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Home » Side Dishes

Gluten Free Classic Pasta Salad {Paleo Option}

Published: Jul 3, 2023 · Modified: Oct 12, 2024 by Katie Adams · This post may contain affiliate links · Leave a Comment

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Gluten Free, Dairy Free, Soy Free, Paleo Option, Preservative Free

This fresh and bright pasta salad is the perfect summer potluck or cookout dish! Healthy, Gluten Free Classic Pasta Salad is veggie packed and bursting with sweet and tangy vinaigrette flavor. Plus, it's ready to eat in only 15 minutes!

Gluten Free Classic Pasta Salad on a plate next to a linen napkin, fork, and bowl of pasta salad.

Why I Love This Recipe

This quick and easy side dish is a family favorite for holiday celebrations. The chewy pasta, crisp carrots and cucumber, juicy tomatoes, and briny olives all coated in a zesty Italian Vinaigrette is a mouthful of summer delight!

Not to mention, it's so simple to prepare, it can be easily made even during the busiest of weeks. This was one of my husband's favorite dishes that he gave up for a long time as we adjusted to a new eating lifestyle. This version is definitely an allergy friendly taste of nostalgia!

Pasta salad is simple enough to make gluten free, but when our family needed to avoid soy and preservatives, finding a suitable replacement for store bought Italian Vinaigrette was tough.

Consequently, Gluten Free Classic Pasta Salad was the inspiration behind my homemade Lemony Sweet Red Wine Vinaigrette. This side dish is sweet and zesty from the lemon, red wine vinegar, and Italian spice blend. It's the perfect refreshing bite to have at any cookout or barbecue!

Gluten Free Classic Pasta Salad in a glass bowl next to a stack of plates, linen napkin and fork.

Cooking Tips

I like using Banza pasta as it is protein packed, has a great taste, and also maintains it's texture well. Pro tip: gluten free pasta needs to be rinsed thoroughly & drizzled with neutral oil to keep from sticking to each other.

On the other hand, for a paleo version of this dish, use cassava flour pasta.

Furthermore, if you're not a fan of olives feel free to leave them out. This recipe is so veggie packed it won't make that big of a difference. Same goes for tomatoes, as I know several people have tomato allergies or aversions. However, it's important to note tomatoes add an acidic pop that's a big part of this pasta salad's flavor.

Ingredients for classic pasta salad surrounded a bowl filled with cooked pasta.

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Vinaigrette being poured over pasta salad.
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📖 Recipe

Close up of Gluten Free Classic Pasta Salad.

Gluten Free Classic Pasta Salad {Paleo Option}

Katie AdamsKatie Adams
This sweet, zesty pasta salad is the perfect refreshing bite to have at any cookout or barbecue!
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 15 minutes mins
Total Time 15 minutes mins
Course Side Dish
Cuisine American
Servings 12
Calories 138 kcal

Equipment

  • 1 large mixing bowl
  • measuring cups and spoons
  • 1 wooden spoon or silicone spatula

Ingredients
  

  • 1 8 oz box gluten free pasta cooked to the lowest recommended time* rinsed and oiled
  • 5 oz cherry tomatoes (~⅔ cup) sliced in half
  • 1½ mini cucumbers (~heaping ½ cup) cut in ¼ inch half moons
  • 1½ med carrots (~heaping ½ cup) cut in ¼ inch half moons
  • ½ cup sliced black olives heaping
  • several dashes black pepper
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 1 batch Lemony Sweet Red Wine Vinaigrette** (~ scant 1 cup of dressing)

Instructions
 

  • In a large mixing bowl mix pasta, cucumbers, carrots, tomatoes, olives, salt, and black pepper. Add Lemony Sweet Red Wine Vinaigrette and use a wooden spoon to fully mix. Serve immediately or chilled.

Notes

*Cooking al dente keeps a chewy, tender bite to your pasta, so it doesn't turn out mushy. The cook time for this pasta was 7-9 minutes, so I drained it at exactly 7 minutes. Remember gluten free pasta needs to be rinsed thoroughly & drizzled with neutral oil to keep from sticking to each other. 
**Here is the link to my Lemony Sweet Red Wine Vinaigrette. 

Nutrition

Calories: 138kcalCarbohydrates: 14gProtein: 5gFat: 8gSaturated Fat: 1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 0.2gMonounsaturated Fat: 5gSodium: 283mgPotassium: 68mgFiber: 3gSugar: 4gVitamin A: 1035IUVitamin C: 4mgCalcium: 25mgIron: 2mg
Keyword cookout, easy, gluten free pasta, potluck, quick, summer
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

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@ Joyfully Full 2024

Welcome!

Katie AdamsHi! I’m Katie Adams in Columbus Ohio and I’ve been cooking tasty, allergy friendly meals since 2013 and began creating original recipes shortly after that. I’m so happy to be able share my family meals with you!

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