There's no such thing as the perfect dish, but if there was it might be some variation of pasta salad. A crowd favorite that is easily portable and endlessly flexible– you can add in almost anything you like– pasta salad can work as a side dish, a main dish, or an appetizer. And with the fall and winter holidays right around the corner, just about any home cook should read up on this highly versatile food.
The origins of what seems to be a distinctively American concoction—room temperature noodles dressed with mayonnaise, mustard, and/or oil and red wine vinegar—are a bit unclear. Many say the version we know (and mostly love) today is a spinoff of German potato salad spawned at the turn of the 20th century, but others say it dates back much further either to the Phonecians between 2500-64 B.C.E. or to Italian Jews in the Roman Empire, who would reuse cold pasta on the sabbath when cooking is prohibited.
Today, many Italians would likely bristle at the mayo-drenched U.S. versions of pasta salad (though they do have their own take in the form of pasta fredda, typically filled with cheese and vegetables and dressed with oil and garlic).
The truth is, while many people have their favorite pasta salad recipe, there really is no right way to make it. Case in point: this list of 50 pasta salad recipes Stacker compiled from Allrecipes. From classics to more unique takes on the food, you're sure to stumble across a preparation you've never thought of before.
Allrecipes
1 / 50- Rating: 4.6/5 (323 reviews)
- Prep time: 20 minutes
- Cook time: 15 minutes
- Additional time: 13 hours 20 minutes
- Total time: 13 hours 55 minutes
- Servings: 6
- Yield: 6 servings
- Number of ingredients: 8
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
2 / 50- Rating: 4.6/5 (1,549 reviews)
- Prep time: 20 minutes
- Cook time: 15 minutes
- Additional time: 1 hour
- Total time: 1 hour 35 minutes
- Servings: 12
- Yield: 12 servings
- Number of ingredients: 15
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
3 / 50- Rating: 4.7/5 (197 reviews)
- Prep time: 10 minutes
- Cook time: 10 minutes
- Total time: 20 minutes
- Servings: 6
- Yield: 6 servings
- Number of ingredients: 9
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
4 / 50- Rating: 4.5/5 (635 reviews)
- Prep time: 1 hour 10 minutes
- Cook time: 10 minutes
- Total time: 1 hour 20 minutes
- Servings: 6
- Yield: 6 servings
- Number of ingredients: 11
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
5 / 50- Rating: 5.0/5 (8 reviews)
- Prep time: 25 minutes
- Cook time: 25 minutes
- Additional time: 45 minutes
- Total time: 95 minutes
- Servings: 4
- Yield: 4 servings
- Number of ingredients: 17
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
6 / 50- Rating: 4.6/5 (854 reviews)
- Prep time: 20 minutes
- Additional time: 1 hour
- Total time: 1 hour 20 minutes
- Servings: 8
- Yield: 8 servings
- Number of ingredients: 9
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
7 / 50- Rating: 4.6/5 (1,055 reviews)
- Prep time: 15 minutes
- Cook time: 10 minutes
- Additional time: 2 hours
- Total time: 2 hours 25 minutes
- Servings: 4
- Yield: 4 servings
- Number of ingredients: 15
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
8 / 50- Rating: 4.7/5 (451 reviews)
- Prep time: 20 minutes
- Cook time: 10 minutes
- Total time: 30 minutes
- Servings: 10
- Yield: 10 servings
- Number of ingredients: 10
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
9 / 50- Rating: 4.8/5 (428 reviews)
- Prep time: 20 minutes
- Cook time: 8 minutes
- Additional time: 4 hours 5 minutes
- Total time: 4 hours 33 minutes
- Servings: 12
- Yield: 12 servings
- Number of ingredients: 16
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
10 / 50- Rating: 4.6/5 (704 reviews)
- Prep time: 10 minutes
- Cook time: 20 minutes
- Total time: 30 minutes
- Servings: 12
- Yield: 12 servings
- Number of ingredients: 9
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
11 / 50- Rating: 4.6/5 (178 reviews)
- Prep time: 20 minutes
- Cook time: 10 minutes
- Additional time: 1 hour
- Total time: 1 hour 30 minutes
- Servings: 12
- Yield: 12 servings
- Number of ingredients: 10
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
12 / 50- Rating: 4.5/5 (1,382 reviews)
- Prep time: 15 minutes
- Cook time: 10 minutes
- Additional time: 1 hour
- Total time: 1 hour 25 minutes
- Servings: 6
- Yield: 6 servings
- Number of ingredients: 12
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
13 / 50- Rating: 4.5/5 (1,518 reviews)
- Prep time: 10 minutes
- Cook time: 15 minutes
- Additional time: 1 hour
