This Bacon Pea Pasta Salad recipe is a summertime favorite! Loaded with bacon, peas, creamy goat cheese and a basil vinaigrette – NO MAYO! It’s quick and easy to make, can be made in advance and served warm or cold!
Hi, friends!
Happy (almost) Memorial day weekend to all my fellow Americans!
Since the unofficial start of summer is just around the corner, I figured it is the perfect time to share a summertime staple – pasta salad! Because, ’tis the season for picnics, potlucks and barbecues! And, you can’t (or shouldn’t) have any type of summer soiree without a proper pasta salad!
While purchasing prepared macaroni salad from the deli at the grocery store is fine if you are in a pinch, they are often too heavy on the mayonnaise or watery and lacking in flavor. So, why take the bland route when making your own pasta salad is quick, easy and tastes a million times better!?
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Bacon Pea Pasta Salad
Bacon Pea Pasta SaladThis easy pasta salad is flavorful, light, refreshing and made without a drop of mayonnaise!
It’s loaded with corkscrew macaroni, bright, sweet peas; salty, crumbled bacon, pungent shallots and creamy goat cheese. Tossed with a zippy homemade basil vinaigrette, this is a pasta salad you are actually going to want to eat!
This mayo-free pasta salad is simple to make, can be prepped in advance, feed a crowd, it travels well and tastes best at room temperature, which makes it perfect for picnics, potlucks and backyard barbecues!
In case you are someone who lives for a creamy pasta salad, have no fear! This macaroni salad has the perfect amount of creaminess thanks to the rich vinaigrette and flavorful, soft goat cheese!
How to make bacon pea pasta salad?
This cold pea salad is incredibly easy to make at home! This recipe requires just 10 minutes of hands on preparation! Plus, it can be made in advance and served warm, cold or at room temperature!
(Scroll down for the detailed measurements and instructions in the printable recipe card at the bottom of the page.)
- Cook the pasta and peas: Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add the pasta to the boiling water and cook according to package directions. During the last 1-2 minutes of cooking, add the peas and cook until pasta is just al dente and peas are bright green.
- Drain pasta and peas: Transfer the pasta and peas to a colander. Rinse under cold water for 30 seconds to stop the cooking process. Gently shake the colander to remove as much water as possible.
- While the pasta is cooking, make the dressing: In a small bowl, combine all the ingredients for the dressing. Season with ¾ teaspoon kosher salt and a scant ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper. Whisk until well combined. Taste and adjust for seasoning with salt and pepper.
- Coat the pasta with dressing: Place the warm cooked pasta and peas in a large bowl. Add in half of the dressing and half of the goat cheese. Toss continuously until the goat cheese coats the pasta.
- To serve immediately: Add the bacon, onions and remaining goat cheese to the pasta. Drizzle with the remaining dressing and gently toss until evenly combined. Sprinkle with parmesan and chives. Taste and adjust for seasoning with salt and pepper. Enjoy!
- To serve later: Add the red onions to the pasta and cover the bowl with plastic wrap. Store the remaining dressing in an airtight container. Refrigerate both until ready to serve. When ready to serve, add the bacon and remaining goat cheese. Drizzle with the remaining dressing and gently toss to combine. Sprinkle with parmesan and chives if desired. Taste and adjust for seasoning with salt and pepper. Enjoy.
Tips for the best no-mayo pasta salad with peas:
- Do NOT heavily salt the water for the pasta. While pasta needs a lot of salt when cooking, the peas can become overly salty! Take care to NOT overcook your pasta. Al dente pasta still has a little bite to it which helps ensure the pasta salad doesn’t get soggy.
