This quick and easy pasta salad is perfect for preparing at the weekend and then enjoying for lunch throughout a busy week! It´s packed with flavour, veggies and mozzarella cheese and is ideal for packed lunches!
Easy Pasta Salad – Perfect for Meal Prep
Pasta salads are perfect for meal prep, as you can make large quantities of it and store it into the fridge for 3-4 days! Perfect if you have a busy week ahead and want a quick lunch that is ready to go when you need it! I love making this pasta salad and filling it into a lunchbox to take to uni with me, too!
It´s also great as an add-in for a normal salad, or served alongside a sandwich. I really enjoy baking bread, so a nice slice of freshly baked bread with soft cheese alongside some of this pasta salad makes a really lovely lunch, too! If you are looking for some great bread recipes to try, why not check out my No-Knead Overnight Twist Breads, 3-Day Crusty French Baguettes or my Homemade Sourdough Bread?
Make this Quick and Easy Pasta Salad your own!
The best thing about this easy pasta salad is how versatile it is! You can pretty much take or leave any of the ingredients I have listed below, and adjust the recipe to your liking! I have added a few of my favourite things to my recipe, namely onion, tomatoes, peppers, spinach, olives and mozzarella cheese!
When it comes to your choice of pasta, it´s pretty flexible, too. However, I´d recommend using a small pasta, such as mini farfalle or penne. I found a cute mini shell pasta (conchiglie) that I used in the recipe below and they were great!
For your dressing, you can make it as simple or fancy as you like! I opted for a simple dressing of salt, pepper, chilli powder, balsamic vinegar, lemon juice and a little Greek yoghurt! You could also use olive oil instead, or even add a dollop of mayonnaise or mustard to your dressing! It really depends on your personal taste!
More Lunch Recipe Ideas
If you are looking for more lunch recipe ideas, why not check out some of my other recipes below? Some are great for meal prep and making packed lunches, while others are perfect for a quick, healthy and easy lunch at home!
- Short-cut Baked Sweet Potato with Cottage Cheese and Avocado
- Easy Couscous Salad
- Pizza Baguette
- Grandma´s Thick Vegetable Soup
- Coronation Chicken | Sandwich Filler
- Colourful Quinoa Salad
- Omelette “Wrap” with Smoked Salmon and Avocado
- Quick and Easy Wrap Pizza
- Pesto, Tomato and Mozzarella Baguette
- Curried Yellow Split Pea Soup
Quick and Easy Pasta Salad | Lunch Box Recipe
Recipe
Ingredients (makes 4 portions):
- 250g mini conchiglie pasta shells (or any other pasta)
- 1 small shallot, finely sliced
- 1 orange pepper, cut into cubes
- 2 large salad tomatoes, cubed
- 10 black olives, stoned and sliced
- 125g mozzarella cheese, sliced
- Small handful of baby leaf spinach, roughly chopped
- Squeeze of lemon juice
- 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 1 tbsp Greek yoghurt
- ½ tsp hot chilli powder (optional)
- Salt and pepper
Method:
- Bring a pot of water to the boil and salt generously. Add in the pasta and cook according to packet instructions (see more tips on how to cook pasta properly here). Once the pasta is al dente, drain through a colander and leave to cool slightly whilst you prepare the remaining ingredients.
- Chop all the ingredients listed above and place them into a large bowl. Add in the cooled pasta and mix.
- For the dressing, add the Greek yoghurt, vinegar and lemon juice to the pasta salad, add some chilli powder if you like, and season generously with salt and pepper. Mix well until fully combined and continue to season to taste until you are happy with it.
- Serve the pasta salad immediately or store in the fridge in an air-tight container for up to 4 days.
