Don’t you just love all the color in this dish? I love that this vegan pasta salad takes something quite bland on its own, like pasta, and adds all this beautiful color, freshness and flavor to it, turning it into a gorgeously colorful, high nutrient power meal!
Since you serve it cold, this is an ideal meal to whip up quickly and keep in the fridge so that your next few meals are covered!
It’s filling, satisfying, and tasty as all heck. Not to mention that this meal comes together in the time it takes you to cook the pasta. Now that’s what I call fast food!
You just put on a bag of pasta to cook (go for the whole bag, you WANT to have leftovers here), and while it’s boiling away, you chop up your fresh veg to go with it, and mix together your sauce ingredients in a bowl.
As soon as the pasta (regular or gluten-free) is finished cooking, you simply drain it, rinse it under cold water, drain again and then add it to a serving dish. Pile all your chopped veggies on top, toss it up, then pour over your sauce and voila, you have a beautifully tasty and fabulous looking meal.
The sauce is a tasty mix of sesame oil, soy sauce (or tamari if you want to make it gluten-free), maple syrup, crushed garlic and dried herbs and there you have it!
As a bonus I also added in a few tablespoons of vegan mayonnaise, just to add some extra creaminess and I can tell you, it’s not an essential ingredient, but boy does it round out those flavors nicely!
I think you’ll really love this vegan pasta salad, it is:
- Colorful
- Fresh
- Ready in 15 minutes!
- Super easy
Of course this keeps fabulously in the fridge! So even if you’re just cooking for one, go right ahead and have your lunches and dinners taken care of for a few days.
So let me know what you think of this vegan pasta salad in the comments! And please rate the recipe too, thanks so much!
For more delicious vegan salad recipes, check out these great options:
- Vegan Quinoa Salad
- Vegan Couscous Salad
- Vegan Sweet Potato Salad
- Vegan Potato Salad
- Black Bean and Corn Salad
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Vegan Pasta Salad
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Prep Time: 15 mins - Total Time: 15 mins
- Yield: 6
- Category: Entree, Dinner, Savory, Salad
- Cuisine: Vegan, Gluten-Free Optional
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Pin RecipeDescription
15-minute vegan pasta salad that is packed with flavor and plant-packed goodness. Vibrantly colorful and drizzled with a fabulous sesame dressing, this salad is perfect for lunches or dinners!
Ingredients
For the Salad:
- 2 Stalks Celery
- 1 Red Bell Pepper
- 1 Yellow Bell Pepper
- 2 Spring Onions
- 20 Cherry Tomatoes
- 2 Small Cucumbers
- 20 Green Olives
For the Pasta:
- 1 Bag (18oz/500g) Bowtie Pasta (or other pasta, regular or gluten-free)
For the Sesame Dressing:
- 2 Tbsp Sesame Oil
- 3 Tbsp Soy Sauce (or Tamari if gluten-free)
- 2 Tbsp Maple Syrup
- 1/2 tsp Crushed Garlic
- 1/4 tsp Dried Basil
- 1/4 tsp Oregano
Optional:
- 4 Tbsp Vegan Mayonnaise
- Fresh Parsley (for serving)
Instructions
- Cook the pasta according to the package instructions.
- While the pasta is cooking, chop up the celery, red bell pepper, yellow bell pepper, spring onions and cucumber. Cut the cherry tomatoes and olives in half.
- Prepare the dressing by adding the sesame oil, soy sauce or tamari, maple syrup, crushed garlic and dried basil and oregano to a jug and mixing together.
- When the pasta is cooked, rinse and drain it and add to a serving dish. Then pile on all the raw veggies on top and mix in together.
- Pour over the dressing and combine.
- Then add the vegan mayonnaise (optional) and mix together.
- Keep covered in the fridge where it will keep perfectly well for a few days.
Notes
*Nutritional information includes vegan mayonnaise.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 Serving (of 6)
- Calories: 486
- Sugar: 10.9g
- Sodium: 703mg
- Fat: 15.1g
- Saturated Fat: 2.3g
- Carbohydrates: 75g
- Fiber: 5.3g
- Protein: 13.1g
Keywords: vegan pasta salad
This is my go-to pasta salad recipe, and the whole family loves it. It’s light and refreshing, but still so flavoursome.
★★★★★
Awesome! 🙂 Totally agree, it is a winner! Thanks so much for sharing Heike! 🙂
This turned out as delicious as it was pretty! I’m not the best cook but anyone can chop veggies, boil pasta and mix a simple sauce. My dad has been vegan since diagnosed with cancer so we made this version for him. I served with grilled chicken and goat cheese on the side for non- vegans to add to their plate. It was a hit! Thank you!
★★★★★
Wonderful to hear that it was a hit Rebecca! Thanks for sharing! 🙂
Sounds like a delicious vegan pasta! I want to try making it tonight. Are there any specific herbs that anyone would recommend adding on to this recipe other than dried garlic? Thanks!
Hi Carly, dried herbs like oregano and dried basil would be great for this! 🙂
This is delicious. I made this without the optional vegan mayo the night before and added just a little extra sauce about a quarter recipe more and added some pepper the day after. So good, thank you!
★★★★★
Awesome Suzanne! Thanks a million for the review! 🙂