Name: The Best Creamy Pasta Salad Recipe
Prep time: 75 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 85 min
Ingredients: 16 ounces ditalini pasta ((or whatever pasta you have on hand). 1 package); 1 cup broccoli florets (chopped); ½ red onion (minced); 1 red bell pepper (minced); 1 cucumber (diced); 3.8 ounces sliced olives (1 can, drained); 1 cup Colby Jack Cheese (cubed); 1 cup mayonnaise; 2 teaspoons white wine vinegar; 1 teaspoon sugar; ½ teaspoon pepper; ½ teaspoon salt

How to Make The Best Creamy Pasta Salad

I started by cutting up all of my pasta salad ingredients, including broccoli, red onion, red bell pepper, cucumber and Colby Jack cheese.

While I was cutting up my other ingredients, I had my pasta boiling on the stove top. You could use any type of pasta your family prefers (Penne, elbow macaroni, Rotini, etc.), but I used Ditalini pasta.

When your pasta is done cooking, rinse in cold water and place in a large serving bowl. Mix in all of your vegetables and cheese.

To make the dressing, I whisked together one cup of mayonnaise and added a little sugar, salt, pepper and white wine vinegar to give it that tangy flavor. If you wanted to cut down on calories, you could easily substitute with a light mayo.

After you have prepared your dressing, pour it over your pasta and vegetables and gently fold in until well combined and everything is evenly coated.

Cover your Creamy Pasta Salad with plastic wrap and store in the fridge for at least 1 hour before serving.

Serve cold and enjoy!

chopped vegetables for homemade pasta salad

raw, chopped vegetables and cheese for homemade pasta salad

closeup photograph of pasta salad with broccoli, cheese, olives

Cooking Tips

Rinse your cooked pasta in a colander with cold water until pasta is completely cold. This helps your pasta to not stick together because of the extra starches you are washing away.

Be sure to cut your vegetables, especially red onion, very small (more of a mince than a dice) so they aren’t too overpowering in this Creamy Pasta Salad.

I love using simple shortcuts when cooking. I used pre-sliced olives and Colby Jack cheese sticks that I then cut into cubes rather than buying an entire block of cheese.

In my opinion, the best part about this Creamy Pasta Salad is the tangy dressing you toss everything in. My secret to the perfect pasta salad dressing is using Best Foods Mayonnaise. But any dressing will work fine. Best Foods Real Mayonnaise is also rich in Omega 3-ALA and only 1.5 grams of saturated fat per serving.

More Pasta Salad Recipes

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Questions & Reviews

Melissa Torres says:

Great way to get some yummy, crunchy veggies in everyone!
Tom says:

Ur best foods mayo. Looks a lot like a jar of hellmann's mayonnaise. I have never seen it before, is it the same.
Cyd says:

Any Mayo will be fine. We have even used store brands.
Kelly Ambrose says:

So I love this but I feel like the red onion flavor is over powering everything else :( any idea on how to tame it?
Jennifer Hippe says:

I noticed that too when I moved from the west coast to the midwest. Best foods & Hellman's are the same! Says so right on the jar :)
Janelle says:

You have to eat it that day. I made this for an open house the evening prior. I served it less then 12 hours the following day and it was super dry. I whipped up another batch of the dressing and mixed it in. Still overwhelmingly dry. I think it’s one of those that has to be served after making it. It does say in the pin that she usually doesn’t save it, that it’s all gone. I should have picked a recipe that said it stored well for a make ahead event.
Dora berzoza says:

Do you add broccoli cooked or uncooked
Cyndi says:

Try using a sweet onion, such as a Vidalia, in place of the red onion. The flavor will be milder.
Cyd says:

We add the broccoli uncooked.
Jill says:

Is the dressing sweet? I see the recipe has just a little sugar.
Cyd says:

It's not super sweet. But the tangy flavor of the mayo adds the perfect amount of sweetness.
Mary Jane Hall says:

I've always wondered why the red onion restaurants have on their salad bar doesn't have that hot onion taste. The red onion I'd buy wasn't nearly as good. I'm happy to share a tip I learned from someone on the Food Network. To take away that hot onion taste, all you have to do is soak the sliced red onion in cold water at least 30 minutes before serving or adding to your fresh salad. I normally let it soak a littler longer, up to an hour. Even though a red onion is called a sweet onion, it's never been sweet to me, probably because I use the delicious sweet Vidalia onion. A tip I learned from my sister who lived in Georgia is, the flatter the onion, the sweeter it is. But a red onion does have that distinctive taste needed for many dishes. I keep both onions on hand.
Alicia says:

Can you use something else besides white wine vinegar? I couldn’t find it in the store.
Cyd says:

A rice vinegar or cider vinegar could be used. But add sparingly until you get a taste you like.
Kenna says:

can you use plain white vinegar?
Cyd says:

Start with 1 teaspoon and taste test it first. Then if you feel it needs more, add the 2nd teaspoon.
Ann says:

Very similar to a salad I concocted several years ago, but I include chopped celery and cooked chicken, using a 1 to 1 ratio of mayo and ranch dressing to finish it off. Easy-peasy, and everyone always wants the recipe.
Beth Beckman says:

Could you start including nutritional information with your recipes? If that is possible, I would be more interested in trying them!
Pcam says:

I add feta cheese to this and it is amazing! I also use green onion instead of red.
Brenda says:

Try soaking the onions in water a half hour or so before you use them, works on yellow onions too.
Shayna says:

Very Tasty! I added bacon but otherwise followed the recipe exactly!
Jill says:

Could you use plain Greek yogurt instead of Mayo?
Momma Cyd says:

Yes, you could use Plain Greek Yogurt in place of the mayo, but it will change the taste a little.
MamaAsh says:

I like making this on Sunday and having leftovers for an easylunch throughout the week!
Debbie says:

Yes, they are the same. I thinks it’s called Hellmans in east coast, best foods on west coast.
Linda Starkey says:

Pasta always absorbs the dressing and one batch is definitely not enough. Going to make another batch and hope that doesn’t the trick.
KrisD says:

We love this pasta salad. This is our favorite recipe and go to. I always take it to BBQ's and I am asked for the recipe. I send them your way. I do leave out the olives and cut back a little on the red onion only because this is our preference. Thank you for all your wonderful recipes!
Angie says:

This salad is a favorite every time I make it. The pasta absorbs a lot of the sauce so I triple it and mix the last bit in right before serving so it's creamy and delicious! Thank you for the recipe!