Juicy tomatoes and cucumbers, along with salty olives, red onion, tender pasta, and spinach, are tossed together with creamy feta cheese in a homemade dressing for a crave-able salad that’s so easy to make! Mediterranean Pasta Salad is a perfect side dish to serve any time of the year, and it makes a terrific main meal.
Mediterranean Pasta Salad: Big Flavor, Easy To Make
A couple of weeks ago, I made a homemade Greek Dressing that I’ve become quite obsessed with. Not only have I used it drizzled on greens and veggies, but I’ve also used it as a great marinade for chicken.
My obsession continued when I decided to make THIS salad. I grabbed some of my favorite ingredients – pasta, olives, some onion, along with a few fresh veggies and some feta cheese. After a bit of chopping and tossing, I’d created a pasta salad masterpiece. Yep, I’m calling it that because it’s that good.
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Mediterranean Salad Ingredients
- Cooked Pasta – a short-cut pasta like bowtie pasta, rotini, or frfalle
- Tomatoes – I use grape tomatoes.
- Cucumbers
- Black Pitted Olives
- Green Pitted Olives
- Red Onion
- Baby Spinach
- Feta Cheese
- Homemade Greek Dressing
Not only is this Mediterranean Pasta Salad delicious as a side dish, but it’s also super easy to make. Its great served alongside just about any main dish, and it’s so hearty that it can be enjoyed as the star of any meal.
Pro Tip:
To tone down the intensity of red onion, just slice and soak in cold water for 10 minutes. Drain and pat dry before using.
How To Make This Mediterranean Pasta Salad Recipe
- Add the pasta to a pot of salted boiling water and cook until al dente. Drain and rinse with cold water.
- Add pasta, tomatoes, cucumbers, red onion, spinach, and olives to a large bowl. Drizzle on about ½ cup of Greek Salad Dressing and toss all ingredients. Add feta cheese and more dressing, plus salt and pepper if desired, and toss until just combined. Serve immediately and enjoy!
Greek Salad Dressing
- Add all ingredients to a bowl or a jar with a lid and whisk/shake until blended.
What Makes This Salad Special
One of the things that makes Mediterranean Pasta Salad so special is the dressing. Homemade Greek Salad Dressing has a combination of fresh herbs like basil, garlic, oregano, and thyme mixed with red wine vinegar and extra virgin olive oil, making it the perfect match for the salad ingredients.
Helpful Tips For Making This Recipe:
- Cook the pasta until al dente. You don’t want soggy, overcooked pasta in your salad.
- I like to cut the veggies into bite-size pieces. I do the same with the olives, but you could leave them whole if you are in a hurry.
- Feel free to substitute some of your favorite ingredients. If you are not a fan of something, leave it out. You could change out the spinach for arugula or romaine lettuce. Toss in some salami or pepperoni for an added Mediterranean vibe. Add in red bell pepper or chopped zucchini for crunch.
Commonly Asked Questions
While both salads share some similarities in ingredients and are inspired by Mediterranean flavors, a Greek pasta salad typically includes ingredients found in a Greek salad, like feta cheese, cucumber, and red onions. A Mediterranean pasta salad, on the other hand, may have a broader range of ingredients like cherry tomatoes, kalamata olives, and other regional ingredients.
Store any pasta salad in an airtight container in the fridge for up to three days. For the best flavor, let the salad come to room temperature and toss before serving.
More Amazing East Pasta Salad Recipes You Will Love!
- Best Caprese Pasta Salad
- Pesto Pasta Salad
- Greek Pasta Salad
- Deviled Egg Pasta Salad
- Spaghetti Salad
- Creamy Tomato Cucumber Pasta Salad
Equipment
Ingredients
Mediterranean Pasta Salad
- 12 ounces pasta
- 1 cup halved grape tomatoes
- 1 cup sliced and quartered cucumbers
- ¼ cup thinly sliced red onion
- 1 cup baby spinach
- ½ cup sliced pitted green olives
- ½ cup sliced pitted black olives
- ½ cup crumbled feta cheese
- salt and pepper to taste
- ½ to ¾ cup Homemade Greek Salad Dressing
Greek Salad Dressing
- ½ cup olive oil
- ½ cup red wine vinegar
- 1 large clove minced garlic
- 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
- 2 teaspoons dried oregano
- 2 teaspoons dried thyme
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon fresh cracked pepper
Instructions
- To a pot of salted boiling water, add the pasta and cook until al dente. Drain and rinse with cold water.
