This bright and flavorful Bowtie Pasta Salad combines bowtie-shaped pasta, fresh veggies, and mozzarella pearls in a zesty champagne vinegarette dressing. Perfect for summer BBQs and picnics.
Bowtie Pasta Salad with Champagne Vinaigrette
You are going to love this quick and easy bowtie pasta salad. With no chilling required, simply prepare the ingredients, toss to combine, and serve!
While I do love cold and creamy pasta salads like this BLT pasta salad, the convenience of assembling this dish in just 30 minutes makes this recipe an instant win, especially when I’m in a hurry to feed a hungry crowd.
One of the best parts about this pasta salad is how easily you can modify it to suit your own personal taste and preference. Incorporate different veggies and cheese, or try tossing it with a different dressing, like this homemade Italian dressing. You can also add leftover cooked chicken or beans for a more complete meal.
Key Ingredients
Find the printable recipe with measurements in the recipe card below.
- Pasta: The key ingredient in this pasta salad is bowtie pasta, which is fun and easy to find at most grocery stores. Of course, you can use another type of short pasta, if preferred.
- Salad dressing: This simple salad dressing combines olive oil, finely minced garlic, lemon juice, champagne vinegar, salt, and pepper. Store-bought or homemade champagne vinaigrette can also be used.
- Salad ingredients: This recipe uses sliced English cucumber, sliced cherry tomatoes, diced bell pepper (either red or yellow), and diced red onion.
- Mozzarella cheese pearls: I’ve used small mozzarella cheese pearls for this salad, as the rest of the salad ingredients are sliced and diced into small pieces. If you can only source large pearls, I recommend breaking them apart.
What is the Difference Between Champagne Vinegar and Champagne Vinegarette?
Champagne vinegar and Champagne vinaigrette are not the same thing. Champagne vinegar is a single ingredient, while Champagne vinaigrette is a mixture of Champagne vinegar and other ingredients such as olive oil, garlic, Dijon mustard, honey, and fresh or dried herbs.
How to Make Bowtie Pasta Salad
- Boil the pasta: Cook the pasta according to package instructions to al dente. Drain and rinse with cold water. Immediately rinsing the boiled pasta helps to stop it from cooking any further so that it doesn’t become overly soft. It also helps to wash off any excess starch which can cause the pasta to stick together.
- Make the dressing: Whisk together the salad dressing ingredients in a large salad bowl or add them to a jar with a tight-fitting lid and give it a good shake.
- Assemble: Add the chopped salad ingredients to the large bowl with the dressing and toss to coat. Add the cooked and cooled pasta and toss to coat.
- Serve and garnish: Serve your bowtie pasta with lemon slices and garnish each serving with freshly minced parsley if desired.
Can I Make This Ahead?
This particular pasta salad is best served immediately after assembling, especially since the recipe calls for fresh salad ingredients. The champagne vinegarette can be made and stored in an airtight container or jar for up to 1-2 weeks ahead of assembling this pasta salad.
How to Serve
This pasta salad is a fresh and delicious side dish to offer alongside all your BBQ favorites, including grilled corn, chicken, veggie skewers, creamy potato salad, burgers, or steak. You can also add some chopped chicken, hard-boiled eggs, or cooked beans to turn it into a complete, protein-packed meal.
Storage
Store this bowtie pasta salad in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. Give your stored pasta salad a good stir before serving again, as the salad dressing will naturally settle to the bottom of the salad.
I don’t recommend freezing this bowtie pasta salad as the fresh salad ingredients won’t hold up well to the freezing and thawing process.
More Amazing Pasta Salad Recipes
- Dill Pickle Pasta Salad
- Tuna Pasta Salad
- Italian Pasta Salad
- Buffalo Chicken Pasta Salad
- Chicken Caesar Pasta Salad
- Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad
- BLT Pasta Salad
- Easy Pesto Pasta Salad
- Spinach Pasta Salad Recipe with Strawberries
- Tortellini Pasta Salad
- Green Goddess Pasta Salad
RECIPE CARD
Bowtie Pasta Salad
Ingredients
- 8 ounces bowtie pasta
- ½ cup olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic - minced
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon champagne vinegar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ English cucumber - quartered lengthwise, then diced
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes - halved
- 8 ounces mozzarella cheese pearls
- 1 cup red or yellow bell pepper - diced
- ½ cup red onion - diced
Instructions
- Cook the pasta according to the package instructions until al dente. Drain and rinse under cold water to stop any additional cooking. Set aside.
- Meanwhile, whisk together the olive oil, garlic, lemon juice, vinegar, salt, and pepper in a large salad or mixing bowl. Once combined, add the cucumber, tomatoes, mozzarella cheese, bell pepper, and red onion. As soon as the pasta has cooked and cooled, add to the bowl and toss well to coat.
- Season with additional salt and black pepper, to taste. Serve with lemon slices and garnish with freshly minced parsley if desired.
Jessica’s Notes
Nutritional Information
(Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and specific brands of ingredients used.)
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