This mayonnaise-based rotini pasta salad dish is incredibly simple to make and is a favorite every time. It is excellent for outdoor barbecues. Refrigerate for the best results.
| Prep Time: | 10 mins |
| Cook Time: | 10 mins |
| Additional Time: | 3 hrs |
| Total Time: | 3 hrs 20 mins |
| Servings: | 6 |
Ingredients
- 2 cups colored rotini pasta
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 ½ tablespoons chopped fresh basil
- 1 cup chopped tomatoes
- ½ cup chopped yellow bell pepper
- ½ cup sliced black olives
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil; cook rotini at a boil until tender yet firm to the bite, about 8 minutes. Drain and rinse with cold water; set aside.
- Whisk together mayonnaise, vinegar, garlic, salt, and pepper in a large bowl until well blended. Mix in basil.
- Add rotini, tomatoes, bell pepper, and olives to mayonnaise mixture; fold gently until mixed. Chill in the refrigerator for 3 hours to overnight. Stir gently before serving.
Nutrition Facts
| Calories | 354 kcal |
| Carbohydrate | 18 g |
| Cholesterol | 14 mg |
| Dietary Fiber | 2 g |
| Protein | 3 g |
| Saturated Fat | 5 g |
| Sodium | 702 mg |
| Sugars | 2 g |
| Fat | 31 g |
| Unsaturated Fat | 0 g |
Reviews
Added minced red onion and few dashes of Italian seasoning–loved this salad!
everyone loved it ! my son,husband and myself. very easy to do and the taste was great. i willbe making this over and over again
Good recipe to start with, as a base.. but bland as given. I added a bit more vinegar and a tablespoon of real maple syrup to bring a sweet n tangy flavor to the Mayo base. Other additions included onion, fresh oregano from the garden, mozzarella shreds and broccoli bits. You can do a lot with this recipe… get creative.
Excellent. The fresh basil made the recipe!
It was good, but the 2nd time I made it, I added sliced pepperoni, and chopped hard salami. It was great
Loved the flavor of the mayo and red wine vinegar, and I added diced onion just for an additional flavor boost. The fresh basil makes all the difference.
Nice pasta salad. Used seashell pasta & next time will only use 1 1/2 cup pasta.
I’ve made this, but it’s been years. I was glad to be reminded of it. The only major change I made is using my favorite salad dressing instead of the recipe shown here.
I had to provide the olives on the side as two family members don’t like olives, though I love them, and I added a little mozzarella cheese and pepperoni. I’ll definitely make it again!
Yum! Maybe add a little more tomatoes and 1 sliced green onion if on hand.
I made it for Memorial Day, it was great, I added celery and carrots
I added carrots and celery
This is one of the easiest and most delicious sides I’ve ever made. It’s perfect because you can do all of the prep work ahead of time (dicing/slicing veggies and boiling pasta) and then just mix them all together when you’re ready to eat. I did make one big change to the recipe. I didn’t use any mayonnaise. I wanted something lighter to go along with the salmon I was cooking and I felt the mayonnaise would be too heavy. I am SO glad that I didn’t! The red wine vinegar alone is more than enough to give this a delicious taste. Plus, it makes the freshly cut veggies stand out. I have made this probably 2 dozen times now and I love it every time! One tip, once your pasta is done boiling and you’ve strained it, add the red wine vinegar immediately. This will prevent the pasta from sticking together while it sits to cool down. Trying to add it once it’s cooled down is a nightmare.
Simple, very good pasta salad. The mayo with red wine vinegar dressing is terrific. I added 1/2 c finely minced red onion for a little more flavor punch, and omitted the black olives in favor of a family member who does not care for them. Otherwise, by the book! You can add nearly any finely minced vegetables to this salad, and it would also be quite tasty with diced chicken for a lovely summertime lunch.
I was low on fresh veggies and trying to find something for lunch that I had all the ingredients for, so I only had tomatoes and green olives to toss in. I may cut back on the mayo next time, but it was very good! I can imagine it would be a great addition at a cook out to some grilled or bbq items!
This is my “go to” pasta salad for family gatherings and potlucks. It’s literally a hit every time I make it. It’s simple and tasty! I’ve made it so many tines that I know all of the measurements by heart! You cannot go wrong with this delicious pasta salad!
This salad is EXCELLENT! I have made it 3 times already and my family keeps requesting it. I took it to a reunion and had many requests for the recipe. I made it exactly as written—once I used dried basil and the other times fresh. The dressing is perfect for the salad–not too much and it clings nicely to the Rotini without making it messy. The flavor of the dressing is great!! Leftovers—if there are any—keep nicely for the next day!! Thank you to the original poster for sharing this with us!!!
This is a delicious pasta salad. I substituted gluten-free rotini since I have Celiac disease. Still tasted wonderful!
This was an easy pasta salad, one of my coworkers made it for an employee luncheon and I wanted to tried it she gave me the link to the recipe. I use yellow bell peppers, cucumber, cherry tomatoes, and onions. I added season salt, pepper, garlic powder, crush red peppers and a little bit of sriracha sauce. I miss all the seasoning in the mayo mixture before adding the pasta and veggies, from reading the recipe I reduce the mayo and did add a little bit of sour cream, then sprinkle some can corn on top. My husband who’s not a big fan of pasta salad loved it, I would make it again for my household and for events. I did not give it a five star because if I followed the recipe exact it would have been too much mayo and not enough flavor.
Tasty and delicious.
This was a wonderful, quick and easy pasta salad. LOW-Fat mayo is great. I used blanched broccoli and tomatoes as my vegetables. I’ve made it like this twice, using bowtie pasta (my favourite) and served it on the same day as well as the day after. Both quite delicious.