- Total time: 1 hour 25 minutes
- Servings: 10
- Yield: 10 servings
- Number of ingredients: 10
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
14 / 50- Rating: 4.2/5 (32 reviews)
- Prep time: 10 minutes
- Cook time: 10 minutes
- Additional time: 30 minutes
- Total time: 50 minutes
- Servings: 6
- Yield: 6 servings
- Number of ingredients: 14
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
15 / 50- Rating: 4.4/5 (2,842 reviews)
- Prep time: 20 minutes
- Cook time: 10 minutes
- Additional time: 4 hours
- Total time: 4 hours 30 minutes
- Servings: 10
- Yield: 10 servings
- Number of ingredients: 12
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
16 / 50- Rating: 4.7/5 (277 reviews)
- Prep time: 35 minutes
- Cook time: 10 minutes
- Additional time: 8 hours
- Total time: 8 hours 45 minutes
- Servings: 8
- Yield: 8 servings
- Number of ingredients: 18
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
17 / 50- Rating: 4.6/5 (173 reviews)
- Prep time: 15 minutes
- Cook time: 12 minutes
- Additional time: 3 minutes
- Total time: 30 minutes
- Servings: 12
- Yield: 12 servings
- Number of ingredients: 7
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
18 / 50- Rating: 4.7/5 (390 reviews)
- Prep time: 20 minutes
- Cook time: 10 minutes
- Additional time: 3 hours
- Total time: 3 hours 30 minutes
- Servings: 8
- Yield: 8 servings
- Number of ingredients: 14
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
19 / 50- Rating: 4.0/5 (1 reviews)
- Prep time: 15 minutes
- Cook time: 15 minutes
- Additional time: 8 hours
- Total time: 8 hours 30 minutes
- Servings: 8
- Yield: 1 6-quart bowl
- Number of ingredients: 13
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
20 / 50- Rating: 4.8/5 (165 reviews)
- Prep time: 15 minutes
- Cook time: 10 minutes
- Total time: 25 minutes
- Servings: 12
- Yield: 12 servings
- Number of ingredients: 10
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
21 / 50- Rating: 4.7/5 (283 reviews)
- Prep time: 15 minutes
- Cook time: 30 minutes
- Additional time: 13 hours 20 minutes
- Total time: 13 hours 65 minutes
- Servings: 10
- Yield: 10 servings
- Number of ingredients: 15
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
22 / 50- Rating: 4.7/5 (179 reviews)
- Prep time: 10 minutes
- Cook time: 10 minutes
- Additional time: 30 minutes
- Total time: 50 minutes
- Servings: 5
- Yield: 5 servings
- Number of ingredients: 10
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
23 / 50- Rating: 4.5/5 (1,518 reviews)
- Prep time: 10 minutes
- Cook time: 15 minutes
- Additional time: 1 hour
- Total time: 1 hour 25 minutes
- Servings: 10
- Yield: 10 servings
- Number of ingredients: 10
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
24 / 50- Rating: 4.6/5 (711 reviews)
- Prep time: 30 minutes
- Cook time: 10 minutes
- Total time: 40 minutes
- Servings: 16
- Yield: 16 servings
- Number of ingredients: 9
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
25 / 50- Rating: 4.5/5 (1,382 reviews)
- Prep time: 15 minutes
- Cook time: 10 minutes
- Additional time: 1 hour
- Total time: 1 hour 25 minutes
- Servings: 6
- Yield: 6 servings
- Number of ingredients: 12
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
26 / 50- Rating: 4.6/5 (75 reviews)
- Prep time: 15 minutes
- Cook time: 15 minutes
- Additional time: 2 hours
- Total time: 2 hours 30 minutes
- Servings: 8
- Yield: 8 servings
- Number of ingredients: 6
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
27 / 50- Rating: 4.7/5 (351 reviews)
- Prep time: 20 minutes
- Cook time: 10 minutes
- Total time: 30 minutes
- Servings: 6
- Yield: 6 servings
- Number of ingredients: 10
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
28 / 50- Rating: 4.5/5 (85 reviews)
- Prep time: 15 minutes
- Cook time: 10 minutes
- Additional time: 30 minutes
- Total time: 55 minutes
- Servings: 4
- Yield: 4 servings
- Number of ingredients: 11
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
29 / 50- Rating: 4.5/5 (171 reviews)
- Prep time: 20 minutes
- Total time: 20 minutes
- Servings: 6
- Yield: 6 servings
- Number of ingredients: 10
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
30 / 50- Rating: 4.8/5 (17 reviews)
- Prep time: 15 minutes
- Cook time: 15 minutes
- Additional time: 13 hours 20 minutes
- Total time: 13 hours 50 minutes
- Servings: 6
- Yield: 6 servings
- Number of ingredients: 7
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
31 / 50- Rating: 4.4/5 (690 reviews)
- Prep time: 30 minutes
- Total time: 30 minutes
- Servings: 16
- Yield: 16 servings
- Number of ingredients: 11