- Add pasta, tomatoes, cucumbers, red onion, spinach, and olives to a large bowl. Drizzle on about ½ cup of Greek Salad Dressing and toss all ingredients. Add feta cheese and more dressing plus salt and pepper if desired and toss until just combined. Serve immediately and enjoy!
Greek Salad Dressing
- Add all ingredients to a bowl or a jar with a lid and whisk/shake until blended.
Notes
Nutrition
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Fabulous thanks again for sharing
Friends loved the recipe hopefully
They go to your awesome blog site
Five stars two thumbs up
Donya your a fabulous blogger
With awesome recipes that are
Fast easy delicious friendly to
Serve to friends
The dressing is a total bomb it is
Superbly awesome
THANK you!!
~Donya
PS—-! The tip about soaking the red onions in cold water for 10 minutes, really worked. My raw onion hater said she could tell the difference in flavor and didn’t mind eating them!!!!
Great with grilled chicken. Even better the next day. The perfect recipe for a potluck. Yummo
Thanks, Beth!
This pasta salad was delicious. I substituted roasted red peppers for the grape tomatoes as they aren’t my favorite. I made the salad the evening before and then put the dressing on ahead of serving it. The dressing was a bit tangy but I enjoyed it. I actually think I will make the dressing again this week to have with my regular garden salads.
I love love this pasta salad. It is so good! I omit the black olives bc I do not like them. When I serve it just for me I add a little salami and chopped pepperoni and pepperocinis. However you spell it!
This was a very tasty salad and definitely will make again. I used the Barilla protein plus noodles versus the regular pasta and I did not have the spinach in hand so I used a lettuce mix. I plan on keeping this salad as one of my regulars.
This is great, Ana! And, thanks for the outstanding rating.
~Donya
This is so great! And, thanks for the outstanding rating.
~Donya
The recipe is so easy to follow and I cant wait to make it.
Very tasty !! Will use this recipe again.
Thanks for the outstanding rating!
Made this last night and served with leftover chicken. It was delicious – didn’t change a thing. Will definitely make again.
Very good recipe!
Hey there Chasity!
I’m so glad to hear that you enjoyed this recipe, thank you so much for your kind words of support! Since you enjoyed this dish, you should check out my Strawberry Caprese Pasta Salad recipe, the flavors are fresh and bright, and it’s super simple to make, I hope you’ll give it a try. Let me know if you ever have any questions about a recipe, I’m always happy to help!
~Donya
Is it possible to post the Sodium content in the salad?
Hey there Angela!
Thank you so much for your interest in this recipe and for your terrific rating, I think you’re really going to love this salad! I do not personally include the nutritional information for my recipes, but if you click the link in this comment and paste the recipe into that site, it will give you all of the nutritional facts you’re looking for. Thanks again for your support, I hope you enjoy the recipe!
https://www.myfitnesspal.com/recipe/calculator
~Donya
Yum loved it
Hey there!
Yayyy! I am so happy to hear that you enjoyed this recipe, it’s super simple to make and great to serve for so many different occasions. Thank you so much for your fantastic rating and for your kind words, I appreciate your support!
~Donya
Loved this pasta salad. The dressing was a bit tangly for me so I added a bit of maple syrup and it was perfect!
Hey there Christy!
Thank you so much for your kind words and for your fantastic rating, I am so glad to hear that you enjoyed this recipe! I am a big fan of making recipes work for you and for your tastes, so adding maple syrup was a great idea to sweeten up the dressing a little bit, I bet that was delicious. I really appreciate your support, if you ever have any questions about a recipe, please don’t hesitate to ask!
