Vegan Mediterranean Pasta Salad with Arugula & Arugula-Balsamic Dressing
Vegan Mediterranean pasta salad is a light pasta salad with arugula, made with fresh vegetables like tomatoes and zucchini along with ingredients such as olives, beans, and pine nuts. It’s quick to prepare, ready in about 15 minutes, and works well as an easy lunch or dinner on warm days. Unlike many classic versions, this pasta salad with arugula is made without mayonnaise and instead finished with a flavorful arugula dressing.
Pasta junkie
Anyone who has been following me for a while knows that I am addicted to pasta. I always eat pasta, whether hot or cold, day or night, winter or summer.
A few of my favorites that are also perfect for a summer dish include this creamy vegan avocado pasta, this light zucchini lemon pasta with white beans, and this cold vegan pasta salad with tofu. —one of the most popular recipes on this blog.
This light pasta salad with arugula is now another favorite, and I’m delighted to share my recipe with you. It’s simple and incredibly delicious. In just 15 minutes, you can conjure up a taste of Italy on your plate.
Ingredients for a Mediterranean pasta salad
I’ve made this recipe countless times in different variations. The following vegan ingredients have emerged as favorites (you can find the exact quantities in the recipe card at the end of this post):
- pasta, of course. I prefer to use fusilli or similar. Farfalle are also a great option for this salad.
- arugula (solid and liquid – more on this in a moment)
- pine nuts
- zucchini & olive oil for roasting
- cherry tomatoes
- (black) olives (I prefer Kalamata olives)
- (white) beans
With these ingredients—from olive oil and arugula to tomatoes and olives—this Mediterranean pasta salad could easily pass for an Italian pasta salad: light, flavorful, and made with classic ingredients of Italian cuisine.
Variations
The good thing about a pasta salad is that it’s very flexible. In case one of the ingredients is missing: no problem. Leave it out or use another one.
Here are other ingredients that I’ve either already used or that I think would work well:
- baby spinach
- cucumber
- fried eggplants
- pickled artichokes
- normal large tomatoes
- sun-dried tomatoes
- capers
- peppers (raw or fried)
- red onion (raw or fried)
- spring onion
- Italian herb mix (frozen) or dried oregano
- other beans or chickpeas
- balsamic cream to garnish
- vegan (crumbled) feta, homemade from almonds
Ingredients for a Delicious Arugula-Balsamic Dressing
If you can’t decide between a pasta salad with pesto and a pasta salad with vinegar and oil dressing, then this arugula-balsamic dressing is perfect, as it combines the best of both worlds.
First, I always made Mediterranean pasta salad with a dressing made out of basil, vinegar, and oil. It was good, but somehow not tasty enough.
So I pondered and puzzled over it until I had the glorious inspiration to simply mix in the arugula. There was always some left-over in the pack anyway, so the dressing is a wonderful win-win on all levels, full of fresh flavors.
And since I can also imagine a pesto for the pasta salad (this is an option for an even quicker dish), but I wanted to keep it light, I created this pesto-vinegar-oil hybrid with the following ingredients (you can find the exact quantities in the recipe card at the end of this post):
- olive oil
- balsamic vinegar (alternatively red wine vinegar or fresh lemon juice)
- fresh basil
- arugula
- garlic
- toasted pine nuts
- salt
- pepper
Preparation of the Pasta Salad and Arugula-Balsamic Dressing
This Mediterranean pasta salad can be prepared in no time (ok, in about 15 minutes). Preparation is quick and easy. You prepare hot water and boil the pasta. Meanwhile, you take care of the rest. That is:
- Toast the pine nuts in a pan without fat (be careful not to burn them!). Put some of them aside for the dressing.
- Meanwhile, cut the zucchinis in half or quarter slices (half the zucchinis lengthwise, do that again if you like, and then cut into slices approx. 5 mm or 0.2 inch thick).
- Add the pine nuts to the salad bowl and fry the zucchini slices in olive oil.
- While the zucchini are frying, slice the tomatoes and olives.
- Add the zucchini, tomatoes, and olives to the pine nuts in the bowl.
- Drain and rinse the beans and add to the bowl.
- Add the arugula.
- For the dressing, simply blend all the ingredients.
- Pour the dressing over the remaining ingredients (including the pasta, which is now also ready) and mix.
