. Just don’t put any in mine, please. 😉
- For a touch of heat, add a pinch or two of red pepper flakes to the dressing.
- If there is a topping you like on a grinder, go ahead and try it here too.
Grinder Pasta Salad
Ingredients
Creamy Dressing
- ¾ cup mayonnaise
- 2 Tablespoons white wine vinegar
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
Pasta Salad
- 16 ounces dried pasta
- 8 ounces mozzarella pearls
- 4 ounces provolone cheese
- 3 ounces hard salami
- 3 ounces deli turkey
- ½ cup sliced pepperoncini drained
- 2 Tablespoons fresh basil chiffonade
- ¼ cup shredded Parmesan cheese
- 2 cups cherry tomatoes
- 1 cup sliced red onion
- 1 head romaine lettuce
Instructions
- To make the dressing, stir together ¾ cup mayonnaise, 2 Tablespoons white wine vinegar, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, 1 teaspoon dried oregano, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper in a jar or small bowl. Add a pinch of red pepper flakes if you like a little bit of spice. Chill until ready to use.
- Cook 16 ounces dried pasta to al dente following the package instructions. Drain and rinse with cold water to stop the cooking and remove any extra starch.
- Put the pasta in a large bowl. Add 8 ounces mozzarella pearls.
- Chop 4 ounces provolone cheese, 3 ounces hard salami, 3 ounces deli turkey½ cup sliced pepperoncini, 2 Tablespoons fresh basil chiffonade, and ¼ cup shredded Parmesan cheese. Add the the bowl with the pasta.
- Cut 2 cups cherry tomatoes into halves and add to the salad.
- Chop 1 cup sliced red onion, and 1 head romaine lettuce into small pieces. Add to the bowl.
- Drizzle the dressing over the salad and toss. Chill until ready to serve.
Video
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