This Easy Vegan Pasta Salad comes together in 15 minutes. It’s perfect when you need a healthy and tasty dish to bring to a cookout, BBQ, or potluck. It can be made ahead of time for a fast and delicious gluten-free dinner or lunch.
One of my favorite things to bring to potlucks, barbecues, cookouts, (or really any type of gathering), is a vegan pasta salad.
They’re great for a few reason:
- It ensures you (and other vegans) have something to eat – you ever know what people might be serving
- Pasta salads are easy to make and can even be made ahead of time so you don’t have to spend too much time cooking the day of the event
- They’re very customizable – you can add in veggies you know people will love or make it gluten-free by switching the type of pasta you use
My Vegan Ranch Pasta Salad and Healthy Ramen Noodle Salad are two of my most popular recipes so definitely check them out when you get a chance too.
Ingredients Needed
- Pasta of choice – You can use regular pasta or a gluten-free one if needed.
- Spinach – Fresh spinach leaves are best for this recipe.
- Chickpeas – Drain and rinse canned chickpeas, or consider making from dried beans if you prefer. If you don’t like chickpeas, chose another bean!
- Vegetable Broth – The broth adds a nice kick of flavor and helps keep the pasta moist.
- Sun-Dried Tomatoes – You can soak the tomatoes in water to help soften them up. If you don’t have sundried, you can dice up cherry tomatoes to replace them.
- Basil – Look for bright green leaves, that do not show blemishes. That is key for fresh delicious basil.
- Kalamata or Black olives – Either variety of olives work in this recipe. Feel free to try them out and see which flavor you prefer.
- Garlic and Onion Powder – These two spices will help to add a few layers of flavor to your pasta mixture.
- Olive Oil – I love olive oil as it is heart-healthy. You could even swap with avocado oil as well. You are in control of how much or little you use.
Healthier Pasta Salad
This recipe only uses a few tablespoons of oil for the whole dish.
However, since I’m not using a highly processed vegetable oil feel free to add a little more if you want because extra virgin olive oil is heart-healthy. Check out my Fats: the good, the bad, and the in-between post for more info on healthy fats!
I included chickpeas for an extra kick of protein. Chickpeas also contain fiber, iron, vitamin B6, and important electrolytes like magnesium and potassium.
The olives and sun-dried tomatoes add flavor as well as some healthy fat, vitamin C, and beta-carotene.
How to Make this Vegan Pasta Salad Recipe
Simple ingredients and minimal prep is all it takes to make this simple cold pasta salad recipe.
Cook Pasta: Start by cooking your pasta as directed on the back of the box.
Cook Spinach: Add a bit of water and the vegetable broth to a skillet on the stove. Toss in the spinach to wilt it a bit.
Process Veggies: Toss basil and the sun-dried tomatoes in your food processor and pulse to mix it up. You want to chop it up a bit, but not too much. Once chopped, set aside.
Prep other Ingredients: Drain and rinse chickpeas and put in a large bowl along with the cooked spinach, olives, and sun-dried tomato & basil mixture.
Finish: When the pasta is done, drain and rinse in cold water to stop the cooking. Toss in a bowl, add all the other ingredients. Then toss the pasta salad, and serve!
Expert Tips
- Add in other vegetables you have on hand to create more flavor and texture to the pasta dish.
- You control how little or much you use in terms of oil in this recipe. I like to use just enough to combine the ingredients but oil olive is heart-healthy so use more if you like!
- Feel free to reach for more spices to flavor your salad. The onion and garlic that I use are staples, but branch out and use other herbs or spices.
- A drizzle of fresh lemon really helps to bring out tons of flavor in the pasta salad.
Recipe FAQs
Honestly, pasta salad is one of the most versatile dishes. Toss in vegetables, a homemade or store-bought dressing, cheese substitutes, etc.
Store this vegan pasta salad covered in the refrigerator for 3-5 days. When you are ready to eat, give the dish a good toss before serving to incorporate.
To season pasta salad you will find using herbs, spices, and vegetables are what create dimension to the salad. I used garlic and onion for this recipe, along with olive oil as a simple dressing.
Interested in More Summer Side Dishes?
These are some tasty recipes that I make all summer long:
- Grilled Tofu Steaks – These are a staple for our household during grilling season.
- Ramen Noodle Salad – Crispy, sweet, savory, all in one simple ramen noodle salad dish. This is one popular potluck salad.
- Street Fair Corn – If you love street corn, you have to try this recipe. One of my favorites that are so easy to prepare.
- Mediterranean Quinoa Salad – Simple ingredients with a whole lot of flavor! This side dish is incredible and can easily be the star of dinner.
If you make this recipe and LOVE IT, please give it 5 stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐!
📖 Recipe
Easy Vegan Pasta Salad
Ingredients
- 8 oz gluten free pasta (or regular pasta if not gluten-free)
- 2.5 cups spinach (feel free to add more!)
