Israeli Pasta Salad is a mash-up of two of my favorite summer salads, it’s packed with veggies and is the perfect make-ahead potluck or bbq dish ~ it actually gets better after a day or two in the fridge!
I keep a supply of Israeli pasta salad going in my fridge all summer long!
It’s there waiting for us when we come in the door, sweaty, tired, and hungry. It’s breakfast, lunch, snack, and, occasionally, dinner. Does the world need another pasta salad? I don’t know, probably not, but maybe this one will inspire some of you to change up your old standard. This veggie packed version is made just like my favorite Chopped Israeli Salad, with the addition of pasta. The dressing is simply olive oil and fresh lemon juice…I love that.
Ingredients for Israeli pasta salad
- small sized shaped pasta
- cucumber
- radish
- tomato
- bell pepper
- olives, black and green
- red onion
- pepperoncini
- feta cheese
- fresh herbs
I laid out my ingredients above, the only thing missing is the pepperoncini, which gives it some kick, if you don’t like heat, leave that out. I added the olives and the pepperoncini at the suggestion of Dave, one of the commenters on the chopped salad post, who lives in Israel. I love getting feedback from you guys, and I especially love hearing how you do things differently, so please don’t hesitate to comment with your ideas. We have so much to share with each other 🙂
Pack your pasta salad in mason jars for fun meal prep!
I love to fill wide mouthed mason jars with this Israeli Pasta Salad, it makes it super easy to store, and we can pull them out as needed and eat right out of the jar.
Chopped Israeli Pasta Salad
Ingredients
- 1/2 pound small bow tie or other small pasta
- 1/3 cup cucumber, finely diced (I like to use small Persian cucumbers)
- 1/3 cup radish, finely diced
- 1/3 cup tomato, finely diced (drain excess liquid)
- 1/3 cup yellow bell pepper, finely diced
- 1/3 cup orange bell pepper, finely diced
- 1/3 cup black olives, finely diced
- 1/3 cup green olives, halved
- 1/3 cup red onion, finely diced
- 1/3 cup pepperoncini, diced
- 1/3 cup feta cheese, finely diced
- lots of fresh thyme leaves
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- salt and fresh cracked black pepper to taste
dressing
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- juice of 1 lemon
Instructions
- Cook the pasta in well salted water until just al dente, don’t over cook. I usually cook it at least 2 minutes under the time listed on the package. Drain and rinse in cold water.
- Put the well drained (not dripping wet) pasta in a bowl and toss with a little olive oil so it doesn’t stick together. Add the veggies, oregano, thyme, and salt and pepper. Hold out the feta cheese until the end.
- Add the 1/4 cup olive oil and lemon juice and toss well. Gently fold in the feta cheese.
- Refrigerate the salad for at least 2 hours, up to overnight. Taste before serving, you may want to add more olive oil, lemon, salt, or pepper.
- Garnish with fresh thyme.
Notes
- This salad keeps well, and it’s a good choice for picnics, barbecues, and other outdoor events. I would even go so far as to say that it’s better the next day or even two.
- Be sure to use a small sized pasta for this, if you can’t find mini bow ties, use elbows. You don’t want the pasta to overwhelm the finely diced veggies.
Nutrition
More chopped salads to try
- Chopped Asparagus Salad
- Chopped Salad with Spicy Tomato Vinaigrette
- Israeli Chopped Salad
- Cowboy Caviar
One of my favorite summer pasta salads to make, especially when I have Thyme growing