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This easy Greek Olive Pasta Salad with creamy honey dijon dressing is my go-to spring/summer pasta salad. Itโs almost no-cook, comes together quickly, and with very little effort. Greek olives, peppers, cucumbers, tomatoes, salty feta cheese, and a creamy, tangy Greek dressing, all tossed up with pasta. Itโs colorful and so delicious. Enjoy this for dinner and save the leftovers for lunch. Or serve it up at your next party, itโs always a hit.
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Come spring and summer, weโre big on pasta salad. My dad would make his basic broccoli cheddar pasta salad weekly throughout the summer. But oftentimes he would switch it up and do his version of a Greek pasta salad.
To be honest, this usually consisted of whatever he had in the fridge at the time. Which to be fair, does usually make for the very best pasta salads.
In general, he always had a handful of fresh Greek ingredients in the fridge at all times. Bell peppers, olives, pepperoncini, cherry tomatoes (in the summer), basil, and dill. As a family, we just love those flavors.
That was his greek salad. Heโd toss it with olive oil, salt, and pepper and call it a day. Oh, plus cheese (of course), but heโd didnโt use feta much, mainly just cheddar.
Itโs always been one of my favorite dishes that he would make. So I recreated that salad but added a few touches and a creamy dressing.
Ingredients
- Shallotsย
- Mixed fresh herbsย
- Pine nutsย
- Chili flakesย
- Extra virgin olive oilย
- Short cut pastaย
- Mixed Greek olivesย
- Bell peppersย
- Chopped cucumber
- Cherry tomatoesย
- Canned chickpeasย
- Sliced pepperonciniย
- Feta cheeseย
Here are the quick details
I always start with the dressing. I did a red wine vinaigrette with a touch of honey and tahini to make it creamy. You could use mayo too, but typically I love usually tahini to keep the salad a little more wholesome.
Simply mix everything together and thatโs it. Nothing fancy.
For the salad, I love to warm a little olive oil and get it just to a sizzling point. Then pour the hot oil over the shallots with some pine nuts and herbs. The heat from the oil cooks the shallots and infuses the herbs into the oil.
Itโs an extra step but adds a lot of flavor.
Then the rest is pretty quick. Boil the pasta and toss it with that creamy dressing, all the Greek olives, and the fresh vegetables and herbs.
I top the salad with feta and always enjoy serving this warm. But itโs also great leftover for lunch the following day.
This is a nice recipe for prepping ahead of time for parties or even work lunches. The pasta holds up really well in the fridge and would be great to make on a Sunday for the week ahead. It actually takes on even more flavor as the salad sits!
If you wanted to make it a little heartier, you could add grilled pesto marinated chicken. That would be delicious!
Looking for other great pasta salad recipes? Here are some favorites:
Pesto Chicken, Corn, and Avocado Bacon Pasta Salad
Corn, Tomato, and Avocado Pasta Salad
Grilled Lemon Herb Chicken Avocado Orzo Salad with Honey Mustard Bacon Dressing
Lastly, if you make this Greek Olive Pasta Salad, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, donโt forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Greek Olive Pasta Salad
Ingredientsย
Greek Dressing
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 3 tablespoons lemon juice
- 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 2 tablespoons tahini or mayo
- 2 teaspoons dijon mustard
- 2 teaspoons honey
- kosher salt and black pepper
Salad
- 2 shallots, thinly sliced
- 1/2 cup mixed fresh herbs , (basil, oregano, dill)
- 2 tablespoons pine nuts
- chili flakes
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1 pound short cut pasta
- 3/4 cup mixed Greek olives, pitted
- 2 bell peppers, chopped
- 1 cup chopped cucumber
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1 cup canned chickpeas, drained
- 1/4 cup sliced pepperoncini
- 8 ounces feta cheese, crumbled
Instructionsย
- 1. To make the dressing. Combine all ingredients in a glass jar and whisk until smooth. Taste and adjust the salt and pepper.2. To make the salad. Combine the shallots, pine nuts, herbs, and chili flakes in a large bowl. Heat the olive oil in a small skillet over medium heat until it begins to sizzle. Pour the hot oil over the shallots. 3. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Boil the pasta to al dente, according to package directions. Drain. Add the pasta to the bowl with the oil. Add the olives, peppers, tomatoes, chickpeas, and pepperoncini. Pour over the dressing and toss well. Add the feta. 4. Serve the salad warm or cold and enjoy!
Nutrition
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Did you make this recipe? Please rate & comment below.
Delicious! I substituted quinoa for pasta. Easy and delicious the next day too.
Hi Jane! So glad you are loving this pasta salad, thank you so much for giving it a try! ๐ xT
This was so easy to make and tasted even better as leftovers the next day. Iโll definitely make this for the family again. It will also be my pot luck go to recipe.
Thanks so much, Wendy!! So glad to hear this recipe turned out well for you, thanks a bunch for making it!
Yum, yum, and more yum! This was so easy to put together and so unbelievably tasty. Made this for dinner because I still love my pasta in the summer, just prefer it to be on the lighter side. This is great because you can eat it warm or cold. We had it warm for dinner, but my husband ate it cold as leftovers for lunch. Both ways were delicious! The tahini absolutely makes the dressing (which is DELICIOUS). This is a keeper recipe for sure.
Hey Rachel,
Happy Sunday! So glad to hear that this salad turned out nicely for you, thanks for making it! xT
Excellent. Chose the tahini option. Got lots of compliments.
Hey Sarah,
Fantastic! Thanks a lot for trying this recipe and your comment, love to hear it was a hit! Xx
I just made this at 1130pm for a birthday party tomorrow.. I am teary eyed while tasting this as it is soooo delicious! I have to control myself not to eat a late of this salad at midnight. This will be my go to recipe everytime I am craving for greek pasta salad. Amazing! Thanks a lot!!! <3
Hi Miki,
Wonderful! I am so glad this recipe turned out nicely for you, thanks so much for making it! Happy Sunday! xT
The best pasta salad I have ever tried, let alone made!! Thank you so much. This was perfect as a barbecue side dish. I have saved this recipe 5 different ways out of fear of losing it. Safe to say this will become a staple!
Thank you so so much for giving this recipe a try! I’m so glad you loved it! xT
This is my ultimate go-to, I’ve come back to it time and time again…in fact, it’s what made me fall in love with your site! Absolutely fantastic receipe, thank you so much ๐
Aw thank you Claire!! xT
Hello, when infusing the olive oil with shallots and herbs for the dressing, should I drain them out the oil before making up the dressing? Or are they the shallots used further in recipe?
Hi Liz,
You are going to include the shallots in the pasta salad:) I hope you love this recipe!
Just made this. I didnโt have bell peppers so subbed in sun dried tomatoes. I loved it – the dressing made with tahini is delicious. Love the hot oil situation – that added lots of flavor.
Hi! Thank you so so much for trying out the recipe! I’m so glad you loved it! xT