I learned how to make a pasta salad when I first lived on my own after high school.In those days we called it leftover kraft dinner with ketchup.
As I got older I became more sophisticated and replaced the ketchup with that old gourmet standby, hot sauce.
All kidding aside, a cold pasta salad is something you can make with minimal ingredients, and still have a great tasting dish. They make great side salads or full meals.
Here are the Basic Ingredients:
1-Pasta
Shaped, colored, tubular, flavoured, lots to choose from. I like to buy a bag of mixed as it adds a nice colourful look to the dish.
2-Vegetables
Anything goes here, whatever your tastebuds desire. The popular ones being...
Celery
Onions-any kind
Olives
Carrots
Broccoli
Tomatoes-small cherry
Cucumber
Peppers-green, red, yellow, orange, jalepeno
3-Other
Garlic
Parmesan cheese
Salt Pepper, Spices
Chicken
Seafood
4-Dressing
You can add your favorite bottled dressing or make one from scratch. Here are 2 basic ones:
Creamy
1 cup mayonnaise
2 tbsp. wine or cider vinegar
1 clove crushed garlic
1 tsp. basil
salt and pepper to taste
You can substitute yogurt for mayonnaise or mix mayo and yogurt together for your dressing base.
Lemon juice can be used in place of vinegar.
Oil/Vinegar
1/4 cup salad oil
3 tbsp. vinegar-balsamic,wine, cider etc.
1 clove crushed garlic
1 tsp basil and/or oregano
Salt and Pepper to taste
Boil your pasta noodles for about 10 minutes or until cooked. Drain and rinse in cold water, and let cool.
While noddles are cooling, chop up any vegatables you are adding, and make dressing.
Once cool, add all other ingredients you have chosen from the above list, adding the dressing last.
Cool in the refrigerator for about 2 hours before serving.
As I got older I became more sophisticated and replaced the ketchup with that old gourmet standby, hot sauce.
All kidding aside, a cold pasta salad is something you can make with minimal ingredients, and still have a great tasting dish. They make great side salads or full meals.
Here are the Basic Ingredients:
1-Pasta
Shaped, colored, tubular, flavoured, lots to choose from. I like to buy a bag of mixed as it adds a nice colourful look to the dish.
2-Vegetables
Anything goes here, whatever your tastebuds desire. The popular ones being...
Celery
Onions-any kind
Olives
Carrots
Broccoli
Tomatoes-small cherry
Cucumber
Peppers-green, red, yellow, orange, jalepeno
3-Other
Garlic
Parmesan cheese
Salt Pepper, Spices
Chicken
Seafood
4-Dressing
You can add your favorite bottled dressing or make one from scratch. Here are 2 basic ones:
Creamy
1 cup mayonnaise
2 tbsp. wine or cider vinegar
1 clove crushed garlic
1 tsp. basil
salt and pepper to taste
You can substitute yogurt for mayonnaise or mix mayo and yogurt together for your dressing base.
Lemon juice can be used in place of vinegar.
Oil/Vinegar
1/4 cup salad oil
3 tbsp. vinegar-balsamic,wine, cider etc.
1 clove crushed garlic
1 tsp basil and/or oregano
Salt and Pepper to taste
Boil your pasta noodles for about 10 minutes or until cooked. Drain and rinse in cold water, and let cool.
While noddles are cooling, chop up any vegatables you are adding, and make dressing.
Once cool, add all other ingredients you have chosen from the above list, adding the dressing last.
Cool in the refrigerator for about 2 hours before serving.