BLT Pasta Salad is the perfect side dish for all your summer barbecues. It has everything you love about a BLT sandwich in a pasta salad. Pasta, crispy bacon, tomatoes, lettuce, and green onions with a creamy ranch dressing.
We're not even officially into summer and pasta salads have become my most made side dish. They're just so easy to make, you can make them ahead, and they're always a crowd pleaser.
This BLT pasta salad is, you guessed it, inspired by a BLT sandwich. It has the bacon, lettuce, and tomato along with pasta, green onions, and a creamy ranch dressing.
If you love a BLT, you have to make this pasta salad before summer ends!
Ingredients
- Pasta - I used rotini but you can use any small pasta shape like elbows, shells, etc.
- Bacon - you can use pork or turkey bacon, whatever you prefer.
- Mayo - light mayo should work fine.
- Milk
- Ranch seasoning mix - the dry mix, not the liquid dressing.
- Garlic powder and black pepper
- Cherry tomatoes - depending on how big your tomatoes are, either half or quarter them.
- Green onions - you could use red onion instead if you want more onion flavor.
- Iceberg lettuce - you could use romaine lettuce but I think iceberg is best for BLTs.
How To Make BLT Pasta Salad
- Cook pasta. Cook pasta according to package instructions. Drain, rinse under cold water, and set aside.
- Cook bacon. Cook bacon in a skillet over medium-high heat until crispy. Remove and set aside. Crumble when cool enough to handle.
- Make dressing. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together mayo, milk, ranch seasoning mix, garlic powder, and black pepper.
- Combine. To the mixing bowl, add cooled pasta, crumbled bacon, tomatoes, green onions, and shredded lettuce.
- Chill. Cover and chill for 1 hour before serving.
How Long Is It Good For?
BLT pasta salad will be good for up to 3 days. Make sure to store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
Keep in mind that the lettuce and bacon will lose it's crispiness the longer it sits. It will still be delicious though!
Can You Make It Ahead?
You need to make it at least one hour before you plan to serve it but you can make it several hours ahead if you need to. If you are making it more than one hour ahead, I would wait to stir in the shredded lettuce until an hour before serving so that the lettuce is crisp.
More Pasta Salad Recipes
- Taco Pasta Salad
- Dill Pickle Pasta Salad
- Deviled Egg Pasta Salad
- Mexican Street Corn Pasta Salad
- Broccoli Grape Pasta Salad
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Recipe
BLT Pasta Salad
Ingredients
- 12 ounces rotini pasta
- 8 slices bacon
- 1 cup mayo
- ½ cup milk
- 3 tablespoons ranch dressing mix
- ½ teaspoon garlic poweder
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved or quartered depending on size
- ½ cup green onions
- 2 cups shredded iceberg lettuce
Instructions
- Cook pasta according to package instructions. Once cooked, drain and rinse under cold water. Set aside.
- In a large skillet over medium-high heat, cook bacon until crisp. Drain on paper towels. Once cool enough to handle, crumble and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together mayo, milk, ranch dressing mix, garlic powder, and black pepper.
- To the mixing bowl, add cooled pasta, crumbled bacon, tomatoes, green onions, and shredded lettuce. Toss to coat everything with the dressing.
- Cover and chill in the refrigerator for 1 hour before serving.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
12Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 228Total Fat: 17gSaturated Fat: 3gUnsaturated Fat: 14gCholesterol: 12mgSodium: 462mgCarbohydrates: 14gFiber: 2gSugar: 2gProtein: 5g
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