Greek-style Tortellini Pasta Salad is loaded with colorful veggies and topped off with a zesty homemade dressing for a dish that’s sure to be a hit at your next potluck or party!
Tortellini Pasta Salad is not your average run-of-the-mill pasta salad. This recipe takes classic pasta salad and turns it on its head with a Greek-inspired twist. Made with tri-colored tortellini (though you could substitute standard tortellini) and packed full of fresh, juicy tomatoes, cucumbers, artichoke hearts and kalamata olives and then doused with a homemade Greek-infused dressing, everyone is going to want the recipe for this tasty, easy, tortellini salad side dish!
TORTELLINI PASTA SALAD
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We’ve officially made it to cookout-weather! While I love burgers and hot dogs and other traditional grilled foods, what I really love about this time of year is all of the side dishes — especially the salads!
I’m not talking about your standard iceberg-lettuce-filled salads, (okay this Wedge Salad is pretty amazing and not boring at all) but rather traditional party-food classics like potato salad and macaroni salad, and unique new favorites like ramen noodle salad and now tortellini salad recipes.
This easy pasta salad is absolutely bursting with color and flavor from the seasonal veggies — if you’re growing tomatoes or cucumbers in your garden this year, tortellini pasta salad is a great way to use them up! I’ve also included plenty of Greek/Mediterranean add-ins, including kalamata olives (though you can substitute plain sliced black olives), quartered artichoke hearts, and feta cheese.
While you can certainly douse this salad in pre-made, store-bought Greek salad dressing, I always prefer to make my own (besides, I usually have all of the ingredients in my pantry already, and I bet you do, too). Olive oil, red wine vinegar, and lemon juice (preferably fresh) form the base for the dressing, and then you’ll spice up the flavor with dried basil, oregano, and other spices including garlic, salt, and crushed red pepper. I’ve even been known to use homemade pesto sauce for a pesto tortellini salad.
While whisking your dressing together will work just fine, I actually always prefer to make my salad dressing in a mason jar just because it’s so easy. To do this, pour all of the ingredients into a mason jar, close the lid, and shake everything together until the dressing ingredients are well-combined, and then pour the dressing over your tortellini pasta salad. Make sure to stir everything up really well so that all of your ingredients have a nice coating of dressing.
I prefer to cover and chill my tortellini pasta salad for at least an hour in the refrigerator before serving to help bring out all of the vibrant flavors of the dressing. This salad can be made the morning of or the day before you plan to serve it. However, do make sure that you mix everything together really well again before serving as the salad dressing tends to settle to the bottom of the bowl as it sits.
Want more of my favorite potluck recipes?
- Grape Salad
- How to Make Deviled Eggs
- Spicy Chicken Tortilla Roll Ups
- BLT Pasta Salad
- Glazed Kielbasa Bites
- Caramelized Onion Dip
- Creamy Bacon Pea Salad
- More side dish recipes…
Tools used to make this Tortellini Pasta Salad recipe
Large Pot: This pot is a kitchen essential for everything from dinner to desserts. I use mine all the time and with proper care, it’ll last for years and years.
Mixing Bowl: These mixing bowls are perfect for mixing and serving. I love the varied sizes so I always have to right size bowl for all my mixing needs.
Mason Jar: Mason jars are great for storing everything from salad dressing and coffee creamers to overnight oats and all kinds of delicious make ahead dishes!
Ingredients
- 20 ounces tri-colored tortellini (regular tortellini will work too)
- 13 ounces quartered artichoke hearts drained
- 1 pint grape tomatoes halved
- 1 cucumber diced
- ⅓ cup red onion diced
- ⅓ cup pitted kalamata olives sliced (black olives would work too)
- 1 cup feta cheese crumbled
Dressing
- ⅓ cup olive oil
- 1 ½ Tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 1 Tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- ¾ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper optional
Instructions
- Prepare tortellini by cooking according to package instructions.
- Drain well and immediately rinse with cold water and drizzle with a teaspoon of olive oil. Transfer to a large mixing bowl and stir well.
- Add artichoke hearts, grape tomatoes, cucumber, onion, olives, and feta cheese.
- Combine salad dressing ingredients in a bowl and use a whisk to beat until well-combined (alternatively, combine all dressing ingredients in a mason jar, seal with a lid and shake well to combine), and pour over tortellini salad ingredients.
- Stir very well. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.
Nutrition
Anonymous says
I absolutely love this recipe. I did make a few altercations to better suit my tastes. I doubled the red wine vinegar and lemon juice, added a little more onion, and used mini cucumbers. Regardless my family, coworkers, and myself loved the dish. Definitely recommend!