This Easy Italian Tortellini Pasta Salad is a quick side dish made with bold Italian flavors like cheese tortellini, salami, artichokes, onions, mozzarella, black olives, tomatoes, and Italian dressing!
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It's pasta salad season again! I've been making quite a few variations of pasta salad recently, but this one has been my favorite! This salad was something I made on a whim just to clean out the fridge and it turned out to be pretty delicious. It's got all of the components of a great pasta salad like meat, cheese, and some other tasty ingredients thrown into the mix!
The first time I made this pasta salad, I used penne pasta. It's what I had on hand. But I knew that the next time I made it, I would have to make it with tortellini for an extra cheesy bit of flavor. That extra cheesiness definitely made the difference! It's what really brought this salad together!
The rest of this pasta salad is made with grape tomatoes, black olives, salami, mozzarella, artichokes, onions, and bottled Italian dressing. So easy and, like most pasta salads, so much better when you make it a day ahead of time! That way all of those good flavors can really soak into the pasta!
Easy Italian Tortellini Pasta Salad
If you're looking for a quick side dish or even an easy lunch that you can enjoy all week, this Easy Italian Tortellini Pasta Salad is it! It's full of delicious Italian flavors and so simple to prepare!
The first thing we need to do is make our tortellini. Bring salted water to a boil and cook the cheese tortellini according to the package. Once it's done, drain the pot, rinse the tortellini with cold water, and place it into a large bowl.
Now, start chopping the rest of the ingredients. Then, add them to the bowl with the tortellini and give everything a stir.
Add the bottle of Italian dressing to the bowl and stir. If desired, reserve a little dressing to add to the pasta salad the following day. The tortellini will soak up some of the dressing over time, so I definitely recommend leaving some in the bottle for later.
I added some pepperoncini slices on top as a zesty garnish. But that's it! The pasta salad is ready to serve! Or you can store it in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 5 days. It'll taste even better after a day or two!
Easy Italian Tortellini Pasta Salad
Ingredients
- 1 - 9 oz. package cheese tortellini
- 1 cup grape tomatoes halved
- 1 cup black olives sliced
- 1 cup salami chopped
- 1 cup mozzarella cheese cubed
- 1/2 cup marinated artichokes chopped
- 1/4 cup red onion chopped
- 1 - 16 oz. bottle Italian dressing
- Optional: sliced pepperoncinis
Instructions
- Cook the tortellini according to package.
- Rinse with cold water, allow the tortellini to cool, and transfer to a large bowl.
- Add the tomatoes, olives, salami, mozzarella, artichokes, and onion to the tortellini and stir.
- Then, pour in the Italian dressing and stir.
- Serve immediately with sliced pepperoncinis on top, or chill in the fridge.
- Store up to 5 days in the fridge in an airtight container.
With the arrival of warm days and nights spent around the barbecue, this pasta salad recipe is definitely one you'll want to keep on hand! It's delicious enjoyed on its own or as a side dish to your favorite spring and summer entrees!
Did you make this Easy Italian Tortellini Pasta Salad recipe? Share it on social media using the hashtag #holokahome. Don’t forget to tag me @holokahome!