- While you need to run cool water over the cooked pasta and peas to stop the cooking process, make sure you don’t allow the pasta to become completely cool. The pasta should be a little warm when you add the dressing and half of the goat cheese. Warm pasta absorbs the vinaigrette better. As well, the warm pasta will gently melt the goat cheese and form a light sauce to coat the pasta
- Always taste and adjust things to your liking, this is especially true with the dressing. For a sweeter dressing, add more honey to taste. Do you like things tangy? Add more lemon or add a splash of white wine vinegar. Prefer a more nutty-salty flavor? Add more parmesan cheese. If you want a little heat, add a pinch of crushed red pepper flakes.
How do you keep pasta salad moist?
To keep pasta salad moist, toss warm al dente pasta with either olive oil or an olive oil based dressing. Tossing freshly cooked, warm noodles with oil will not only prevent the pasta from sticking together, but it will also keep the noodles moist and flavorful!
Should you rinse the cooked pasta?
You should rinse your pasta in cold water prior to making pasta salad! Rinsing serves two purposes – it stops the cooking process and it prevents the pasta from becoming gummy and sticking together.
Even if you want to serve a mayo-free pasta salad warm, you should still rinse the pasta under cold water for 30 seconds!
Can you make pea pasta salad the night before?
You can make pea pasta salad up to 24 hours in advance!
- To make the mayo-free dressing in advance, store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Be sure to whisk the dressing well before using.
- To make the bacon pea pasta the night before, add the warm pasta, peas, red onion and half of the goat cheese to a large bowl. Toss with half of the dressing. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator. When ready to serve the salad, add in the bacon, chives and remaining dressing. Toss well, season to taste and enjoy!
How long will pasta salad keep in the refrigerator?
Prepared pea pasta salad should be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Properly stored, it will last up to 5-7 days.
Can you reheat it?
While reheating pasta salad isn’t advised, you can let the salad sit at room temperature for 30 minutes to remove the chill.
What goes with pasta salad?
Bacon pea pasta salad is extremely versatile and can be served with a wide variety of foods!
- Grilled meat – Anything from steaks and burgers to beef kebabs and hotdogs pair beautifully!
- Smoked meat
- Pulled Pork
- Grilled chicken – Chicken breasts, kebabs, burgers or chicken sausages.
- Grilled fish and seafood – Salmon, scallops, shrimp
- Sandwiches – Artisan sandwiches, paninis, grilled cheese and finger sandwiches
- Summer soups – Gazpacho, corn chowder, spring minestrone
- Fresh fruit – Watermelon, berries, cantaloupe, honeydew
- Grilled vegetables – Corn on the cob, sweet potatoes, zucchini, broccoli, vegetable kebabs
- Beans – baked beans, black bean salad, three bean salad, white bean salad
- Potato Salad
- Slaws – Coleslaw or Vegetable slaw
- Leafy green salads
- Tomato salad – Caprese or cherry tomato salad
This no-mayo bacon pasta salad is flavorful, simple to make and will become a family favorite! It’s perfect for picnics, barbecues, lunches, easy dinner or whenever the craving for pasta strikes!
Until next week, friends, cheers – to summer staples!
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The best Bacon Pea Pasta Salad recipe👇
Bacon Pea Pasta Salad
Equipment
- Large Pot
- Colander
- Large Mixing Bowl
- Small mixing bowl
Ingredients
- 12 ounces uncooked Cavatappi or Macaroni Pasta - or other small pasta of choice
- 12 ounces frozen Sweet Peas – thawed
- 4-6 ounces Goat Cheese – crumbled, divided
- 8 Slices Center Cut Bacon – cooked until crisp & crumbled
- 2/3 Cup Red Onion – finely chopped (about 1/2 small red onion)
- Kosher Salt & Ground Black Pepper
Dressing: (yield - 3/4 cup)
- ½ Cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 1/4 Cup Fresh Basil Leaves – packed and finely chopped, plus more for garnish
- 3 TBS Freshly-squeezed Lemon Juice
- 3 TBS Parmesan Cheese – finely grated, plus more for garnish
- 1 TBS Honey
- ½ tsp Dijon Mustard
Optional for Garnish: Finely grated Parmesan, Sliced Chives
Instructions
- Cook the pasta and peas: Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil (SEE NOTE). Add the pasta to the boiling water and cook according to package directions. During the last 1-2 minutes of cooking, add the peas and cook until pasta is just al dente and peas are bright green.
