Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links. I may earn a small commission for my endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this website.
Full of fresh, flavorful ingredients, this easy pasta salad recipe is a popular side dish for picnics, potlucks, and cookouts. The creamy cold pasta salad starts with a bright, smooth dressing made with mayo, lemon, fresh basil, and garlic. Perfect for spring and summer entertaining!
Table of Contents
If you’re hosting a summer get-together or heading over to a friend’s house for a picnic, then this easy pasta salad with mayo is for you. After all, a Southern potluck would not be complete without plenty of sides on the table! While we love a wide variety of pasta salad recipes — from Macaroni Salad to Shrimp Pasta Salad, Classic Pasta Salad to Italian Pasta Salad — this creamy version with a homemade dressing is always a favorite.
My cold pasta salad with mayo takes advantage of the fresh veggies and herbs that are available at this time of year and let’s them shine. It’s a simple blend of pasta, broccoli, peas, sweet bell pepper, cucumber and green onions.
Pasta Salad Dressing with Mayo
While some recipes call for bottled dressing (which is totally fine for a shortcut!), this creamy dressing is made from scratch and it’s ready in just minutes! When you make your own dressing at home, you can control the amount of herbs and seasoning that you use, so your dish comes out exactly how you like it…every single time.
This dressing is smooth and creamy, thanks to the mayo! It’s flavored with lemon juice, fresh basil, and garlic, then it sits and marinates with the pasta and veggies to bring the whole salad together.
Tip: Since the pasta absorbs some of the dressing as it sits, reserve extra dressing to add just before serving. This refreshes and moistens the salad when you’re ready to enjoy it.
Ingredients for Creamy Pasta Salad with Mayo
This is a quick overview of the ingredients that you’ll need for an easy pasta salad with mayo. As always, specific measurements and complete cooking instructions are included in the printable recipe box at the bottom of the post.
- Pasta: any short pasta shape will work. I like either medium shells, elbow macaroni, rotini, penne or ditalini.
- Broccoli florets: cook them in the boiling pasta water for about 30 seconds, just so that they’re crisp-tender.
- Frozen peas: thaw the peas first, then toss them into the bowl!
- Sweet red bell pepper: substitute with any other color sweet bell pepper.
- Cucumber: I prefer seedless English cucumber, which you don’t even need to peel.
- Green onion: scallions add a mild onion flavor to the dish. You can substitute with fresh chives if they’re available.
- Mayonnaise: the base of the dressing, so pick a high-quality mayo with great flavor. We prefer Duke’s brand.
- Lemon juice: freshly-squeezed for a bright, acidic note in the dressing.
- Fresh basil leaves: add so much flavor to the dressing. You can include other fresh herbs of your choice, too. We love fresh dill and fresh parsley as well.
- Garlic, sugar, kosher salt, and ground black pepper: enhance the other flavors in the salad. If you don’t have fresh cloves of garlic, you can sub with a smaller amount of garlic powder.
Which pasta is best for salad?
As I mentioned above, you can use just about any short pasta shape that you like. I’ve shown medium shells here, but other good options include ditalini, elbows (macaroni pasta), rotini, and penne. You want something that has holes, ridges, or curls so that the dressing really clings to each bite!
Should you rinse pasta for pasta salad?
Yes, I recommend rinsing the pasta for this cold pasta salad. The rinsing accomplishes two things:
- Stops the cooking process and cools down the pasta right away so that you can toss it with the veggies and dressing; and
- Removes some of the starches so that the noodles don’t stick together in a big clump as they cool.
How to Make Easy Pasta Salad from Scratch
This easy cold pasta salad is a perfect prep-ahead side dish for your next Sunday supper, family bbq, picnic, or potluck. It’s versatile, and it pairs well with almost any meat-based entrée! I think it’s best when it has a chance to sit for at least 2 hours, so make sure that you plan ahead and allow enough time for the dish to chill.
The detailed directions are included in the recipe card below, but here’s the quick overview:
- Boil the pasta in a large pot of salted water, adding the broccoli during the final 30 seconds.
- Combine pasta with veggies in a large bowl.
- Whisk together the dressing.
- Pour half of the dressing over the salad, then toss to coat. Reserve the remaining dressing to refresh the salad just before serving.
- Refrigerate the salad for at least 2 hours (or overnight).
- Drizzle remaining dressing over top, toss to combine, and serve!
What goes with cold pasta salad?
There are a number of easy main dish options that go well with this easy pasta salad. Here are a few ideas to get you started:
- Grilled hamburgers or hot dogs
- BBQ Chicken
- Pulled BBQ Chicken
- Dr. Pepper Pulled Pork
- Mississippi Pot Roast
- Grilled Steak
- Ranch Oven-Fried Chicken
- Grilled Salmon
- Roast Chicken
- Crispy Fried Chicken
- Fried Shrimp
- Marinated Grilled Shrimp
- Baby Back Ribs
Preparation and Storage Tips
- Make Ahead: The salad is best when it has at least a couple of hours to chill. You can assemble the salad in advance and keep it in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours before serving. Just before you plan to enjoy it, add the reserved dressing to freshen it up!