~Donya
Absolutely DELISH! It was a huge hit for our guest and now I’m going to make it again for my husbands big birthday party. This time I’ll try making it ahead so I have less to do on the day of the party! Thanks for sharing this REALLY good recipe. The dressing is AWESOME!!!!!
Hey there Pamela!
Wow! Reading this has made my day, I am so happy to hear that everyone enjoyed this recipe! You’ve got the right idea making this salad ahead of time, honestly I think it tastes better after sitting in the fridge marinating in that dressing for a day. Plus, making this ahead will really free up your time to spend with your husband and loved ones. Thank you so much for your kind words and this fantastic rating, I really appreciate all your support!
~Donya
Delicious salad, second time I have made it. Also added beets.
The dressing is very good & useful in other recipes.
Hey there Trish!
Thank you so much for your kind words, I am so happy to hear that you’ve been enjoying this dish! I completely agree with you, the dressing on this salad is so versatile, you can use it in so many other recipes. Adding beets was a terrific idea, I bet they added a wonderful texture to the salad, I’m definitely going to give that a try. I really appreciate your support, if you ever have any questions about a recipe I would be more than happy to help!
~Donya
I loved this Pasta Salad! I happened to have the ingredients in my fridge and thought I would make it. It came out great! My neighbor loved it too!
I used Italian dressing instead of the Greek dressing. I will definitely make it again.
Hey there Susan!
Wow! I am thrilled to hear that y’all enjoyed this recipe, I bet using Italian Dressing in this was absolutely delicious! Thank you so much for sharing your experience with this recipe, I really appreciate your kind words of support!
~Donya
This looks yummy! Any ideas of a substitute for the cucumber? I have a few kids who aren’t cucumber fans.
Hey there Shannon!
Thank you so much for your interest in this recipe, I think you’re really going to love it! One of the best parts of this recipe is that you can tailor it to your own tastes. If your kids aren’t huge cucumber fans then I would recommend simply doubling the amount of another ingredient in the salad that they love. One of my sons isn’t a cucumber fan either, so when I make it for him I put in twice the written amount of olives because he loves those. I hope this is helpful, please let me know how everything turns out!
~Donya
This looks tasty. Adding this to our menu planning.
Hey there Keira!
Thank you so much for your interest in this recipe, I think you’re really going to love it! It’s super versatile so you can pair it with just about any main dish from chicken to fish. Let me know how everything turns out if you give it a try, I’d love to hear what you think, I hope you enjoy!
~Donya
Fantastic recipe and it is healthy! Everyone love it at my house!
Hey there!
I am so happy to hear that everyone enjoyed this recipe, it’s a great fresh salad to serve at any occasion! If you liked this Mediterranean Pasta Salad then you should check out my Caprese Pasta Salad, it’s just as easy to make and it has some fantastic flavors. Thank you so much for your kind words and your phenomenal rating, I appreciate your support! ~Donya
This looks srumcious! I do have one question-my family are not fans of olives-what can I use as a substitute?
Hey there Wendy!
Thank you so much or your interest in this pasta salad and for your fantastic rating, I think you’re really going to enjoy the recipe! If your family aren’t fans of olives, I would recommend simply doubling the measurement of a different ingredient. If you guys really like tomatoes, feta or cucumbers, you can simply use more of the ingredients y’all really enjoy instead of substituting a new one for the olives. One of my sons isn’t much of a tomato fan so I usually add in extra cucumber. I hope this is helpful, let me know how everything turns out, I really hope you enjoy!
~Donya
Whats the breakdown of calories etc on this meal. Protein carbs fat?
Hey there!
Thank you so much for your interest in this recipe, it makes a wonderful salad for spring and summer! I do not offer nutritional calculations for my recipes, but if you click the link at the bottom of this comment, it will take you to a recipe calculator. You will be able to copy and paste the ingredients in this recipe into the calculator and it should give you all the information you need. I hope this helps, let me know how the pasta salad works out, I hope you enjoy!
https://www.myfitnesspal.com/recipe/calculator
~Donya
This sounds so delicious. Can it be made with whole wheat pasta?
