When it comes to potlucks and parties, a standout pasta salad can steal the show. Whether you’re aiming for a mayo-free option, experimenting with unique dressings, or simply need to know how much to prepare for a crowd, we’ve got you covered.
Let’s be honest—we love pasta salad year-round. It plays well with creamy, comforting flavors in colder months, then graciously welcomes warmer temperatures with bright, fresh zest.
From soba noodles dressed in citrus ginger to tender bow ties sprinkled with red pepper flakes and tomatoes, a cool, big bowl of pasta salad is endlessly versatile. You can plop in whatever farmer’s market bounty you find: cucumbers, carrots, corn, or radishes. Plus, they hold up (even improve!) over time as dressings and ingredients marinate—no wilting or getting soggy.
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How Much Pasta Salad to Make for a Crowd
When you’re prepping for a party or potluck, the last thing you want is to run out of food—or be left with a mountain of leftovers. So, how much pasta salad should you make per person?
As a general rule of thumb:
• Side dish serving: ½ to ¾ cup per person (about 4–6 ounces)
• Main dish serving: 1 to 1½ cups per person (8–12 ounces)
For example, if you’re feeding 20 people and serving pasta salad as a side, aim for 10 to 15 cups total, or roughly 2 to 3 pounds of dry pasta. Don’t forget to account for add-ins like chopped veggies, cheese, or protein, which bulk things up too.
Tip: Pasta salad is super make-ahead friendly—just give it a quick toss with extra dressing before serving, since pasta tends to absorb flavors as it sits.
Mayo-Free Pasta Salad Options
Looking for a pasta salad without mayo? Whether it’s for dietary reasons or just to keep things safer at a warm-weather cookout, there are tons of flavorful alternatives that hold up beautifully at room temp.
Some of our favorite mayo-free pasta salad dressings include:
• Lemon-Dijon vinaigrette – bright, tangy, and perfect with veggies or grains
• Italian dressing – a crowd-pleaser that goes with almost anything
• Tahini or yogurt-based sauces – creamy but lighter and more heat-stable
You’ll find plenty of mayo-free pasta salad recipes in our roundup below, packed with ingredients like roasted vegetables, olives, herbs, and tangy cheeses that don’t need mayo to shine.
Tips for Transporting and Serving Pasta Salad at Events
Pasta salad is a go-to for parties for a reason: it’s easy to make, hard to mess up, and travels like a champ. That said, a few smart tricks can help your dish arrive fresh and party-ready.
Keep it cool
If you’re heading to an outdoor event, pack your pasta salad in an airtight container and nestle it in a cooler with ice packs. This is especially key if there’s any dairy, meat, or egg-based dressing involved.
Wait to dress (or redress)
For the best texture, toss the salad with half the dressing before chilling and reserve the rest for just before serving—this keeps the pasta from drying out or getting mushy.
Serve it smart
Use a wide, shallow serving bowl to help it chill faster and serve more easily. Bonus points if it has a lid to keep things covered between bites.
Our Best Pasta Salad Recipes
1. No-Mayo Peperonata Pasta Salad
“Want to know how to change hearts and minds about pasta salad? Make this one for your next backyard BBQ or picnic with friends,” writes Food52 contributor EmilyC. “Peperonata—the classic Southern Italian side dish of sweet peppers, onions, and tomatoes melted in olive oil—is a swell companion to pasta. It’s packed full of vegetables and serves as the dressing (a win for pasta salad, a big win for you). Better yet, the peperonata can be made several days in advance and tossed with freshly-cooked pasta whenever you’re ready.”
2. Classic Italian Pasta Salad
The secret to this springy, satisfying, perfectly textured pasta salad? Overcooking the noodles—seriously! A little bit of science tell us just why (retrogradation, to you!), but TL;DR: Trust us. It works!
3. Creamy Pesto Pasta Salad
Fresh basil, garlic, and almonds are blended into a creamy pesto, enhanced with Parmesan, mayonnaise, and white balsamic vinegar. Tossed with rigatoni, cherry tomatoes, and mini bocconcini, it’s a perfect addition to any potluck or gathering.
4. Cold Vegetable & Noodle Salad With Ponzu Dressing
This is a great way to get acquainted with tart and salty ponzu sauce: tossed with silky udon and a medley of crunchy, fresh vegetables and herbs.
5. Caprese Pasta Salad
“I remember many a warm summer night when, motivated by a strong aversion to turning on the oven, my mother would whip up a quick pasta with a no-cook sauce,” Co-Founder and President Merrill Stubbs writes. “One of my favorite iterations was a variation on a popular theme: pasta with raw tomatoes, garlic, olive oil, and sometimes basil.” If you love caprese salads but also want to be full an hour after dinner, just add all those tasty components to pasta.”
6. Orzo Salad With Scallions, Hazelnuts & Golden Raisins
A make-ahead masterpiece if we’ve ever seen one! You can mix the dressing, plump the raisins, and toast the hazelnuts the night before.
