Easy Greek Pasta Salad

This Greek Pasta Salad is easy and perfect any time! It combines tender rotini pasta with arugula, cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, olives, red onion, crumbled feta cheese, and a homemade salad dressing. Serve it at your next potluck, cookout, or party or as a side dish to complement your next lunch weeknight meal.

Looking for more salad ideas? Try my Easy Southern Potato Salad, Mexican Salad with Cilantro Lime Dressing, or Warm Quinoa Roasted Veggie Salad with Vinaigrette.

When I’m looking for a light meal idea, pasta salad is one of my favorite dishes to make. This pasta salad is filled with fresh, crunchy veggies and bright herbs blended with just enough pasta to soak up the homemade salad dressing.

Greek salads traditionally consist of sliced cucumbers, tomatoes, green bell peppers, red onion, olives, and feta cheese. This classic combination is excellent, so I didn’t make too many changes—except I removed the bell peppers and added “flavored” feta cheese.

Positioned on the healthier side, unlike many pasta salads, this version does not use mayonnaise but a homemade vinaigrette, which is light and full of flavor on its own.

Ingredients you’ll need to make Greek Pasta Salad:

It’s all about color and freshness! Here’s what I like to include, and you can add more or less, depending on your preference.

• Pasta will serve as the base of your salad. I went with rotini, a short, corkscrew-like pasta formed into a twisted shape with a tight coil. Other popular choices include fusilli (a wider, more open spiral), penne, farfalle, macaroni, or even orzo. You can also use gluten-free pasta.
• You’ll need cherry tomatoes. You can use regular tomatoes, but cherry tomatoes tend to be slightly sweeter, which is perfect for this recipe.
• Cucumbers will add a nice crunch to the pasta salad. Any cucumber will work—English, Persian, standard, or mini.
• Black olives add a briny, salty flavor to the salad. Kalamata olives are milder, while green olives are tangier.
• For the greens, you’ll need arugula. It adds a nice peppery flavor to the salad. Baby spinach or baby kale also works well. Baby spinach keeps it bite-sized. If you use full-size spinach, simply chop them into smaller pieces.
• Red onion adds a sweet profile and more crunch to the salad.
• Crumbled feta cheese adds a salty, tangy, and creamy element to the recipe. You can substitute goat cheese if you’re not a fan of feta cheese. If you want a vegan pasta salad, you can omit it.
• For the homemade salad dressing, you’ll need balsamic vinegar, olive oil (or grapeseed oil), Dijon mustard, ground mustard, brown sugar, black pepper, and oregano. You can also use white balsamic vinegar not only for its milder flavor but also because it won’t turn a salad dressing brown, for appearance’s sake.

How to make Greek Pasta Salad:

Prepare the pasta. Boil the pasta according to instructions and set it aside when done. Your pasta should be cooked al dente.

Chop the veggies. Chop the cucumber, cherry tomatoes, red onion, and olives into bite-sized pieces. Set aside.

Make the home salad dressing (vinaigrette). In a small bowl, add balsamic vinegar, olive oil, Dijon mustard, ground mustard, black pepper, oregano, and brown sugar, whisking until smooth. Set aside.

Combine all ingredients. Add the cooked pasta, chopped veggies, and feta cheese in a large bowl. Top with the homemade salad dressing,

Toss. Toss all ingredients together until blended. Serve immediately or store if preparing ahead.

Tips & Tricks

• Don’t overcook the pasta. You want it to be tender but not overly soft or mushy. Follow the instructions for your pasta type for al dente results.
• Rinse the pasta with cold water after cooking to immediately stop the cooking process.
• Let your pasta cool completely before tossing it with the other ingredients. If it’s still warm, the pasta will cook the vegetables and melt the feta cheese. Cold pasta is best.
• Want some protein? Add some grilled chicken or beef salami.
• To tone down the intensity of red onion, slice it and soak it in cold water for 10 minutes. Drain and pat dry before using.
• This pasta salad will last in the fridge for up to 48 hours. If stored any longer, the pasta may get mushy, and the veggies wilt.

While pasta salad is great for cookouts, weekend grilling, and poolside gatherings (you can’t attend an event during the summer and not come across a pasta salad!), it is equally great to enjoy when you want a light lunch or to complement a weeknight meal.

Greek Pasta Salad

---

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

5 from 1 review

• Author: Eric Jones
• Total Time: 12 minutes
• Yield: 6 1x

Print Recipe

Save Recipe Recipe Saved

Description

This Greek Pasta Salad is easy and perfect any time! It combines tender rotini pasta with arugula, cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, olives, red onion, crumbled feta cheese, and a homemade vinaigrette.

---

Ingredients

Units USM Scale 1x2x3x

• 12 oz tri-colored rotini pasta
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes, sliced
• 1 cucumber, chopped
• 1/4 cup red onions, chopped
• 1/4 cup black olives, chopped
• 1/3 cup feta cheese crumbles
• 3 oz organic arugula

For the salad dressing:

• 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 1 tsp Dijon mustard
• 1 tsp ground mustard
• 3 tsp brown sugar
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 1/2 tsp oregano

Get Recipe Ingredients

Cook Mode Prevent your screen from going dark

---

Instructions

1. Cook the pasta according to instructions and set it aside.
2. In a small bowl, add the balsamic vinegar, olive oil, Dijon mustard, ground mustard, brown sugar, black pepper, and oregano. Whisk (paid link) until smooth. Set aside.
3. In a large bowl, add the cooked pasta, cherry tomatoes, cucumber, red onions, black olives, arugula, and feta cheese crumbles. Top with the homemade salad dressing.
4. Toss all ingredients together.

Equipment

Glass Bowls

Buy Now →

Whisk

Buy Now →

(paid link)

Notes

You can substitute fusilli (a wider, more open spiral), penne, farfalle, macaroni, or even orzo for the rotini. You can also use gluten-free pasta.

In place of the arugula, baby spinach or kale also works well. Baby spinach keeps it bite-sized. If you use full-size spinach, chop them into smaller pieces.

If you’re not a fan of feta cheese, you can substitute goat cheese. If you want a vegan pasta salad, you can omit it.

For the homemade salad dressing, you can also use white balsamic vinegar for a milder flavor, and it won’t turn a salad dressing brown.

• Prep Time: 5 minutes
• Cook Time: 7 minutes
• Category: Salad
• Method: Toss
• Cuisine: Greek

Nutrition

• Calories: 199
• Fat: 2.8g