I cannot tell you how many pesto pasta salads I have eaten that taste faintly green and chew like cold leftovers. This one does not. The pasta is tender. The mozzarella pearls are soft. The tomatoes are juicy and the pesto stays green from the bowl to the table to tomorrow’s lunch.
This pesto pasta salad recipe comes together in under 30 minutes, makes four real servings for dinner, and stretches to six small plates as a side. If you have been let down by dry, faded versions of this dish before, this is the one I’d point you toward.
Read Before You Start
“Skip every other tip in this post before you skip this one.“
Rinse the cooked pasta under cool water to fully stop the cooking. I rinse the pasta until I can hold a strand between my fingers without flinching.
Pasta that’s still hot will wilt the spinach, melt the mozzarella pearls into a stringy mess, and turn the pesto from vibrant green to dull olive. Everything else in this recipe forgives small mistakes; this one doesn’t.
Ingredient Notes
- Remove the stems on the basil. They make the pesto stringy and slightly bitter, and they show up as black specks in the finished sauce.
- Once the stems are removed, a 4-oz package of basil packs down to about 2 cups.
- Choose fresh garlic, not jarred, if you can. I tested this recipe twice on the same afternoon and the fresh-garlic pesto won by a landslide when it came to color, taste and smell.
- Grate your parmesan from a wedge. The anti-caking agents in pre-grated cheese doesn’t soften into the pesto as well.
- Pat the mozzarella pearls dry on a paper towel right before adding. Wet mozzarella leaks a milky film into the dressing that thins the pesto.
- If pine nuts are expensive in your area, walnuts work as a great substitute.
- You can use jarred pesto in a pinch: Choose a high-quality brand if you’re short on time.
- Serve it as a side or make it the main dish with a little grilled chicken on top.
Make-Ahead Guidance
PESTO: You can make the pesto up to a week ahead and keep it in a jar in the refrigerator with a thin film of olive oil poured over the top to seal out air. That oil cap is what keeps the pesto green during storage. When you are ready to use it, stir the cap back in.
Storage Instructions
Leftovers keep in a covered container in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours. They will still taste good past that, but the basil color dulls noticeably after the first day and the spinach starts to wilt against the warmer ingredients in the salad. Let it sit at room temperature for 15 minutes before eating, because cold olive oil firms up and makes the pesto look chalky on the pasta.
Before You Serve Leftovers
I call the the reserved ¼ cup of pesto optional in the recipe card, but I actually treat it as my insurance policy.
Cold pasta absorbs oil overnight, and even a great pesto pasta salad reads a little dry on day two. Stir half of that reserved pesto in right before you serve leftovers and the salad will look and taste close to the original.
Freezing is not worth it. The tomatoes turn pulpy, the mozzarella turns rubbery, and the spinach collapses.
More Pasta Salad Recipes
- BLT Pasta Salad Recipe
- Tuna Pasta Salad Recipe
- Caesar Pasta Salad Recipe
- Cowboy Pasta Salad Recipe
- Caprese Pasta Salad Recipe
70+ Summer Salads for Cookouts, Pool Parties, and Weeknight Meals
From creamy pasta salads to fresh cucumber slaws, this collection of 70+ summer salads has something for every gathering, cookout, and easy weeknight dinner.
Pesto Pasta Salad
Ingredients
Pesto
- 2 cups fresh basil leaves, packed (from a 3-ounce container)
- ¼ cup pine nuts
- ½ cup grated parmesan cheese
- 1 tablespoon chopped garlic, 2 to 3 cloves
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice
- ½ teaspoon salt, plus additional for boiling the pasta
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ cup olive oil, extra virgin
Pasta Salad
- ½ pound rotini pasta, half a 16-ounce box
- ¾ cup grape tomatoes, halved
- ½ cup fresh mozzarella pearls, patted dry
- ½ cup baby spinach, packed
- ¼ cup grated parmesan cheese
Instructions
- To the bowl of a food processor add the fresh basil, pine nuts, ½ cup grated parmesan cheese, garlic, lemon zest, lemon juice, salt, and black pepper.
- Pulse for 20-30 seconds or until well combined. You still want a little texture to the chopped basil and pine nuts.
- With the food processor running, slowly drizzle in the olive oil just until fully incorporated. Remove the lid and blade, then scrape down the sides of the bowl to ensure all the ingredients are fully combined.
- Transfer to a lidded container and set aside. This will yield approximately 1 cup of pesto. Measure out ¾ cup for the pasta salad and reserve the remaining ¼ cup for optional use.
- In a large pot of salted boiling water, cook the pasta for 9-11 minutes or just until al dente. Drain and rinse under cool water to stop the cooking.
- To a large bowl add the pasta and ¾ cup of the reserved pesto. Stir to evenly coat all the pasta with the pesto.
- Add the grape tomatoes, fresh mozzarella pearls, baby spinach and ¼ cup grated parmesan cheese.
- Stir to combine all the ingredients. You can stir in the additional ¼ cup reserved pesto if desired at this time or save it for another use.
Notes
- The pesto can be made, and stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week prior to use in this recipe.
- A good quality brand of jarred basil pesto can easily be used as a shortcut ingredient if desired in place of making your pesto from scratch.
- Fresh mozzarella pearls are approximately ½-¾ inches in diameter. If you can not find them in your local store, you can substitute with Ciliegine (means “cherry sized”) fresh mozzarella, and then cut into halves to use in this recipe.
- It is best to grate your parmesan cheese by hand for the best flavor and texture. Pre-grated cheeses typically have additives added to the containers to prevent caking. These additives can alter the flavor and texture of the cheese when used.
- Pat the mozzarella pearls dry before adding to avoid extra moisture in the salad.
Nutrition
This was my first time making pesto sauce. It was easy and tasted better than any jarred pesto I’ve ever tried.
– Karen, Independent Recipe Tester