- Drain pasta and peas: Transfer the pasta and peas to a colander. Rinse under cold water for 30 seconds to stop the cooking process. Gently shake the colander to remove as much water as possible.
- While the pasta is cooking, make the dressing: In a small bowl, combine all the ingredients for the dressing. Season with ¾ teaspoon kosher salt and a scant ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper. Whisk until well combined. Taste and adjust for seasoning with salt and pepper (SEE NOTES).
- Coat the pasta with dressing (SEE NOTES): Place the warm cooked pasta and peas in a large bowl. Add in half of the dressing and half of the goat cheese. Toss continuously until the goat cheese coats the pasta.
- To serve immediately: Add the bacon, onions and remaining goat cheese to the pasta. Drizzle with the remaining dressing and gently toss until evenly combined. Sprinkle with parmesan and chives. Taste and adjust for seasoning with salt and pepper. Enjoy!
- To serve later: Add the red onions to the pasta and cover the bowl with plastic wrap. Store the remaining dressing in an airtight container. Refrigerate both until ready to serve. When ready to serve, add the bacon and remaining goat cheese. Drizzle with the remaining dressing and gently toss to combine. Sprinkle with parmesan and chives if desired. Taste and adjust for seasoning with salt and pepper. Enjoy.
Notes
Nutrition
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This recipe was a huge hit!! My husband doesn’t care for peas so I noticed a little pile on his plate at the end of the meal haha but I loved it just the way it was!!
Hi Jordan,
Your review made me laugh, because I can totally relate – my husband isn’t a fan of peas either (more for us, right?)! I’m so thrilled you enjoyed the recipe – peas and all!! Thank you so much for coming back and letting me know how everything went over! 🙂
Delicious. I increased the honey and substituted shredded sharp cheddar for the goat cheese so I may not have gotten the creamy texture that others described but I will definitely make it again.
Hi Monique,
I’m so thrilled you enjoyed this pasta salad!! Omitting the goat cheese will prevent the salad from becoming creamy, but I love that you used sharp cheddar instead! I’ll have to try that! Thank you for coming back and letting me know how the recipe went over! Cheers! 🙂
I’m a huge fan of a good pasta salad, but I don’t like those which are loaded with a mayo or any other heavy dressing. I normally go with just a good drizzle of olive oil and balsamic. And of course, I do like this elevated dressing, too. I also must admit you’ve created a perfect summer salad to my liking. The combo of pasta, refreshing peas, salty bacon, and pungent goat cheese is so delicious. Well done!
What a beautiful pasta salad and loving all the flavours and textures. And of course … bacon 🙂 Not only are homemade salads much more delicious, they are so much more economical. Those deli salads are expensive!!
The pasta salad looks amazing but…I have not acquired a taste for feta or any strong cheese. Can you recommend a substitution?
Hi Terri,
I have only made this recipe as written. The cheese melts into the pasta to form a very light “sauce”, so with that said, I would probably substitute a bit a strained Greek yogurt to give it that same creamy consistency. Or, you could use mascarpone or cream cheese to get the same creamy consistency without any of the tangy flavor. I hope that help!! Cheers!
A perfect salad for garden party or picnic…So refreshing and delicious! Bacon makes everything taste better, right?
What a super salad for summer pot lucks or BBQ’s, sounds like a crowd pleaser!
LOVE that this has no mayo. I cannot stand mayonnaise and often have to avoid pasta salads because of it. This one sounds delish! Have a great weekend, Chey!
I’m not a fan of pasta salads from the deli either Chey. Too heavy, I agree. But I am certainly a fan of this one. I love the combo of ingredients and love the lighter dressing. Pinned and I’ll be trying for sure!