Hey there Susan!
Thank you so much for your sweet words and your interest in this recipe, I think you’re going to love it! You can absolutely use whole wheat pasta in this Mediterranean Pasta Salad, I actually prefer whole wheat noodles in this dish. With most, if not all, of my pasta salad recipes, you can substitute any kind of noodle you like. Sometimes I’ll even make this salad with tortellini and it becomes a whole meal. I hope you enjoy the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions!
~Donya
I made the pasta salad for our annual Easter get together. I had to come back to the site with the recipe because I have to print copies for all of the people who asked me how I made it! I prepared it the day before so I did use most of the dressing as it does absorb it. It was not oily at all. Thanks for sharing, it is a keeper.
Hey there Beth!
Oh my goodness, reading this has made my day! I am so pleased to hear that everyone enjoyed this recipe, preparing the day before is always a great idea, I honestly think it tastes better after sitting in the fridge overnight. Thank you so very much for your kind words and for sharing my recipe, as well as leaving this fantastic rating, I really appreciate your support! If you ever have any questions about a recipe please don’t hesitate to ask!
~Donya
This looks delicious and I can’t wait to try. Do you know the nutrition I do for it by chance?
Hey there Mandy!
Thank you so much for your interest in this recipe! I do not usually provide the nutritional information for each recipe, but if you copy and paste the ingredients into the link below, it will provide you with all the nutritional info you’re looking for. I hope this helps, let me know how everything turns out, enjoy the recipe!
https://www.myfitnesspal.com/recipe/calculator
~Donya
I need nutritional value for this salad
Glad you found this yummy recipe.
I don’t provide nutritional information, but here is a site that you can use – https://www.myfitnesspal.com/
Have a great day,
~Donya
Awesome! I made salad in early afternoon. Put in refrigerator. Made dressing and put in jar and refrigerated. About 30 minutes before serving I literally drizzled over salad, stirred and put back In refrigerator. Dressing was a little too oily for me so let others add if they wanted. This is a most refreshing salad.
I served with air fryer brats. What a quick, easy and delicious meal.
Hey there Anne!
My goodness, it sounds like you made quite the tasty meal! I love that you paired this salad with an easy Air Fryer recipe, next time you should check out my Air Fryer Salmon, it goes perfectly with this salad. Thank you so much for your kind words and your phenomenal rating, I am so happy to hear that you enjoyed this recipe! If you ever have any questions about a dish, please don’t hesitate to reach out and ask!
~Donya
This would go well with our fish fry next week.
Hey there Ella!
Thank you so much for your interest in this recipe, I think you are completely right! This salad is super versatile, it goes with pretty much any protein, but it’s super tasty with fish! I really hope you enjoy the recipe, let me know how everything turns out!
~Donya
Made this last week. Delicious. Didnt use all the dressing and had enough for
some on my green salads.
Making more dressing today
Hey there Teresa!
Wow! Thank you so much for this terrific rating and your kind words, I am so glad you enjoyed this recipe. When I make Mediterranean Pasta Salad I do the exact same thing and save the dressing for other salads, it’s super convenient. I really appreciate your support, if you ever have any questions about a recipe please don’t hesitate to ask!
~Donya
If made ahead of time do you put dressing on when made or when your ready to serve?
Hey there Nancy!
That’s a terrific question! This salad is a great dish to make ahead of time, and you’re exactly correct. What you’ll do is prepare the salad with everything except the dressing, and then whenever you’re ready to serve just toss the salad in the dressing and you’re ready to go. Thanks for your interest in this recipe, I hope you enjoy!
~Donya
This looks tasty! Love pasta salads. This would be great for summer camping.
Hey there Mary!
Thank you so much, I really appreciate that! I love a good pasta salad too, and I think you’re right this would be a perfect salad to make for camping! The only real cooking involved is cooking the pasta, other than that it’s just chopping veggies. I really hope you enjoy this recipe, if you ever have any questions please don’t hesitate to reach out!
