Ranch Pasta Salad

Ranch Pasta Salad
Ingredients and Substitutions
Dressing Ingredients
Notes on Equipment
How to Make Ranch Pasta Salad
Expert Tip
Serving Suggestions
Make Ahead & Storage
More Pasta Salad Recipes
Frequently Asked Questions

Creamy ranch dressing meets crisp vegetables and tender bites of pasta in this Ranch Pasta Salad. It’s a cool, easy dinner to beat the heat, and with a total prep and cook time of 20 minutes, it’s my kind of summer meal.

This simple pasta salad has already been made several times this summer, especially when I’ve happened to have several of the ingredients already prepped. (If you happen to have some homemade ranch salad dressing already, you can substitute half cup of ranch dressing for the dressing ingredients listed below, making this meal even easier to pull together!)

Pasta salads have been frequent favorites on our dinner table for years now. They’re hearty enough to be a meal on their own, and they also pair well with almost any entree for a heartier meal.

My whole family loves the bacon ranch pasta salad that I’ve been making for years now. It is a seriously hearty pasta salad – definitely a meal on its own. But for this salad, I wanted that ranch flavor we love, but I wanted to keep the salad a bit lighter and fill it with crunchy fresh vegetables.

Ingredients and Substitutions

The Pasta – You’ll want to use small shapes of pasta that can hold lots of dressing, to keep each bite full of flavor. My go-to here is mini penne.

Salt – I salt the pasta water, because dried pasta is naturally quite bland. So, cooking it in generously salted water helps it absorb flavor while it rehydrates.

The Vegetables – I add broccoli, cucumber, and red bell pepper, for cool, fresh crunch and heartiness.

Onion – For a sharp, bright note, I prefer red onion. However, if you’d like a milder onion note, green onions will work nicely here too.

Fresh Parsley – Scattering some fresh parsley over the top right at the finish brightens the whole salad – it’s more than a garnish, friends.

ingredients for pasta salad with ranch dressing

Dressing Ingredients

Mayo & Milk – Mayonnaise and a bit of milk provide the smooth, creamy base for the dressing.

Vinegar – For that distinctive ranch tang, you need a splash of acid and plain vinegar will deliver that nicely. However, if I happen to have fresh lemons on hand, I typically will reach for one instead of the vinegar for the added fresh note that freshly squeezed lemon juice contributes to ranch dressing.

Herbs & Spices – Dill, parsley, chives, garlic, onion, salt, and pepper are the seasonings in my ranch dressing recipe and they bring that to this salad.

Notes on Equipment

Mixing Bowl
Chef’s knife. Food prep is so much easier when you have a quality knife. It was over 10 years ago when I first tried this knife, while visiting a professional test kitchen. I still love the knife and the price point simply can’t be beat for quality.
Spoonula or Large Spoon
Colander

ingredients for ranch dressing pasta salad

How to Make Ranch Pasta Salad

Preheating the Water: To start, you’ll want to heat a pot of water to boiling on the stovetop.

Preparing the Vegetables: While the water comes to a boil, wash and chop the cucumber, broccoli, and pepper. Remove the seeds from the cucumber if needed. I also chop the onion and parsley at this stage. Set aside all produce until needed.

Cooking the Pasta: Cook the pasta according to the package directions. I like to also add a generous amount of kosher salt to the water as the pasta cooks, to enhance flavor.

Rinsing the Pasta: Once the pasta has finished cooking, I drain it and rinse it with cold water to fully stop the cooking process. Let it drain and dry out a bit in the strainer while making the dressing.

Whisking the Dressing Base: Add the mayonnaise and milk to a large mixing bowl and whisk them smooth.

Adding the Seasonings: Add the dill, parsley, chives, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper to the base and whisk until thoroughly combined.

Tasting: After mixing together the dressing, I add vinegar and adjust the other seasonings to taste.

Mixing the Salad: Add the pasta to the mixing bowl and toss well to coat with the dressing. Then add the broccoli, cucumber, bell pepper, and onion to the pasta. Toss to mix throughout.

Tasting Again: After mixing everything together, I taste and adjust seasonings as desired.

Sprinkling with Parsley: I sprinkle the salad with fresh parsley and give it a stir to combine.

Storing: Then I cover the salad and refrigerate it until I’m ready to serve it.

Serving: Just before serving, you’ll want to stir the salad one last time.

pasta salad all combined with serving spoon

Expert Tip

To ensure the dressing will bring together all the elements of this salad, I am careful to eliminate excess moisture. If there’s more water in the salad than there should be, the ingredients will not stick together properly. Patting the produce dry after washing and making sure the pasta has fully drained before adding everything together will go a long way.

Cooling the Pasta – When you rinse the pasta after draining, make sure to use cold water. If the pasta is still warm while it’s draining, it can continue to cook and then might stick together.

Keeping Produce Size Consistent – When I slice the vegetables, I chop into uniform, bite-sized pieces, about 1/2″ in size. This makes it easier to get a little bit of everything in each bite and makes everything taste better.

Reserving Dressing – Because this salad is made with our homemade ranch dressing, it’s an easy one to tweak and adjust to taste. If you find that your pasta gets a little dry after resting in the fridge for a day or two, you can add a tablespoon or two of dressing to the bowl and give it a toss to rehydrate it. If you don’t have extra ranch on hand, a bit of mayo will do the trick too.

Serving Suggestions

I served this salad with Grilled Chicken Thighs (my summer staple at least once a week) as any of our friends or family will attest. But it would also be terrific with these Hawaiian Grilled Chicken Sandwiches or these Filthy Burgers. (My boys have been asking for the Filthy Burgers again, so I should probably put those back on the menu soon!)

close up of spoonful of ranch pasta salad

Make Ahead & Storage

Make Ahead: I like to make a double recipe of this salad for our family meal and then eat the leftovers for the next few days.

How to Store: This pasta salad will keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days without any issues.

More Pasta Salad Recipes

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need to cook the vegetables first?

Nope! The produce should be added fresh. Just wash and chop everything into bite-sized pieces first.

What consistency should the ranch dressing be?

This ranch dressing should be just thin enough to pour smoothly, but not so thin that it’s too liquid or watery.

My dressing turned out too thick/thin. How can I fix it?

If your dressing is too thick, you can add milk as needed, whisking to combine. You’ll want to start with a teaspoon or so. If your dressing is too thin, you can add a tablespoon of mayonnaise as needed.

Cook the pasta according to the directions on the package, adding a generous tablespoon or so of kosher salt to the water as it cooks. When the pasta is tender, rinse well with cold water until the pasta is cold.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, milk, dill, parsley, chives, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper. Add the vinegar, taste, and adjust seasonings as desired.
Add the cold cooked pasta, onion, cucumber, broccoli, and bell pepper to the mixing bowl with the dressing. Stir gently to coat all the ingredients. Taste and adjust seasonings as desired. Sprinkle with fresh parsley and stir to mix throughout.
Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. Stir again just before serving.

This recipe multiplies nicely for a crowd. ½ cup of ranch dressing can be substituted for the dressing ingredients listed in this recipe.