BLT Pasta Salad
Nothing screams summer quite like having a delicious pasta salad served on your outdoor table or enjoying a BLT sandwich on the beach, and this pasta salad recipe gives you the best of both worlds. Often, pasta salads can lack inspiration and become, for lack of a better word, “blah,” but by combining fresh tomatoes and romaine lettuce, crispy bacon, mini mozzarella balls, and fresh herbs alongside a delicious creamy vinaigrette, you will see this delicious summer side dish shine as it should. Not to mention, this pasta salad comes together all within about 30 minutes and can last in the fridge for up to three days, making it the perfect dish to prepare on a long summer day.
What is BLT pasta salad? BLT pasta salad is a hybrid of a traditional pasta salad with the ingredients you’d typically see in a bacon, lettuce, and tomato sandwich. This great combination takes the freshness of the lettuce and tomato and the salty and fatiness of the bacon and marries these with a creamy, zesty dressing and tender pasta. The result you’re left with is a bright, flavorful, and satisfying pasta salad that is sure to be the star of any summer table.
Can you make BLT pasta salad ahead of time? Yes, you can make BLT pasta salad up to 3 days ahead of time, but I recommend minimizing the make-ahead time as much as possible. All pasta salads continue to soak up the dressing as they sit, so for peak freshness and sauciness, I prefer to make and serve this BLT pasta salad right away.
When to dress pasta salad? I recommend dressing the pasta salad when it is still slightly warm (not hot) because this enables the pasta to soak up some of the dressing and take on all of the flavor of the salad even more so than if you dressed it completely chilled. Think of this like a flavor freebie, enhancing all the great ingredients you used to make the dressing.
Which cheese is best for pasta salad? There are so many different cheeses that are delicious in pasta salads. For this BLT pasta salad recipe, I call for mozzarella balls because they’re the perfect size to mix along with the other ingredients and they have a great fresh flavor that pairs along with the salad beautifully. Some other ideas for cheeses to incorporate in pasta salad are:
Feta cheese
Shaved fresh parmesan or pecorino romano
Crumbled goat cheese
Cubes of cheddar cheese
Which pasta is best for pasta salad? My rule of thumb for choosing a pasta shape for pasta salads is to pick any short shape, or in other words, no long spaghetti, linguini, bucatini, or any other pasta like that. I love bowtie pasta (or farfalle) for pasta salads, as I call for in this BLT pasta salad recipe because the nooks in the noodles catch the dressing perfectly, but you can choose any number of other options, such as:
Rigatoni
Orzo
Cavatappi
Penne
Orecchiette
Fusilli
Macaroni
Why does my pasta salad get dry? Pasta salad typically gets dry when there isn’t enough dressing to thoroughly coat the pasta and ingredients. This can even happen overnight or over the span of a couple of days if the pasta continues to soak up the dressing. To combat this, I recommend making an extra reserve of dressing to keep on the side and rehydrate your pasta salad, especially if you’re planning on keeping the salad in the fridge for a couple of extra days.
What to serve with BLT pasta salad? BLT pasta salad is truly the star of any show you bring it to, so I recommend pairing it with something simple to let it shine. My favorite way to serve BLT pasta salad is alongside a grilled component, such as these Mediterranean grilled chicken thighs. You can also consider serving it with a juicy grilled steak or even grilled shrimp to switch up the protein accompaniments.
How to make BLT pasta salad:
BLT Pasta Salad
Packed with crispy bacon, fresh tomatoes, romaine lettuce, mini mozzarella balls, and a creamy vinaigrette, this delicious BLT pasta salad is perfect for eating on bright summer days.
Ingredients
- 8 oz mini mozzarella balls
- 8 oz bacon
- 1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes
- 3 cups romaine lettuce, chopped
- 1 lb bow tie (or farfalle) pasta
- Optional: Fresh chopped chives or other herbs, for serving
- 1/4 cup mayo
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1 1/2 tbsp vinegar (such as apple cider vinegar or red wine vinegar)
- ½ tbsp honey
- ½ tbsp mustard
- 1/2 tsp salt
- Fresh cracked black pepper
Instructions
- Set a large pot of generously salted water to boil on the stove and cook the pasta according to package instructions.
- While the pasta is cooking, cook the bacon. I recommend baking bacon in the oven on a sheet pan at 375 degrees for about 15-20 minutes or until it’s crispy.
- Meanwhile, whisk all the ingredients in the creamy vinaigrette together in a large bowl. This is where we will assemble the rest of our salad, so make sure it’s big enough to hold all the ingredients.
- Slice the cherry tomatoes in half, chop the romaine lettuce, and add them to the bowl with the dressing.
- Once the pasta is finished cooking, drain it and set it aside to cool for about 10 minutes. I recommend combining the pasta salad when the pasta is still slightly warm so it soaks up some of the dressing, but you don’t want the pasta to be hot or it will wilt the lettuce.
- Once the bacon is crispy, crumble it into big pieces and add it to the large bowl alongside the dressing, tomatoes, and lettuce.
- Add the mozzarella balls and pasta to the bowl once it has cooled. Mix all the ingredients until the pasta salad comes together and everything is coated in the creamy dressing.
- Optional: top with fresh chives, parsley, or any other soft herb to add extra freshness to the salad.
- Serve right away and enjoy!
