Pepperoni Pasta Salad

Creamy Pepperoni Pasta Salad made with 6 ingredients and in under 30 minutes it’s perfect to serve as a side at your next barbecue or pot luck. Children and adults will love this fun twist on the traditional pasta salad recipe.

Barbecues and pot lucks always need a pasta salad. This recipe for Pepperoni Pasta Salad is a crowd pleaser and requires only a few ingredients. We have a group of friends who we like to barbecue often with. In order to do this we typically delegate each family to bring a dish or two. The host family almost always provides the main dish. These are small barbecue get-togethers, so I’m always searching for a smaller side dish to bring that doesn’t necessarily have to feed an army.

That’s where this Creamy Pepperoni Pizza Pasta Salad recipe was born. Everyone loves pepperoni pizza and pasta salad so why not marry the two together? Genius, right? You can thank me later. I know my family loves pizza like my pepperoni pizza popcorn and my Pepperoni Pizza Toast. So why not make a fun twist on a pasta salad, too!

Ingredients

• Suddenly Pasta Salad Creamy Italian – I like to use a boxed pasta salad mix as the base. If you can’t find this or don’t want to use this you can use any type of tubed pasta, dried Italian seasoning dressing, and some thawed from frozen, peas and carrots.
• Mayonnaise – This gives the creaminess to this pasta salad.
• Grape Tomatoes – You can leave them whole or cut them in half.
• Mini Pepperoni – I like the mini, but if you don’t have those you can use regular pepperoni and cut them in quarters.
• Fresh mini mozzarella pearls – I like the tiny pearls, but once again, you can use whole mozzarella and dice.
• Basil – Lots of fresh basil to bring the flavors up a notch in this semi-homemade pasta recipe!

Directions

Cook the pasta according to package; boiling for 13 minutes. While pasta is cooking, Slice grape tomatoes, pepperoni (if using regular size pieces), and separate fresh mozzarella pearls. Drain water and rinse with cold water. Set to the side.

In a large bowl combine mayonnaise and seasoning packet. Place cooked pasta in the bowl with the sauce mixture and then add in the grape tomatoes, pepperoni and fresh mini mozzarella balls.

Mix well and refrigerate for 1 hour.

Before serving chiffonade the basil and mix into the pasta salad.

FAQs

Tips & Tricks

Here are a few of my favorite tips and tricks I’ve found helpful when making this recipe.

• Prep – Prep all the pasta salad ingredients while the pasta is cooking on the stove top. This will help expedite the preparation process.
• Rinse Pasta – Once your pasta is done cooking, rinse it with cold water until the pasta is at room temperature. This will help the pasta salad chill faster once it goes into the refrigerator.
• Chill – Once your pasta salad is mixed together, seal the salad with a lid or plastic wrap and let it chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to 1 hour.

Side Dish Recipes

Here are a few of my favorite side dishes to serve at your next barbecue!

• Southwestern Quinoa Salad with Mango
• Greek Pasta Salad
• Potato Salad without Mayo
• Mandarin Coleslaw
• Arugula Pesto Pasta Salad with grape tomatoes

My garden is currently bursting at the seams right now with grape and cherry tomatoes and fresh basil among other things. I’m finding ways to incorporate tomatoes and basil into just about every recipe these days.

If you make this Italian pasta salad with pepperoni recipe, I would be honored and love for you to take the time to leave a star rating and comment! I spend hours developing and testing these recipes, and always love to hear feedback and user experience!

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Creamy Pepperoni Pizza Pasta Salad

Creamy Pepperoni Pasta Salad made with 6 ingredients and in under 30 minutes it's perfect to serve as a side at your next barbecue or pot luck. Children and adults will love this fun twist on the traditional pasta salad recipe.

5 from 1 vote

Print Pin Rate

Course: Salad, Side Dish

Cuisine: American

Prep Time: 12 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 13 minutes minutes

Chill Time:: 1 hour hour

Total Time: 1 hour hour 25 minutes minutes

Servings: 8 servings

Calories: 139kcal

Author: Katie

Equipment

• ▢
  Stove Top

Ingredients

• ▢ 1 pkg Suddenly Pasta Salad Creamy Italian
• ▢ ½ cup Mayonnaise
• ▢ 13 grape tomatoes halved
• ▢ ¼ cup Mini Pepperoni
• ▢ ½ cup Fresh mini mozzarella pearls
• ▢ ¼ cup Fresh basil chiffonade

Instructions

• Cook the pasta according to package; boiling for 13 minutes. Drain water and rinse with cold water. Set to the side.
• In a large bowl combine mayonnaise and seasoning packet.
• Slice grape tomatoes, pepperoni, and fresh mozzarella. Place cooked pasta in the bowl with the sauce mixture and then add in the grape tomatoes, pepperoni and fresh mini mozzarella balls. Mix well and refrigerate for 1 hour.
• Before serving chiffonade the basil and mix into the pasta salad.

Video

Notes

• If you don’t have mini pepperoni, you can quarter large slices of pepperoni.
• Can’t find pearl mozzarella at the grocery store? You can chop up pieces of fresh mozzarella in the salad.

Nutrition

Serving: 0.33c | Calories: 139kcal | Carbohydrates: 1g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 14g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 15mg | Sodium: 198mg | Potassium: 81mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 326IU | Vitamin C: 4mg | Calcium: 39mg | Iron: 1mg

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