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This Easy Cold Pasta Salad has broccoli, bell peppers, zesty Italian dressing, and Parmesan cheese. It’s simple and always a favorite!
Meggan’s notes
There are tons of fun ways you can change up this salad, depending on the season and what you have in your veggie drawer. I always prefer a springy pasta shape like rotini to catch all of the dressing, but you can pick your favorite.
Table of Contents
At a Glance: Here is a quick snapshot of what ingredients are in this recipe.
Please see the recipe card below for specific quantities.
Ingredient notes
- Broccoli: If you’d like to blanch the broccoli (optional), bring 2 quarts water and 1 tablespoon salt to boil. Add broccoli and cook until just tender and bright green, about 3 to 4 minutes. Drain and immediately plunge into an ice bath to stop the cooking.
- Red onion: If you onion seems angry when you slice it (makes you cry), marinate it in the salad dressing for 5 minutes, or up to 30 minutes, before assembling the rest of the salad.
Step-by-step instructions
- To make the dressing, whisk together olive oil, red wine vinegar, lemon juice, honey, Dijon mustard, basil, oregano, parsley, garlic powder, and salt and pepper to taste (I like ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper).
- In a large pot, bring 4 quarts of water and 1 tablespoon salt to a boil. Add pasta and cook until tender, about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain well, rinse with cold water, and drain again. In a large bowl, add the cooled pasta, broccoli, bell peppers, red onion, and Parmesan cheese.
- Drizzle with salad dressing and toss to combine.
Recipe tips and variations
- Yield: This recipe makes at least 12 (1-cup) servings.
- Storage: Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
- Make ahead: The Italian salad dressing can be made up to 3 days in advance. Store covered in the refrigerator. The pasta can be cooked, drained, rinsed, and cooled up to 1 day in advance. The vegetables can be prepped the day before and stored separately in the refrigerator.
- More mix-ins: Get creative with diced cucumbers, cubes of cheese, sliced salami, a can of olives, or your favorite fresh herbs.
- Make the vinaigrette your own: Substitute balsamic vinegar for the red wine vinegar or add a pinch of red pepper flakes.
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Easy Cold Pasta Salad
This easy Cold Pasta Salad has broccoli, bell peppers, zesty Italian dressing and Parmesan cheese. It's simple and always a favorite!
Ingredients
For the Italian dressing:
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 2 teaspoons honey
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon dried parsley
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder or 1 clove minced fresh garlic
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
For the pasta salad:
- 16 ounces rotini or other small pasta
- 2 cups broccoli florets chopped and blanched if desired (see note 1)
- 1 red bell pepper stemmed, seeded, and chopped
- 1 yellow bell pepper stemmed, seeded, and chopped
- 1/2 red onion peeled and thinly sliced (see note 2)
- 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Instructions
- To make the dressing, whisk together olive oil, red wine vinegar, lemon juice, honey, Dijon mustard, basil, oregano, parsley, garlic powder, and salt and pepper to taste (I like ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper).
- In a large pot, bring 4 quarts of water and 1 tablespoon salt to a boil. Add pasta and cook until tender, about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain well, rinse with cold water, and drain again.
- In a large bowl, add the cooled pasta, broccoli, bell peppers, red onion, and Parmesan cheese. Drizzle with salad dressing and toss to combine.
Recipe Video
Notes
- Broccoli: If you’d like to blanch the broccoli (optional but recommended), bring 2 quarts water and 1 Tbsp. salt to boil. Add broccoli and cook until just tender and bright green, about 3 to 4 minutes. Drain and immediately plunge into an ice bath to stop the cooking.
- Red onion: If you onion seems angry when you slice it (makes you cry), marinate it in the salad dressing for 5 minutes, or up to 30 minutes, before assembling the rest of the salad.
- Yield: This recipe makes at least 12 (1-c.) servings.
- Storage: Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
Nutrition
Serving: 1 cupCalories: 274kcalCarbohydrates: 32gProtein: 9gFat: 12gSaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 7mgSodium: 141mgPotassium: 199mgFiber: 2gSugar: 3gVitamin A: 499IUVitamin C: 45mgCalcium: 113mgIron: 1mg
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Can I serve this with antipasto skewers? ( artichoke, tomatoes, mozzarella, prosciutto ) for dinner?
Thanks!
Hi Meg, yes sure! Why not! Sounds amazing. -Meggan 😀
i made this today using store bought Italian dressing. It’s fantastic!!! I used real Parmesan as that’s what I usually use. Serving it tomorrow for my church group. I hope there’s some left over for me. 🙂
How long will this pasta salad be good for?
Hi Gary, food safety-wise I’d say 4 days. Quality-wise, 2 to 3 days? It’s for sure GREAT the second day, probably even better than the first day (like if you make it ahead). It’s still really tasty the day after that (let’s call it Day 3). Beyond that, eventually the vegetables just start to deteriorate in the fridge. Does that make sense? But it doesn’t have garlic in it, so you don’t have to worry about botulism. It just becomes a matter of how crunchy you want the vegetables to be, or if you’re okay eating peppers that are 3 days’ soggy. Good luck. Let me know if you need anything else. Thanks Gary!
Is the parmesan cheese fresh or powdered?
It’s powdered, “grated.” The fresh shredded kind also works. You can use whichever you prefer.
I’m looking for a recipe that has tri-color rotini, broccoli,red onion, sugar and shredded cheddar cheese in it. Seems like there was another ingredient in it but I can’t remember. I made this many years ago. Can someone help me, please ???
This sounds like my Piggly Wiggly Pasta salad but with noodles. If it is similar, you’re missing mayonnaise and bacon! But I don’t know for sure. Want to take a look? It’s not what you’re describing, but maybe along the same lines. Are you from the Midwest by any chance? Because what you’re describing sounds like the food of my homeland. 😀 https://cash-surge.live/broccoli-salad-with-bacon-and-cheddar-cheese/%3C/a%3E%3C/p%3E
Do have too use broccoli?
No! You don’t have to use something if you don’t want to. You can also add anything else that interests you. Consider this recipe a starting point for negotiations! Thanks Yolanda.
This was a good recipe, however, I feel like the broccoli should be cooked beforehand.
A quick blanch or something, huh? Good idea. I think you’re right! I’ve never done that, but it would definitely get rid of the bitterness of the broccoli.
Really nice pasta salad especially on a day like today when it’s super hot. I followed it exactly as you suggested. It worked out perfectly since I had all the ingredients on hand but I can see this could be made with a Mediterranean twist with olives, feta, or bucatini, etc. I always add fresh herbs if I have them, so parsley and/or basil. Thanks for sharing.
Delicious pasta.
Good food