Italian pasta salad is packing a punch of flavor with a homemade Italian dressing. This pasta salad is bursting with goodness – salami, pepperoni, mozzarella, tomatoes, spinach, and pepperoncini!

I have been a long time lover of the cold pasta or vegetable salad.

I think my husband was a little shocked and dismayed the first time he came to a family dinner at my parent’s house. Everyone brings sides and the majority of those sides are cold salads.

My broccoli salad with bacon has been a favorite forever. So is my mama’s classic macaroni salad.

He is not much for these types of salads. They usually have onion and he’s not a fan of that. He’s also weird about cold pasta and potatoes, so you can imagine his struggle. 😉

Luckily for him, I love this type of side dish and am happy to eat his portion for him. 😉

This pasta salad with Italian dressing is basically a big ol’ bowl full of heaven. There is SO much good stuff packed into one pasta salad. I bet you won’t want to share!

Table of Contents

Pasta Salad Ingredients:

Tri-Colored Rotini – Any small shape of pasta will work here, but we love the color and texture of this rotini.

Mozzarella Balls – Shredded mozzarella will also work, if that’s what you prefer.

Salami

Pepperoni

Cherry Tomatoes

Spinach

Red Onion

Pepperoncini – Adds a little heat and zing to the dish!

What Readers are Saying!

“My husband made this salad, it was so good, it made so much we were able to have it for several meals. Thank you so much for sharing.”

-Ruth

Dressing Ingredients:

Olive Oil

Lemon Juice – Use a fresh squeezed lemon, it really brings out the flavor!

Salt

Sugar

Oregano

Basil

Rosemary

Garlic

How to Make Pasta Salad:

Boil: Bring a pot of water to a boil and add your pasta. You’ll want to cook this until just al dente – no one likes mushy pasta in their pasta salad.

You’ll want to let your pasta cool before adding in all the goodies, so drain and rinse under cold water.

Chop: Next, you’ll dice up all the goodies going inside.

For this Italian pasta salad recipe, we’re using a big mix of things – fresh mozzarella, pepperoni, salami, cherry tomatoes, fresh baby spinach, red onion, and pepperoncini. You can adjust these ingredients to fit your tastes with no problem.

Stir all that goodness into a large mixing bowl with the pasta and move on to the dressing.

Alternatives: Skip the pepperoni for extra salami, or swap the pepperoncini for mild banana peppers! Use grated mozzarella instead of fresh mozzarella. Add some olives! It’s hard to mess this one up, though in my opinion, the recipe is perfect as written. 😉

Italian Dressing: If you love Italian dressing (I do!!), you’re going to love my homemade dressing! It’s perfect for coating the pasta salad.

You’re going to need some olive oil, fresh lemon juice, minced garlic, salt, sugar, oregano, basil, and rosemary.

The sugar does not make this sweet – it’s just a bit to balance out the acidity. I don’t know about you, but in my opinion, sweet Italian dressing is from the devil. I feel the same way about sweet pickles. 😉

Everything just gets whisked together really well. Easy as pie.

Mix and Chill: Pour the dressing right over your pasta salad, stir to coat, and taste for seasoning! I usually add a bit more salt, but taste it and see what you think.

Once the pasta is coated in the dressing, you’ll want to pop this in the fridge for a few hours to let the flavors meld together.