- Storage: While it’s best enjoyed within 24 hours, the dish will stay fresh in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days.
- I do not recommend freezing the leftovers, since the ingredients will have a mushy, watery texture when thawed.
Recipe Variations
- Just about any vegetables will work, so feel free to mix up what goes in your salad. For instance, add corn instead of peas, or swap out the red bell pepper for halved cherry tomatoes. Diced celery or chopped red onion is also nice!
- Sliced black olives, chopped dill pickles, sweet pickles, or sweet pickle relish, cubed cheddar cheese, and hardboiled eggs are also classic additions. Toss them into this dish, if you like.
- Cheese is always a good option, too. Try cubed cheddar or Monterey Jack cheese, crumbled feta cheese, or diced Swiss cheese.
- More herbs would be great in the dressing, so add chopped fresh parsley, dill, thyme or oregano when available.
- Add meat and make it a more satisfying dish with protein that works for a lunch or dinner entrée. Good options include grilled or rotisserie chicken, shrimp, or tuna.
- For even more flavor in the dressing, try adding a dollop of dijon mustard and/or a splash of vinegar.
Tips for the Best Easy Pasta Salad Recipe
- Plan ahead and make sure that you allow at least 2 hours for the salad to “marinate” in the dressing and the flavors to come together.
- Rinse the pasta and broccoli under cold water to stop the cooking process, cool it down quickly, and remove starches so that the noodles don’t stick to each other.
- Thaw the peas quickly by placing the frozen peas in a colander. When you drain the pasta and broccoli florets, pour the hot pasta and water over the peas in the colander. They will thaw almost instantly when the hot pasta hits them!
- Grate the peeled garlic clove on a microplane so that you get all of the great garlic flavor in your dressing without any big chunks.
More Pasta Salad Recipes with Mayo
Aunt Bee’s Shrimp Pasta Salad
50 minutes mins
Ham Pasta Salad
50 minutes mins
Chicken Pasta Salad with Shrimp and Pepperoni
2 hours hrs 30 minutes mins
Easy Pasta Salad with Mayo, Lemon, and Basil
Ingredients
FOR THE SALAD
- 8 ounces uncooked medium shells or other short pasta (such as elbows, ditalini, rotini or penne)
- ½ cup diced broccoli florets
- ½ cup frozen peas, thawed
- ½ cup finely diced sweet red bell pepper
- ½ cup diced cucumber
- ¼ cup sliced green onions
FOR THE DRESSING
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons minced fresh basil leaves
- 1 small clove garlic, finely minced or grated (or half of a large clove)
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- Kosher salt and black pepper, to taste
- Optional garnish: chopped fresh parsley
Instructions
- Cook the pasta in a large pot of salted boiling water according to package instructions, adding the broccoli florets to the pot of boiling water during the final 30 seconds of cooking. Drain and rinse under cold water. Set aside to cool completely.
- In a large bowl, combine cooked pasta, broccoli, peas, red bell pepper, cucumber and green onion.
- In a separate small bowl, prepare the dressing by whisking together the mayonnaise, lemon juice, basil, garlic, sugar, ½ teaspoon of salt and ¼ teaspoon of pepper.
- Pour half of the dressing over the salad and gently toss to coat. Taste and season with additional salt and pepper, if necessary. Store the remaining dressing in an airtight container or jar in the refrigerator.
- Cover the salad and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, or overnight.
- Just before serving, toss with reserved dressing to moisten. Taste and season with additional salt and pepper, if necessary. Garnish with fresh parsley.
Notes
- Plan ahead and make sure that you allow at least 2 hours for the salad to “marinate” in the dressing and the flavors to come together.
- Rinse the pasta and broccoli under cold water to stop the cooking process, cool it down quickly, and remove starches so that the noodles don’t stick to each other.
- Thaw the peas quickly by placing the frozen peas in a colander. When you drain the pasta and broccoli florets, pour the hot pasta and water over the peas in the colander. They will thaw almost instantly when the hot pasta hits them!
- Grate the peeled garlic clove on a microplane so that you have all of the great garlic flavor in your dressing without any big chunks.
Perhaps this is a ridiculous request, given the ingredient’s prominent role in the dish, but is there a substitute for mayo that you would recommend as a viable alternative? The salad sounds delicious but my husband hates mayonnaise.
Hi, Nicole! Not really, although you can definitely cut the mayo with some sour cream or plain Greek yogurt, which would minimize the mayo flavor in the dish.
I’ve made this more than a few times. It’s always great. Halved the recipe this time, it’s just my Wife and Myself. Very nice !
Thank you, Dave! We’re so glad you enjoy it.