Pesto Pasta Salad with Sundried Tomatoes

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This pesto pasta salad with sundried tomatoes and feta is a bright, flavorful side dish that comes together in about thirty minutes. With chickpeas and crunchy bell pepper, it's hearty enough for lunch, yet perfect alongside summer cookouts.

bowls of pasta salad with basil and tomatoes

When the sweaty days of summer hit, I lose the motivation to cook. Luckily, with the garden and markets full of fresh produce, there are plenty of ingredients to enjoy fresh that don't take much time to prepare.

😍 Why You'll Love This Pasta Salad

It's easy to prep and takes only about 30 minutes.
It's a great make-ahead dish for lunches or picnics.
You can customize it with other vegetables. See a few ideas below.

If you're a fan of pasta and pesto, you'll also want to check out some similar recipes for Orzo Pesto Salad or Artichoke Pesto Pasta. For salads that are more of a meal, try my Blackened Shrimp Salad or this Arugula and Spinach Salad with Grilled Chicken.

Jump to:

😍 Why You'll Love This Pasta Salad
🌿 Ingredients
Substitutions & Variations
🔪 How to make pesto pasta with sundried tomatoes
✨ Top Tips
🍳 Equipment
🥡 Storage
🙋🏻‍♂️ FAQ
🥗 Pairing
📖 Recipe
🍝 Related Recipes
💬 Comments

🌿 Ingredients

Here's everything you need to make this pesto pasta salad.

Key Ingredients

Pasta: I like to use a smaller pasta that either has a lot of nooks and crannies to hold the pesto sauce or something with a round shape like orecchiette.
Basil: Fresh basil leaves for making a classically flavored pesto sauce.
Almonds: I like to use a variety of nuts and seeds to make pesto, not just pine nuts, which are expensive. I use almonds, but walnuts or even sunflower seeds can be used here.
Parmesan cheese: Grated Parmesan cheese is an essential component of the pesto.
Sundried tomatoes: Opt for tomatoes that are packed in oil, which are softer and more flavorful in my opinion. You can try using some of the oil from the jar in place of olive oil when making the pesto.
Bell pepper: Raw bell peppers add fresh crunch to the pasta salad.
Feta: With a briny tang, feta complements the sundried tomatoes while adding some saltiness to the dish.
Chickpeas: Offer protein and substance to the salad. Using canned chickpeas is quick and easy, but if you have the time to soak and cook dried ones, certainly go for it.

Check out the recipe card below for the complete list of ingredients and quantities.

Substitutions & Variations

Make it (more of) a meal: Top the pasta salad with grilled chicken or shrimp.
Dairy-free: Skip the cheese in the pesto or use nutritional yeast in its place. For the salad, you can use a store-bought or homemade vegan feta.
With mozzarella: Instead of crumbled feta, use small mozzarella balls.
Other vegetable additions: Try stirring in vegetables such as sautéed zucchini, halved cherry tomatoes, and fresh cucumbers.
Toasted nuts or seeds: For added crunch, toasted sunflower seeds or pepitas would make a nice topping.

🔪 How to make pesto pasta with sundried tomatoes

a spoon of cooked orecchiette pasta over a pot

Step 1: Cook pasta in a large pot of salted, boiling water until al dente. Then drain.

ingredients for making the pesto in a food processor

Step 2: While the pasta cooks, make the pesto. Add the basil, almonds, cheese, lemon juice, and olive oil to a food processor or high-powered blender.

Step 3: Blend until smooth, stopping to scrape down the sides as needed. If the pesto is too thick, add a splash or two more oil to help smooth it out.

sundried tomatoes and bell pepper chopped on a cutting board

Step 4: Chop the sun dried tomatoes and bell pepper into bite-sized pieces.

bowls of the pasta, pesto, cheese, and ingredients

Step 5: Toss the pasta with the peppers, tomatoes, chickpeas, and cheese.

Step 6: Add the fresh basil pesto and stir well to coat evenly.

Step 7: Add the lemon juice and extra oil, if needed. Taste and adjust seasoning as you like.

Step 8: Chill or serve immediately as a side or as a light meal.

✨ Top Tips

Letting the salad hang out in the fridge for an hour or even a day in advance will help the flavors to meld. The pesto will thicken up when cold, so either let it come to room temperature before serving or toss with a little more olive oil to loosen it up.
For an extra tomato flavor, use some of the oil from the jar of sundried tomatoes in place of olive oil when making the pesto.
Save the liquid from the can of chickpeas. It's called aquafaba and can be used in place of egg whites in baking and cocktails like this Cherry Whiskey Sour.

🍳 Equipment

Food processor or high-speed blender: To make the pesto. It's also possible to make pesto with a mortar and pestle, but it's a bit more effort.

🥡 Storage

Store leftover pesto pasta salad for up to four days in an airtight container in the fridge. I don't recommend freezing this salad.

🙋🏻‍♂️ FAQ

Can you make pasta salad the night before?

Making pasta salad the night before is perfectly fine and actually helps the flavors to meld better. Just let it come to room temperature so the sauce can thin out a little and toss with additional olive oil to loosen the pesto, if needed.

Do sundried tomatoes go with pesto?

Yes. Sundried tomatoes pair nicely with a pesto sauce. Try pairing them with pesto in pasta dishes of any kind, warm or cold.

How do you make pasta salad?

For pasta salad you want to combine cooked pasta with different fresh or cooked vegetables, possibly a protein, maybe some cheese, and a sauce or dressing to tie everything together. You can be creative and experiment with different ingredients. Pasta salads are served cold or at room temperature.