- 2-3 TB vegetable broth
- 15 oz can chickpeas
- 10 – 12 sun-dried tomatoes soaked in hot water for 5 mins if too hard
- .25 cup fresh basil leaves
- ⅓ cup kalamata or black olives chopped
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 3 TB olive oil (more if needed – evoo is heart healthy!)
- 1 lemon juiced
Instructions
- Cook pasta to package directions.
- While pasta is cooking, add a few tablespoons of veggie broth or water to large pan/skillet . Add the spinach and cook until just wilted.
- Put sun-dried tomatoes and basil in food processor and pulse till chopped. You don’t want to do it too much to make it into a paste, you just want it chopped.
- Drain and rinse chickpeas and put in large bowl along with the cooked spinach, olives, and sun-dried tomato/basil mixture.
- When pasta is done rinse with cold water and add to the bowl along with the rest of the ingredients.
- Season with salt and pepper.
- The salad will keep in the fridge for 3-5 days.
Nutrition
Please Note: The nutritional information is a computer generated estimate so these numbers should be used only as a guide.
Mary Ellen Valverde MS, CNS, LDN is a Licensed Nutritionist and Certified Nutrition Specialist who empowers vegans to feel confident in creating sustainable habits that align with their values and health goals. She shares easy gluten-free plant-powered food to nourish your body + satisfy your tastebuds. Mary Ellen’s recipes and nutrition info have been featured on Yahoo News, Parade, VegNews, LIVESTRONG, Dr. Axe, Greatist, LIVEKINDLY, Brit+Co, Well+Good, and more.
Nicole says
SO much flavor and love the addition of chick peas!
Jen says
Summer calls for easy pasta meals like this one – especially when it’s 117 degrees outside!!! That was our temperature yesterday. Yikes! Thanks for this delicious idea.
Jasmin | VeeatCookBake says
Your pasta salad sounds awesome. Especially the spinach and kalamat olives. Those are my favorite olives. Yum Yum
Stephanie says
This looks delicious – I love a good pasta salad! Orzo salad is the perfect pasta but rotini works well too! Just so you know, your recipe says orzo but the photos have rotini pasta, still delicious!! Thanks for the recipe.
Mary Ellen says
Thanks for pointing that out Stephanie! I reworked my orzo pasta salad into this rotini one so it could be gluten free! Went back in and fixed it. 🙂
Gemma says
This looks so fresh and colourful, definitely be going in my next picnic!
Corina says
Great salad! I love the chickpeas in it and all the Greek flavours.
Deborah Smikle-Davis (@debsmikdav1) says
So healthy and delicious! My friends and family will eat this up! I am so delighted that you shared your delectable Summer Orzo Salad with us at the Healthy Happy Green Natural Party! I’m Pinning and sharing this!
Mary Ellen says
Thanks Deborah!
Angela says
This sounds wonderful! I love orzo and think the addition of chick peas sounds amazing, thank you for sharing! Pinned & Stumbled 🙂
Mary Ellen says
Thanks so much Angela! I thought the chickpeas would be a nice little addition and add a punch of protein. ?
onesonicbite says
Oh man! I don’t even know when I’ve last had orzo! I feel like I should try this out.
Mary Ellen says
You should – and let me know what you think! I haven’t had orzo in forever before I thought about making this. I was going to use bowtie pasta but thought the orzo would be a bit better in this recipe.
Farrah says
I’ve never tried making anything with orzo, but I need to! :O This looks so good! :]!!
Mary Ellen says
Thanks so much Farrah! I used to make orzo frequently a while back and got out of the habit. It’s a nice little pasta especially for salads. 🙂
Deborah @ Confessions of a mother runner says
I love orzo too and the sun dried tomatoes look yummy in here. Thanks for linking up for Meatless Monday
Mary Ellen says
Thanks Deborah! The sun-dried tomatoes really added that extra little kick I thought it needed.
kateringforveggies says
I haven’t had orzo in such a long time! It’s going straight on my grocery list… I foresee nice lunches for next week! Thank you. 🙂
Mary Ellen says
Thanks Kate! I actually haven’t had orzo in forever before making this salad. I made a huge batch and had it for a party and for lunch last week. 🙂
Liz @ The Clean Eating Couple says
This looks delicious – and so simple to make!
Mary Ellen says
Thanks so much Liz! 🙂
kimmythevegan says
Ah summer!!! Perfect potluck pick =) I like how you can make it ahead of time too. I’ve been getting trapped into making food right before a potluck and then end up running late for it.
Sounds dee-licious!
Mary Ellen says
Thanks Kimmy! I’m always running late before going somewhere too if I’m trying to make some thing for it.
Christine @ Run Plant Based says
This looks wonderful, perfect for summer BBQs – thanks! We’re having a family BBQ here and hopefully yard work if I’m feeling it after a crazy work week – we’ll see! 🙂
Mary Ellen says
I hope you had a great weekend Christine!
Beauty in Christ (@Emily11949309) says
I’ve never had orzo, but I think fresh pasta salads are one of my favorite parts about summer.
Mary Ellen says
Yes Emily, I agree, I love pasta salads in summer!