Greek Pasta Salad

5 from 5 votes

This delicious recipe is made with feta, olives, and a tangy homemade dressing. Perfect for summer cookouts and quick weeknight dinners!

Prep Time20

Cook Time10

Total Time30

Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: Mediterranean

Servings: servings

Author: Krissy Allori

Equipment

stock pot

Ingredients

Dressing:

1 lemon juiced
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon fresh oregano minced (if using dried, cut amount in half)
2/3 cup extra virgin olive oil

Pasta Salad:

16 ounces pasta fusilli recommended
1 tablespoon kosher salt for cooking the pasta
1 medium red onion thinly sliced
6 ounces kalamata olives drained, olives cut in half or quartered
1 red bell pepper thinly sliced into matchstick sized pieces, seeds and stem removed
2 cups cherry or grape tomatoes halved
1 cucumber English cucumber recommended, quartered lengthwise, seeds removed, sliced
1 cup feta cheese crumbled

Instructions

Make the dressing: Whisk together all of the ingredients except the olive oil (1 lemon, 1/4 cup red wine vinegar, 1 tablespoon sugar, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1 tablespoon fresh oregano). Pour the 2/3 cup extra virgin olive oil in a slow, steady stream while whisking constantly. Continue to whisk once all the olive oil has been added until the dressing has emulsified.
Cook the pasta: Heat a large pot of water with 1 tablespoon kosher salt over high heat. Once it comes to a boil, add the 16 ounces pasta and cook al dente. You want it to be tender but still have a bit of a bite to it. Prior to draining the pasta, reserve a cup of the salted pasta water. This can be added to the mixed salad just before serving if it seems too dry. Drain the pasta and immediately return it to the pot. While it is still hot, add about half of the prepared dressing and toss to coat. This will allow the flavor of the dressing to absorb into the pasta, will leaving the remaining dressing for the finished pasta salad.
Combine salad ingredients: Once the pasta has completely cooled, add the remaining salad ingredients (1 medium red onion, 6 ounces kalamata olives, 1 red bell pepper, 2 cups cherry or grape tomatoes, 1 cucumber, and 1 cup feta cheese and toss to combine. Chill at least 2 hours, if possible.
Add remaining dressing: Just prior to serving, add the remaining salad dressing and toss to combine. The dressing is added at the end to prevent it from absorbing into the pasta. If the pasta salad seems dry, add small amounts of the reserved pasta water until it looks and tastes how you want it.

Notes

serving size based on an estimated 1/2 cup of cooked pasta per person, or about 3/4 cup pasta salad, per person.

Nutrition