~Donya
Can this be prepared as a meal prep for the week?
Hey there Maria!
Yes, you can absolutely prepare this dish ahead of time! It will do well in the fridge for about 3-5 days as long as you store it in an air-tight container. I hope you enjoy this recipe, let me know what you think!
~Donya
Made this for 4th of July. Delicious! Will make again and again. Thank you for the recipe.
Hey Michelle!
Thank you so very much for your sweet words and your fantastic rating! I am so pleased y’all enjoyed this on the 4th of July, it’s a perfect fresh summery pasta salad. I really appreciate your support, thank you!
~Donya
This recipes is really good, saved to my favorites.
Hey Christine!
Thank you so much for your words of support, I’m so glad you enjoyed this recipe!
Have a great day!
~Donya
Delish! Eating it as I type. I used Elbow noodles, and added Mild Banana Peppers… did not use all the dressing and it is still a bit oily. But, it’s EVOO…so it’s ok! Lol
Hey Nicole!
You’re right, EVOO sure is good! And as the pasta sits in the fridge it will absorb more of the dressing. Thanks for sharing!
~Donya
I love this pasta salad recipe! I can’t wait to make it and enjoy it for lunch.
Thanks.
Can you make this the night before?
Hey there Kathy!
Yes, you can absolutely prepare this ahead of time! This pasta salad will keep in the fridge for about 3-5 days so making it the night before is a great idea. I hope this helps, let me know how it turns out!
~Donya
Do you add vegetables to the hot pasta?
Hey there Evelyn!
Thank you so much for your interest in this recipe, I really think you’re going to love it! Usually, I allow the pasta to cool down a little bit before adding the veggies and dressing to it, if you’re on a time crunch you can simply run the pasta under cold water for a couple of minutes and then you can add the other ingredients. I hope this is helpful, let me know how everything turns out, I’d love to hear what you think!
~Donya
This pasta salad & dressing was amazing!! I am vegan & have not found “the salad” until now. I actually could not stop eating it until it was gone.. (over 4 hours)Thank you!
Hey there Marjorie!
I think this is the one of the biggest compliment I’ve ever gotten, I am so happy to hear that you enjoyed this recipe! It’s definitely one of those salads that’s so light and flavorful it’s addictive, you can really sit down and eat a whole bowl of it! If you enjoyed this dressing, I would definitely recommend putting it on other salads, it tastes delicious on just about anything. Thank you so much for your kind words of support, I hope you have a wonderful day!
~Donya
Where can I find the best nutritional data on this recipe: Mediterranean Pasta Salad? Such as the calories, serving size, carbs, Etc.
Hey there Julie!
Thank you so much for your interest in this recipe, I think you’re going to love it! I don’t personally provide the nutritional information for my recipes, but I’ve copied a link below that can help you out with that. If you click the link it will take you to a recipe nutrition calculator where you can input the ingredients from the recipe and it’ll give you all the information you’re looking for. I hope this is helpful, let me know if you give the recipe a try, I’d love to hear what you think!
https://www.myfitnesspal.com/recipe/calculator
~Donya
I added some chick peas to this salad because I don’t eat meat. It was delicious!
Hey there Diane!
Chickpeas are a terrific addition to this salad, especially if you’re vegetarian since they’re so packed with protein! Chickpeas also go very well with the flavors in this salad, it sounds like you made a delicious meal! Thank you so much for your interest in this recipe and for your support, if you ever have any questions about a dish please don’t hesitate to reach out!
~Donya
Do you know the carbs and calories. And the serving.
Hey there Estela!
Thank you so much for your interest in this recipe, I think you’re really going to like it! I do not personally include the nutritional information for my recipes, but if you click the link in this comment, it will take you to a site where you can copy and paste the recipe in and it will give you all the nutritional facts you’re looking for. I hope this is helpful, let me know how everything turns out if you give the recipe a try!
https://www.myfitnesspal.com/recipe/calculator
~Donya