7. Miso Peanut Pasta Salad
Macaroni salad gets a new personality. Instead of creamy cheese, coat noodles in peanut butter and miso, then add some spice with vinegar and chile-garlic sauce.
8. Bow Tie Pasta Salad With No-Cook Tomato Sauce
Celebrate tomato season with Michel Guérard’s Genius Sauce Vierge, a gorgeous no-cook tomato sauce. The combination of fresh tomatoes, olive oil, lemon juice, and herbs shines in this simply-dressed pasta salad.
9. Cold Sesame Noodle Salad
Here’s an almost no-cook, five-ingredient pasta salad that will actually help you cool down. “A note on noodle choice: any long, thin pasta will do,” recipe author Kendra Vaculin advises. “Vermicelli or thin rice noodles (like those pictured here) are great gluten-free options, and hold up much better than brown rice noodles when cooked and then chilled. If it’s what you have in your pantry or all you can find, plain ol’ spaghetti works just as well.”
10. Jaengban Guksu
Meanwhile, some people like to eat hot foods in the summer. If you’re looking for a spicy kick, gochujang takes this pasta salad to the next level.
11. Lemon-Dill Orzo Pasta Salad With Cucumbers, Olives & Feta
“The flavors in this pasta salad are mild and subtle—perfect for complementing grilled salmon or a roasted chicken with pan juices,” writes Food52er viblanco. “At first, the grated shallot and Dijon in the vinaigrette may seem like they would overwhelm the dish, but both settle in without a hint of bite. The use of feta and olives also brings a bit of salty flavor with each taste.”
12. Beet-Dressed Pasta With Golden Raisins & Poppy Seeds
Warm or cold, this velvety, earthy, totally unique pasta’s full of interesting flavors and textures. Just be sure to add a pinch of salt if you try it on the cold side.
13. Pasta Salad With Roasted Peppers, Green Olives, Walnuts & Anchovies
With just five ingredients, it’s a wonder that this humble pasta salad packs all the punch it does. But each of the five has a darn good reason for being there—and each brings a whole lot to the table.
14. Grilled Okra Pasta Salad
A trip to the grill helps crisp and char silky okra—then it’s thrown into a super-savory mixture of mozzarella, basil, and cherry tomatoes with pasta, all dressed with a zingy garlic-infused vinaigrette.
15. Antipasto Orzo Pasta Salad
“The jars on your refrigerator door have joined forces in a pasta salad that tastes like the best parts of an antipasto platter (or an Italian hero),” claims recipe author Sarah Jampel. “To bulk it up, top it with folded prosciutto, or mix in cubes of salami or Parmesan. If you have everything on hand, this salad will be ready as soon as the orzo is boiled (10 minutes!).”
16. Herby Pasta Salad With Tempeh Bacon & Roasted Veggies
A medley of roasted broccoli, bell peppers, onions, and tomatoes is tossed with al dente pasta and a vibrant dressing made from olive oil, white wine vinegar, brown sugar, and a generous mix of fresh herbs like mint, basil, oregano, and chives
17. Panzanella Pasta Salad
Think of this as a love child between pasta salad and bread salad—aka the best of both worlds. Short pasta joins forces with crusty torn bread, juicy tomatoes, cucumbers, and herbs in a bright, punchy vinaigrette. It’s a fresh, mayo-free option that travels well and gets even better as it sits—ideal for any potluck or picnic spread.
18. Pasta Salad With Crispy Salami & Cherry Tomatoes
This fresh, flavor-packed pasta salad hits all the right notes—bright, herbaceous, and just a little salty thanks to crispy salami. The genius move? Sizzling the salami until golden, which adds a savory crunch you’ll want to steal for every pasta salad going forward. It’s mayo-free, travels like a champ, and comes together fast
19. Oil-Free Vegan Pesto Pasta Salad
You’d never guess this creamy, flavor-packed pasta salad is both vegan and gluten-free. The oil-free pesto uses cashews and lemon for richness and brightness, making it just as luscious as the classic version—no compromises here. It’s a great option for mixed dietary crowds and holds up beautifully at room temp, making it party-ready.
20. Our Best Pasta Salad
We saved the best for last—literally! This is our pasta salad to write home about: with buttery olives; bouncy pasta; chewy cured meats and crunchy pickled bits; herbs and tender greens galore. Eat it at room temperature, or hot, or cold—any which way, you won’t be sorry.
Summer’s a time for free spirits. Riff on your favorite pasta shapes and flavors to create your own masterpiece. Here’s a simple formula to follow: 3/4 to 1 cup of dressing for each pound of dried pasta. Add in all of your favorites (vegetables, nuts, herbs, and cheeses) and mix gently.
For the full guide, see here:
How to Make Pasta Salad without a Recipe
What’s your favorite pasta salad recipe? Please share in the comments below!
Editor’s Note: This piece was updated in April 2025 with even more recipes & tips.
