This easy Tortellini Pasta Salad features tender cheese tortellini in a bright and zesty sun-dried tomato vinaigrette with all your favorite Italian mix-ins like salami, mozzarella pearls, olives, roasted tomatoes, and fresh basil.
This is the perfect pasta salad recipe for a potluck when you don’t want a heavy mayo-based dressing. It’s a light and refreshing recipe that truly everyone will love!
How to Make Tortellini Pasta Salad:
This recipe truly couldn’t be easier to make in the summertime. I do highly recommend investing in an immersion blender–it’s one of my most used kitchen tools for making sauces and dressings at home.
Ingredients and Substitutions:
- Tortellini. You can really use your favorite store-bought tortellini here with just about any filling variation! I opted for simple cheese tortellini, but you can use whatever you like.
- Baby mozzarella. I love the little ciliegine mozzarella balls, but you can also use any fresh mozzarella cut up into bite-sized pieces.
- Salami. Look for the little logs of hard salami (my favorite brand is olli or columbus) so that they’re easy to dice.
- Roasted red peppers. I love buying these in the jar for ease, but you can also roast and peel your own red bell peppers here.
- Castelvetrano olives. These are my absolute favorite olives because they have the best texture and flavor. You could swap in a different variety, if desired. Whatever olives you use, just make sure they’re pitted.
- Basil and Arugula. I love the fresh element that these add to the pasta salad, but you could omit either if you’re not a fan.
- Sun-dried tomato vinaigrette. We’re making our own dressing here with sun-dried tomatoes, dried herbs, white balsamic, olive oil, lemon zest, dijon mustard, and lemon juice. It’s so fresh and bright! You could also swap in just about any Italian vinaigrette recipe, store-bought or homemade.
The Process:
- Cook the tortellini. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil and cook the tortellini according to package directions. Drain and rinse with cold water until the pasta is cool to the touch.
- Make the vinaigrette. In a wide-mouthed pint-size mason jar, combine the dressing ingredients. Use an immersion blender to blend the ingredients until they’re very smooth and emulsified. Season to taste with salt and pepper and set aside. Alternatively, you can blend the ingredients in a blender or food processor.
- Assemble the tortellini pasta salad. In a large mixing bowl, combine the cooked tortellini, red onion, roasted bell pepper, cherry tomatoes, olives, salami, and mozzarella. Toss with enough dressing to coat and season with salt and pepper to taste. Refrigerate the pasta salad for 1-2 hours, until chilled. Right before serving, toss the pasta salad with the fresh basil and arugula.
Cook the tortellini according to package instructions.
Make the sun-dried tomato vinaigrette.
Toss the dressing with the pasta and the rest of the ingredients.
Fold in the arugula and basil before serving.
Making Your Own Dressing:
I love a hearty salad at home, so I’m all about making my own dressings and vinaigrettes at home! Instead of a heavy mayo-based dressing for this tortellini pasta salad, I really love how bright and fresh this sun-dried tomato vinaigrette is.
Whenever I’m making a vinaigrette at home, I almost exclusively use a wide-mouth pint jar and an immersion blender. I love this method because you just dump all the ingredients into the mason jar and blend them up–no streaming in the olive oil or adding the ingredients in stages.
Not only that, but once you’re finished blending the dressing, it’s already housed in its storage container. This works for just about any vinaigrette you can think of.
What to Serve with Tortellini Pasta Salad?
This is truly a hearty and delicious side dish that could work as a main, but it’s so great as a summer side dish for a picnic, potluck, or BBQ.
Storage Instructions:
Any leftover tortellini pasta salad can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Keep in mind that the basil and arugula will probably wilt some in the fridge, but that’s okay!
Any leftover sun-dried tomato vinaigrette can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week. Let the dressing come to room temperature before serving.
Lastly, if you make this Tortellini Pasta Salad, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram @northeast.nosh! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Tortellini Pasta Salad
Equipment
Ingredients
Tortellini Pasta Salad:
- 24 oz bag cheese tortellini
- 1/4 red onion thinly sliced
- 1 pint cherry tomatoes halved
- 8 oz fresh mozzarella ciliegine drained
- 2 roasted red bell peppers diced
- 1 cup pitted Castelvetrano olives halved
- 8 oz hard salami diced
- 2 cups baby arugula
- 20 fresh basil leaves torn
- Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper
Sun-Dried Tomato Vinaigrette:
- 1/4 cup chopped sundried tomatoes
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1/4 cup white balsamic vinegar
- 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 2/3 cup olive oil
Instructions
- Cook the tortellini. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil and cook the tortellini according to package directions. Drain and rinse with cold water until the pasta is cool to the touch.
- Make the vinaigrette. In a wide-mouthed pint-size mason jar, combine the dressing ingredients. Use an immersion blender to blend the ingredients until they’re very smooth and emulsified. Season to taste with salt and pepper and set aside. Alternatively, you can blend the ingredients in a blender or food processor.
- Assemble the tortellini pasta salad. In a large mixing bowl, combine the cooked tortellini, red onion, roasted bell pepper, cherry tomatoes, olives, salami, and mozzarella. Toss with enough dressing to coat and season with salt and pepper to taste. Refrigerate the pasta salad for 1-2 hours, until chilled. Right before serving, toss the pasta salad with the fresh basil and arugula
Nutrition
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