Mediterranean Pasta Salad with 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! It’s a perfect side dish to serve any time of the year and makes a terrific main dish meal.
Like my Greek Pasta Salad Recipe and Caprese Pasta Salad, this healthy pasta salad recipe is simple to make and loaded with flavor!
In This Post
Mediterranean Pasta Salad is a fan favorite around here with tons of 5-star reviews, and for good reason! It pairs fresh veggies with a flavor-packed Greek salad dressing and perfectly cooked pasta.
Why You’ll Love This Easy Mediterranean Pasta Salad?
- It’s packed with big flavor from salty olives, creamy feta, and juicy vegetables with the perfect mix of tangy fresh flavors.
- It can be served paired with protein, or you can make a large batch to enjoy for lunch all week.
- It’s tossed in homemade Greek salad dressing which takes this salad to the next level.
- This is the best pasta salad, and it doesn’t begin to compare to the ones from Costco or Sam’s Club, especially when you learn how easy it is to make!
Mediterranean Salad Ingredients
- Cooked Pasta: I like to use short-cut pasta like rotini, farfalle, or penne. You can use gluten-free pasta as well.
- Tomatoes: Use cherry tomatoes for this salad for optimum sweetness.
- Cucumbers: Any style of cucumber will work – English, standard, or mini.
- Olives: I like to use a combination of black and green pitted olives because they each have different flavor profiles. Kalamata olives are milder, while green olives are tangier.
- Red Onion: Red onion adds a sweet bite and crunch to the salad.
- Baby Spinach: Baby spinach keeps it bite-sized without adding any more work. If you use full-size spinach, be sure to chop it smaller.
- Feta Cheese: Crumbled feta adds a salty and creamy element. Feel free to use a block of feta that you crumble or pre-crumbled feta. Goat cheese would also be good in this salad, but it’s not as salty, so you will need to adjust the seasoning.
- Mediterranean Pasta Salad Dressing: I use my Greek Salad Dressing recipe, which is good as a vinaigrette and as a marinade.
How To Tone Down Red Onions
To tone down the intensity of red onion, slice it and soak it in cold water for 10 minutes. Drain and pat dry before using.
How To Make The Best Mediterranean Pasta Salad Recipe
- Add the pasta to a large 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 Ingredients and Instructions
- Add extra virgin olive oil, red wine vinegar (fresh lemon juice can be used,) minced garlic cloves, Dijon mustard, dried thyme, dried oregano, salt, and fresh cracked pepper to a jar with a tight-fitting lid.
- Shake to combine, then drizzle over the cold pasta salad.
Success Tips For The Best Pasta Salad
- Cook the pasta until al dente. You don’t want soggy, overcooked pasta in your salad.
- Be sure to run the pasta under cold water to stop it from cooking and cool it down fast.
- 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
Yes, this is an excellent recipe to make ahead of time. The flavors seem to get better the more it marinades in the dressing! Cover and store in the fridge for up to 3 days before serving. Let it come to room temperature before serving.
Yes, any pasta can be used, but I recommend a short pasta because it’s easier to eat with everything else. Some examples are macaroni or orzo.
Sure! I like to add leftover grilled chicken, and air-fried salmon is delicious tossed in.
Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. Toss before serving since some of the dressing may have settled on the bottom of the container.
What To Serve With Cold Mediterranean Pasta Salad
As far as side salads go, this pasta salad is perfect to serve with Oven Fried Chicken, Roasted Pork Tenderloin or Crock Pot Beef Roast. This salad makes a great soup and salad combo with Roasted Cabbage Soup and Parmesan Cheese Straws. And for lunch, I don’t think it gets any better than pasta salad with feta and a slice of Sausage Cheese Bread.
More Pasta Salad Recipes You’ll Love
If you tried this Mediterranean Pasta Salad Recipe or any other recipe, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below. Thanks!
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.
Video
Notes
- This is an excellent recipe to make ahead of time. The flavors seem to get better the more it marinades in the dressing! Cover and store in the fridge for up to 3 days before serving. Let it come to room temperature before serving.
- 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.
Nutrition
Christmas at Home!
FREE EMAIL Bonus
Festive recipes to make your holiday kitchen full of joy
LC
Yum loved it
Donya
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
Christy
Loved this pasta salad. The dressing was a bit tangly for me so I added a bit of maple syrup and it was perfect!
Donya
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
Pamela
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!!!!!
Donya
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
Trish
Delicious salad, second time I have made it. Also added beets.
The dressing is very good & useful in other recipes.
Donya
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
Susan
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.
Donya
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
Shannon
This looks yummy! Any ideas of a substitute for the cucumber? I have a few kids who aren’t cucumber fans.
Donya
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
Keira
This looks tasty. Adding this to our menu planning.
Donya
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
JAE
Fantastic recipe and it is healthy! Everyone love it at my house!
Donya
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
Wendy
This looks srumcious! I do have one question-my family are not fans of olives-what can I use as a substitute?
Donya
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
Joely
Whats the breakdown of calories etc on this meal. Protein carbs fat?
Donya
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
Susan
This sounds so delicious. Can it be made with whole wheat pasta?
Donya
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
Beth Legett
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.
Donya
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
Mandy G
This looks delicious and I can’t wait to try. Do you know the nutrition I do for it by chance?
Donya
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