Zesty Italian Pasta Salad With Salami
This summertime Zesty Italian Pasta Salad is a light yet satisfying chilled pasta salad made with tender pasta, an assortment of fresh vegetables for added crunch, salami, cheese, and a homemade salad dressing.
Prep Time 15 minutes mins
Cook Time 10 minutes mins
Total Time 25 minutes mins
Course Salad
Cuisine American
Servings 6 side salad servings
For Pasta Salad
- 1 cup mini mozzarella balls, whole or halved
- 13 plum or cherry tomatoes, I used tri-color, halved
- ½ red onion, medium dice
- 1 cup fresh cucumber, sliced and seeds removed (I cut the cucumber in half and removed the seeds with a fruit scoop)
- ½ cup black olives, green or purple would also taste delicious here
- ½ cup parsley, chopped
- 10 oz salami, smaller dice (or other Italian sausage, or kielbasa)
- 15 oz pasta, fusilli, rotini, farfalle, or any other pasta that has little curves that the dressing gets stuck in
- ½ cup bell pepper, diced (red tastes better as it is sweeter and balances the salty flavors well)
Pasta Salad Dressing
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon lemon juice
- ¼ cup + 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 teaspoon Dijon
- 1 teaspoon Maple syrup
- Salt and black pepper to taste
Prepare pasta according to package directions (al dente). Add a little salt to your pasta. Once cooked, drain the pasta in a colander and let cool down or even chill in the fridge before stirring with other ingredients. (We are going after a cold salad here).
For faster cooling, arrange pasta on a baking sheet while you cut other ingredients.
Make the dressing. In a mixing jug or mason jar with a lid, combine dressing ingredients and stir/shake well. Let stand (fridge or room temperature) for 15-30 minutes for flavors of the dressing to blend nicely.
Prepare the rest of the ingredients and salami by cutting them and arrange in a large bowl. Add in the pasta and stir in the dressing. Taste for seasoning.
For better flavor, cover the bowl with plastic wrap and put in the fridge to chill for at least 1 hour. It is however optional.
I love to serve this delicious salad with some sprinkled parmesan cheese on top.