I love to eat it straight away when it is lukewarm. This Mediterranean pasta salad also tastes great cold from the fridge.
This Mediterranean pasta salad isn’t just perfect as a light lunch or dinner—it also makes a great addition to a barbecue buffet or as a party dish to bring along.
If you’re looking for more ideas for edible party contributions: this authentic and flavorful Austrian potato salad is also easy to prepare in advance, refreshing vegan tzatziki sauce and creamy oil-free hummus pair wonderfully with bread and grilled vegetables, and vegan pinwheels are ideal if you want to bring something easy to eat to the buffet.
Speaking of takeaways for a party or barbecue: , this , theor these tastycould also be an option for you.
Either way: enjoy your pasta salad.
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Vegan Mediterranean Pasta Salad with Arugula & Arugula-Balsamic Dressing
Useful equipment
- mini blender *)
Ingredients
Mediterranean Pasta Salad
- 500 g pasta e.g. farfalle or spirelli
- 1 tbsp salt for the pasta cooking water
- 50 g pine nuts 50 g = 4 tbsp. 1.5 tbsp of them are for the dressing
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 zucchini approx. 350 g or 12.3 oz
- 240 g white beans (cooked) approx. 240 g or 8.5 oz drained weight of white beans (e.g. cannellini)
- 100 g (black) pitted olives
- 50 g arugula 50 g = 2 hands full
- 350 g cherry tomatoes
Arugula-Balsamic Dressing
- 1.5 tbsp of the previously roasted pine nuts
- 1 hand full of fresh basil approx. 30 leaves
- 50 g 1.8 oz or approx. 2 handfuls arugula
- 80 ml 70 g or 1/3 cup or 2.7 oz olive oil
- 40 ml 40 g or 2.75 tbsp or 1.35 oz balsamic vinegar
- 2 cloves of garlic
- 1.5 tsp salt
- some fresh pepper
- 1-2 tbsp water to rinse out the blender jug
Instructions
- Bring the water for the pasta to the boil, add salt, and cook the pasta according to the instructions on the packet (usually around 10 minutes).
- Toast the 50 g (4 tbsp) pine nuts in a large pan without oil over medium heat until they start to brown. Place 2.5 tbsp of the toasted pine nuts in the salad bowl and 1.5 tbsp in the blender jug for the dressing.
- Cut off the ends of the zucchinis, halve them lengthwise, halve them again if you like, and then cut them into half or quarter slices about 5 mm (0.2 inch) thick.
- In the pan where you fried the pine nuts, fry the zucchinis briefly in 2 tbsp olive oil, stirring occasionally, until the zucchini slices are just beginning to brown (they should not be brown) so that the zucchinis are still crunchy but no longer raw. Add to the salad bowl.
- Meanwhile, chop the cocktail tomatoes and olives (cut both in half) and add to the salad bowl.
- Rinse the beans in a sieve, drain, and add to the salad bowl with the pine nuts, tomatoes, and olives.
- For the dressing, blend all the ingredients (pine nuts, arugula, basil, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, garlic, salt, and pepper).
- At the end of the cooking time, pour the pasta into a sieve, rinse with cold water, and place in a salad bowl.
- Pour the dressing over the pasta salad, briefly rinse the blender jug with 1-2 tbsp water if necessary, and pour over the salad.
- Mix everything well.
- I prefer to eat the Mediterranean pasta salad with arugula dressing lukewarm, but it also tastes great cold and well done from the fridge.
Video
Notes
- Pasta: This recipe is also ideal for mixing leftover pasta, e.g. 50 g fusilli, 300 g spirelli, … Just take a look at the cooking time to see whether it is the same or whether you need to add the pasta to the cooking water a little at a time.
- Beans: You can also use other beans or even chickpeas. Instead of canned beans, you could also soak 100 grams of dried beans in water overnight and cook them the next day for about 45 minutes to 1 hour until soft.
- Tomatoes / zucchini: If the zucchini is smaller – it doesn't matter. Or bigger – also good. And you only have 250 g (8.8 oz) of tomatoes: Also fine. The quantities are approximate.
- Arugula: If you are taking the salad to a party, add the arugula on the spot, or leave it out altogether before it gets soggy.
- Balsamic vinegar: the dressing tastes also very nice with red wine vinegar. You could also use fresh lemon juice (I never tried it in this recipe so far).