This Cold Pasta Salad is a colorful side dish for BBQ’s and potlucks. With layers of ham, eggs, salami, veggies, and cheese, it is hearty and delicious!
Cold Pasta Salad
This Cold Pasta Salad tastes as good as it looks! It is a complementary side dish at BBQ’s and potlucks, but it really is a full and hearty meal in itself. I served this the another night at dinner with some corn on the cob, and it was very filling. Everyone loved it!
Make It Ahead of Time
I am a big fan of make ahead meals. This salad can be made a day ahead or in the morning, as long as it has several hours in the refrigerator. It will actually taste better if you make it in advance rather than making in right before serving.
Tips for Making Pasta Salad
Here are some quick tips when making this easy pasta salad:
- For the chopped ham and hard salami, I order thick slices at my local deli. For the one cup required I only needed 3-4 slices.
- The shredded green leaf lettuce should be completely dry or it will get soggy when it is refrigerated. If you don’t have time to wait for lettuce to dry, you can buy green leaf lettuce leaves in most stores in the produce section that have been pre-washed and are ready to use for sandwiches and salads. It is a little more expensive to purchase lettuce this way, but, I have found that the lettuce lasts longer than when I wash and dry it myself at home and I can use everything in the container because it is all fresh and crisp.
- The frozen peas can be thawed quicker by placing them in a colander and rinsing them with cold water. Be sure they have time to drain and dry as well before adding them to the salad.
- When layering the salad use a large spoon to evenly disperse the ingredients so they will layer evenly.
- And for my final tip… use a glass bowl or trifle dish. You don’t have to, but when you go to the work to make the beautiful layers – you’ve gotta show it off!
Additional Add-In Ideas
We typically will make this pasta salad as stated in the recipe below, but you can always add more ingredients, including:
- cherry tomatoes
- olives
- chopped red onion
- celery
- pepperoni
- additional green onion
More Cold Pasta Salads:
Looking for even more cold pasta salad ideas? Here are some more of our favorites:
How to make Cold Pasta Salad
Ingredients
- 3 cups green leaf lettuce shredded
- 1 1/2 cups small shell macaroni uncooked
- 1 tablespoon canola oil
- 3 hard cooked eggs sliced
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/8 teaspoon pepper
- 1 cup ham fully cooked, chopped
- 1 cup hard salami chopped
- 16 ounces frozen peas thawed (or fresh peas)
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- 1/4 cup sour cream
- 1/4 cup green onions chopped
- 2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1 cup Colby Jack cheese shredded
- Parsley for garnish
Instructions
- Cook shell macaroni according to package directions. Drain and rinse with cold water. Drizzle with oil, and toss to coat.
- Place shredded lettuce in a 2/12 quart glass serving bowl or trifle bowl.
- Top lettuce with macaroni, being careful to layer the macaroni evenly over the lettuce for a pretty layered look. Add sliced eggs for the following layer.
- Sprinkle eggs and macaroni with salt and pepper. Add chopped ham, then chopped salami, and then the thawed peas.
- In a small bowl, combine mayonnaise, sour cream, green onions and Dijon mustard. Spread this mixture over the peas.
- Cover and refrigerate for several hours or overnight.
- Just before serving, sprinkle with cheese and garnish with parsley.
Jenni says
This pasta salad was a hit at the party we took it to last week! Not a single bite was left over and everyone asked where I got the recipe! Thanks for such a winner!
Jordan Hansen says
Yum! What a great potluck recipe!
sophie says
how long does it take to make
Erica says
It doesn’t take much time at all– just the time it takes to cook and cool the pasta. While the pasta is cooking you can cut up the other ingredients. I would say 30 minutes at most (to prepare) and then a few hours to refrigerate.
Beverly Rinehart says
I started making this salad some time ago from a recipe called Eight Layer Salad. I’m the only one in my immediate family who likes it so I often make it for special occasions when I have help eating it. I use packaged greens and I’ve customized the dressing and now use a mixture of fat-free mayo and Kraft fat-free salad dressing. I use turkey breast instead of salami (just preference) so it ends up being a pretty healthy salad. To preserve the freshness of all layers I don’t toss the salad, I use tongs and dip down thru all layers. It is delicious!
Joann says
How do you serve this? Do you toss it or try to dig down to the bottom to get all the layers?
Echo says
Good question! I toss it right when we are ready to start eating. I like coating all of the ingredients with the dressing and it makes it easier to serve.
Nancy Meissner says
No, I don’t toss it. I serve it with a pair of tongs and let people dig straight down into it. I have to admit that sometimes, I have to convince the first person that it’s really okay to dig in! This salad has great flavor and textures. I usually add a little (1-2 T.?) apple cider vinegar to the dressing for a bit of tang.
Kathy says
Have you ever tried substituting the mayo with greek yogurt? Would it turn out same? Also do you need to thaw the peas first or can you just add them frozen? This looks delicious!
Echo says
I don’t know if greek yogurt would taste the same or if the consistency would be the same, but it’s worth a try. If you have used it and liked it as a salad dressing before, I’m sure it would work great. You definitely should thaw the peas first. If you use them frozen the peas will unthaw in the refrigerator and the salad will get watery. Thank you for your comment!
June @ How to Philosophize with Cake says
That is one rich-looking pasta salad! I’m sure it’s yummy 🙂
Echo says
It is rich and very filling!