Ditalini Pasta Salad Recipe
This ditalini pasta salad recipe is a fantastic and flavorful side dish, made with chopped vegetables, fresh herbs, and a simple homemade lemon vinaigrette dressing. Great for parties, BBQs, or potlucks – this is one crowd-pleaser recipe everyone will love!
This 20-minute side dish that will be gone before you know it: crunchy veggies, fun ditalini pasta, and a bright and fresh red wine vinaigrette dressing. Serve this as a side dish, appetizer, or just enjoy it as a light lunch in the summer. A great way to use fresh garden produce and pantry staple ingredients!
Want more great pasta salad ideas? Try our creamy tortellini salad recipe, our vegan Hawaiian macaroni salad, or our favorite cranberry orzo salad.
Note: This recipe was updated on 10/20/25 with new photography, step-by-step photos, FAQs, and a more helpful additions and substitutions section.
This ditalini pasta salad is amazing as a side dish, to bring to a potluck, or just for lunch. The secret to amazing pasta salads is making homemade dressing – it takes about 5 minutes but the flavor blows the bottled stuff out of the water!
I made it a day in advance, which gave the pasta salad just enough time for the flavors to marinate before serving. I make a huge batch of pasta salad every other week for our lunches, and I have a feeling this will be my new Go-To recipe for Sunday night meal prep.
Notes From The Kitchen
- This ditalini salad is refreshing, tangy, and hearty.
- Bursting with flavor
- Loaded with fresh vegetables
- A great vegetarian and meatless side dish!
- A HUGE crowd-pleaser everyone will love.
- Great for BBQs, parties, or potlucks
Why Homemade Pasta Salad Dressings Work!
What makes this pasta salad unique and different from the rest? The easy homemade dressing! It’s a homemade red wine vinaigrette. I’ve used bottled dressings in the past, but wanted to make a homemade version for this ditalini salad.
I didn’t have any vinaigrette dressing on hand, so I made one from scratch. It makes ALL the difference in the world. And it only takes 5 minutes, so anyone can find the time and add major flavor to their pasta salads.
Ingredients You’ll Need
Be sure to visit the recipe card below for full ingredient amounts and recipe instructions!
Ditalini pasta is a fun, short tube-like shape that’s fantastic for soups and salads! It’s similar to macaroni but a bit smaller, and great with other chopped vegetables.
Fresh vegetables like spinach, tomatoes, onions, and cucumbers.
I also use a dressing made with extra virgin olive oil, fresh lemon juice, dijon mustard, sugar, salt, and pepper for a delicious kick!
And I love topping this pasta salad with delicious, salty parmesan cheese. The cheese gives the pasta salad a sharp, earthy flavor which is nice in each bite.
Additions and Substitutions
You can add in your favorite chopped vegetables for added flavor and crunch. Shredded carrots, kalamata olives, coleslaw mix, or chopped broccoli would be great additions!
Add protein to this salad. For a heartier version you can add in marinated tofu, cooked rotisserie chicken, or crispy tofu in the air fryer.
Want a vegan version? Skip the parmesan cheese or use a plant-based variety instead.
Step-By-Step Photos and Instructions
Step 1: In a large pot, boil water and cook the ditalini according to package directions. Drain and cool, and place in a large mixing bowl.
Step 2: In a small mixing bowl, add the dressing ingredients together: parsley, olive oil, red wine vinegar, garlic, sugar, salt, and pepper. Pour over the cooked ditalini pasta.
Step 3: In the bowl add the spinach, tomatoes, cucumber, bell pepper, and chopped red onion.
Step 4: Add the grated cheese over the pasta salad, and stir well to combine. Taste, and add more salt if desired.
Step 5: Chill pasta salad in refrigerator for at least one hour (overnight if possible to let the flavors set). Before serving add an additional tablespoon each of lemon juice and olive oil, and toss.
Recipe FAQs
This delicious vegetarian ditalini salad has fresh chopped spinach, tomatoes, red onion, bell pepper, and cucumber.
You can, however making our fresh 5-minute vinaigrette is preferred. If you do use a bottled dressing try to get an Italian vinaigrette or Greek vinaigrette that will add a delicious herby flavor.
If you have leftovers, store them in an airtight container, and refrigerate for up to 2 days. Add a drizzle of olive oil right before serving, and stir well. This will prevent the pasta salad from getting too dry.
More Fresh Vegetarian Pasta Salads
- Lemon Orzo Salad Recipe
- Soba Noodle Salad with Miso Dressing Recipe
- California Spaghetti Salad Recipe
- Vegan Pasta Salad with Mayo Recipe
- Ramen Noodle Salad Recipe with Coleslaw
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If you made this recipe, please leave a star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below. I’d love to hear from you!
Our cookbook One Ingredient, Five Ways has tasty no-waste plant-based recipes for everyone
Ditalini Pasta Salad
Equipment
- Pot
- Mixing Bowls
Ingredients
- 1 16 ounce box ditalini pasta
- 4 cups fresh spinach chopped
- 1 bell pepper chopped, any color (I used orange)
- 1 medium cucumbers sliced
- 2 medium tomatoes diced (I used roma, but you can use beefsteak tomatoes, or 1 cup diced cherry tomatoes)
- 1/4 cup red onion thinly sliced
- 1/4 cup parmesan cheese greated
Homemade Red Wine Vinaigrette Dressing
- 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 2 large lemons juiced
- 3 cloves garlic pressed
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon each sea salt and black pepper
Instructions
- In a large pot, boil water and cook the ditalini according to package directions. Drain and run under cold water, drain again, and place in a large mixing bowl.
- In a small mixing bowl, add the dressing ingredients together: olive oil, fresh lemon juice, Dijon mustard, garlic, sugar, salt, and pepper. Mix well and pour over the cooked ditalini pasta
- In the bowl add the spinach, tomatoes, cucumber, bell pepper, and chopped red onion.
- Add the grated Parmesan cheese over the pasta salad, and stir well to combine. Taste, and add more salt if desired
- Chill pasta salad in refrigerator for at least one hour (overnight if possible to let the flavors set). Before serving add an additional tablespoon each of lemon juice and olive oil, and toss.
Notes
Nutrition
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A crowd pleaser
Thanks for the clarification on the tomatoes! I ended up using cherry tomatoes. This recipe is delicious! I only had half a box of ditalini, but for my personal taste, that was enough pasta. Everything else was measured according to directions and for me, the ratio of pasta (8 oz.) to everything else was good. I might even add more of the veggies next time. I used the full amount of dressing and it was all absorbed. I could drink that stuff, lol! Glad I found this recipe. I’ll make it again. Thanks!
I’m so glad to hear that Donna – yes, that dressing goes on just about every salad we make 🙂 Thanks so much for letting me know how much you liked it! – Kelly
Hi. The directions say to mix together “spinach, tomatoes, cucumber, chickpeas, and kalamata olives.” However, I don’t see the kind of tomatoes in the ingredients. What kind of tomatoes did you use? How much? This salad looks delicious! Can’t wait to make it. Thanks for clarification on the tomatoes.
Hi Donna,
Thanks for letting me know – I added the kind of tomatoes in the recipe! I used Roma tomatoes which I love the flavor of, but you can use beefsteak tomatoes or which even ones are in season. In the winter I like to use cherry or grape tomatoes in my recipes as they are usually sweeter. About 1 cup total of diced tomatoes will do the trick! Let me know how it turns out 🙂
Love the little pastas in this salad plus the dressing is versatile and can be used on plenty of other recipes. Yum
Thank you so much, so glad you enjoyed it!