Mediterranean Pasta Salad with Red Wine Vinaigrette

Delicious pasta salad with mediterranean flavors. Fresh herbs, vegetables, tomatoes, mozzarella, olives, and crispy salami drenched in a delicious red wine vinaigrette dressing.

📝 Ingredients

• 1/3 cup red wine vinegar
• 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 clove garlic
• 1 teaspoon oregano, fresh or dried
• 1/2 cup (26g) red onion
• 1 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
• 1 teaspoon pepper, plus more to taste
• 1/4 cup fresh parsley & basil, roughly chopped
• 12 oz (340g) dried noodles, uncooked (*see notes)
• 3 oz (85g) olives, pitted and halved, Kalamata preferred
• 9 oz (256g) cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1 cup (100g) cucumber, sliced
• 1/2 cup (15g) spinach, coarsely chopped
• 8 oz (226g) fresh mozzarella pearls
• 4 oz (115g) salami slices

👨‍🍳 Instructions

1. 1Set a cold pot of salted water on the stove now to bring to a boil for your noodles.
2. 2--- Red Wine Vinaigrette ---
3. 3In the bowl of a food processor, combine the vinegar, olive oil, garlic, oregano, red onion, salt and pepper. Blitz on high until thoroughly combined, about 15-20 seconds. If you don't have a food processor, add all ingredients to a lidded mason jar or glass bottle. Shake vigorously to combine.
4. 4Pour into the bottom of a large bowl to sit and marinate. Stir in the roughly chopped parsley and basil. Let this sit while you start making your pasta.
5. 5--- Pasta Salad ---
6. 6Once your stovetop water is boiling, pour in the noodles and cook until the noodles are cooked through perfectly. Softer than al dente, harder than mushy over-cooked pasta. Follow directions on the box of noodles for most accurate boiling time for the pasta shape you're cooking. Strain the noodles when finished cooking. Run cold water over the noodles in the strainer to preserve the perfect firmness. Let sit for 1-2 minutes to strain out excess water.
7. 7Add the noodles right to the large bowl of vinaigrette and toss to coat thoroughly.
8. 8Add the olives, tomatoes, cucumbers, spinach, and mozzarella. Toss again to coat.
9. 9Add your crispy salami, stirring one last time. Drizzle with additional olive oil, vinegar, and/or top with fresh cracked pepper.
10. 10--- Crispy Salami *Optional, but delicious ---
11. 11Crisping salami is almost exactly like crisping up bacon. Prepare by setting a paper towel on a clean plate so you can soak up the grease on the cooked salami.
12. 12Stovetop Method: Place a medium-sized saucepan over medium-high heat on the stove. Do not add any grease or oil. Once the pan is quite hot, add a thin layer of salami to the pan. It will almost immediately start to crisp and bubble. If your salami is very thin, cooking 15-30 seconds on each side is sufficient. If your salami is a little thicker, 30-45 seconds on each side should do. You should see the salami turn a little darker in color as the fat melts and you'll notice a bacon-like crisp forming on the edges. Do not cook them so long that they burn. You may need to do a few batches to cook all the salami.
13. 13Oven Method:Preheat your oven to 350F/176C Place your salami on a parchment-lined sheet pan. Cook for 10-15 minutes, depending on the thickness of your salami.
14. 14Once your salami slices are crisped, transfer them to the paper towel lined plate to cool for 5 minutes. They will continue to crisp further while cooling. Once cooled, slice into 1 cm sized strips. Toss into your salad. Crisping your salami prevents the slices from getting too soggy.