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
32 / 50- Rating: 4.7/5 (1,441 reviews)
- Prep time: 30 minutes
- Additional time: 5 minutes
- Total time: 35 minutes
- Servings: 8
- Yield: 8 to 10 servings
- Number of ingredients: 12
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
33 / 50- Rating: 4.9/5 (19 reviews)
- Prep time: 20 minutes
- Cook time: 10 minutes
- Total time: 30 minutes
- Servings: 4
- Yield: 4 servings
- Number of ingredients: 9
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
34 / 50- Rating: 4.6/5 (186 reviews)
- Prep time: 20 minutes
- Cook time: 5 minutes
- Additional time: 1 hour
- Total time: 1 hour 25 minutes
- Servings: 8
- Yield: 8 servings
- Number of ingredients: 11
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
35 / 50- Rating: 4.9/5 (7 reviews)
- Prep time: 20 minutes
- Cook time: 15 minutes
- Total time: 35 minutes
- Servings: 8
- Yield: 8 servings
- Number of ingredients: 14
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
36 / 50- Rating: 4.5/5 (57 reviews)
- Prep time: 25 minutes
- Cook time: 10 minutes
- Total time: 35 minutes
- Servings: 12
- Yield: 12 servings
- Number of ingredients: 17
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
37 / 50- Rating: 4.6/5 (164 reviews)
- Prep time: 15 minutes
- Cook time: 10 minutes
- Additional time: 1 hour
- Total time: 1 hour 25 minutes
- Servings: 8
- Yield: 8 servings
- Number of ingredients: 5
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
38 / 50- Rating: 4.4/5 (52 reviews)
- Prep time: 15 minutes
- Cook time: 12 minutes
- Total time: 27 minutes
- Servings: 8
- Yield: 8 servings
- Number of ingredients: 12
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
39 / 50- Rating: 4.5/5 (131 reviews)
- Servings: 8
- Yield: 8 servings
- Number of ingredients: 10
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
40 / 50- Rating: 4.6/5 (274 reviews)
- Prep time: 15 minutes
- Cook time: 5 minutes
- Total time: 20 minutes
- Servings: 8
- Yield: 8 servings
- Number of ingredients: 9
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
41 / 50- Rating: 4.4/5 (283 reviews)
- Prep time: 15 minutes
- Cook time: 10 minutes
- Additional time: 1 hour
- Total time: 1 hour 25 minutes
- Servings: 8
- Yield: 8 servings
- Number of ingredients: 11
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
42 / 50- Rating: 4.6/5 (25 reviews)
- Prep time: 20 minutes
- Cook time: 30 minutes
- Additional time: 8 hours
- Total time: 8 hours 50 minutes
- Servings: 6
- Yield: 6 servings
- Number of ingredients: 19
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
43 / 50- Rating: 4.9/5 (22 reviews)
- Prep time: 20 minutes
- Cook time: 15 minutes
- Additional time: 20 minutes
- Total time: 55 minutes
- Servings: 6
- Yield: 6 servings
- Number of ingredients: 14
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
44 / 50- Rating: 4.5/5 (260 reviews)
- Prep time: 25 minutes
- Cook time: 10 minutes
- Additional time: 5 hours
- Total time: 5 hours 35 minutes
- Servings: 8
- Yield: 8 servings
- Number of ingredients: 10
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
45 / 50- Rating: 4.5/5 (50 reviews)
- Prep time: 10 minutes
- Cook time: 11 minutes
- Additional time: 59 minutes
- Total time: 80 minutes
- Servings: 6
- Yield: 6 servings
- Number of ingredients: 10
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
46 / 50- Rating: 4.7/5 (51 reviews)
- Prep time: 20 minutes
- Cook time: 10 minutes
- Total time: 30 minutes
- Servings: 8
- Yield: 8 servings
- Number of ingredients: 9
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
47 / 50- Rating: 4.4/5 (79 reviews)
- Prep time: 15 minutes
- Additional time: 2 hours 30 minutes
- Total time: 2 hours 45 minutes
- Servings: 6
- Yield: 6 servings
- Number of ingredients: 7
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
48 / 50- Rating: 4.8/5 (193 reviews)
- Prep time: 25 minutes
- Cook time: 10 minutes
- Additional time: 2 hours
- Total time: 2 hours 35 minutes
- Servings: 8
- Yield: 8 servings
- Number of ingredients: 15
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
49 / 50- Rating: 4.4/5 (42 reviews)
- Prep time: 20 minutes
- Cook time: 15 minutes
- Additional time: 30 minutes
- Total time: 65 minutes
- Servings: 6
- Yield: 6 servings
- Number of ingredients: 8
- Read more about the recipe here
Allrecipes
50 / 50- Rating: 4.5/5 (8 reviews)
- Prep time: 20 minutes
- Cook time: 15 minutes
- Additional time: 4 hours
- Total time: 4 hours 35 minutes
- Servings: 8
- Yield: 8 servings
- Number of ingredients: 13
- Read more about the recipe here
