I’ve learned a lot over the past eight years of cooking and my palate has definitely become more refined, so today I’m using that new knowledge to give one of the first recipes I ever posted new life. The original version of this Grilled Vegetable Pasta Salad was nothing more than just some grilled vegetables, pasta, and a bottled vinaigrette. This time I gave it a little extra love by making my own creamy balsamic vinaigrette, and used an oven grilling technique (okay, maybe it’s just broiling) to make this recipe accessible for those of you who may not have an outdoor grill.
I’m replacing the old recipe post with this new one, so if you are looking for the old recipe you can download it here.
Cook Once Eat All Week
I love making big pasta salads to eat throughout the week and this Grilled Vegetable Pasta Salad holds up really well in the fridge. The flavor of the grilled vegetables deepens and permeates the pasta as it refrigerates making it even better the next day. The balsamic vinaigrette is definitely the most tangy the day of and it mellows out as it soaks into the pasta.
So if you prefer a really tangy dressing, add just enough dressing to coat everything right away to help keep the salad from drying out, but reserve at least half of the dressing to add just before serving (after refrigerating).
Don’t Skip Salting The Pasta Water
It’s taken me a long time to come around to the benefits of salting the cooking water for pasta, and pasta salads helped change my mind on the subject. Because pasta is the bulk of the recipe, you really want to make sure it has good flavor on its own, and using salted cooking water makes a huge difference. Not sure where to start when salting your pasta cooking water? Here is a great tutorial on How to Properly Salt Your Pasta Water from Gimme Some Oven.
Grilled Vegetable Pasta Salad
Servings 8 1.25 cups eachIngredients
GRILLED VEGETABLES
- 1 zucchini ($1.05)
- 1 yellow squash ($0.88)
- 1 red bell pepper ($1.79)
- 1/2 red onion ($0.43)
- 1 pint grape tomatoes ($2.49)
- 2 Tbsp olive oil ($0.26)
- Pinch Salt and Pepper ($0.05)
CREAMY BALSAMIC VINAIGRETTE
- 1/3 cup olive oil ($0.69)
- 3 Tbsp balsamic vinegar ($0.33)
- 2 Tbsp mayonnaise* ($0.17)
- 1/2 Tbsp Dijon mustard ($0.05)
- 1 clove garlic, minced ($0.08)
- 1/2 tsp dried basil ($0.05)
- 1/2 tsp salt ($0.03)
- Freshly cracked pepper ($0.05)
SALAD
- 1 lb penne pasta ($1.00)
- 1/4 bunch Italian parsley (flat leaf) ($0.25)
Instructions
- Wash the zucchini, yellow squash, and red bell pepper. Remove the stems from the zucchini, then cut them into large slices or pieces. Remove the seeds and stem from the bell pepper, then chop it into large pieces. Slice the red onion into thick slices.
- Place the zucchini, yellow squash, red bell pepper, red onion, and grape tomatoes on a large baking sheet and drizzle olive oil over top. Gently toss the vegetables until they are well coated in oil. Sprinkle a pinch of salt and pepper over top. (Grape tomatoes are generally too small to place directly on a grill, so if using a grill just add the tomatoes to the salad fresh.)
- Grill the vegetables over an open flame until they are charred and tender. OR, adjust your oven’s top rack to be about 6 inches below the broiler unit and turn the broiler on to high. Place the baking sheet under the broiler and watch it closely until the vegetable become charred and tender (about 10-15 minutes, depending on your oven and distance from the broiler).
- Allow the vegetables to cool slightly after grilling or broiling. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil to cook the pasta. Once boiling, add the pasta and boil for 7-10 minutes, or just until the pasta is tender. Drain the pasta in a colander and allow it to cool slightly (until it’s no longer steaming).
- While the pasta is cooking and the vegetables are cooling, prepare the creamy balsamic vinaigrette. To a jar or bowl add the olive oil, balsamic vinegar, mayonnaise, Dijon, garlic, basil, salt, and pepper. Whisk the ingredients together or close the jar and shake until combined.**
- Once the vegetables are cool enough to handle, chop them into smaller, 1-inch pieces. Roughly chop the parsley leaves.
- In a large bowl, combine the pasta, chopped vegetables, and parsley. Pour the vinaigrette over top, starting with half and adding more to your liking. Gently stir the pasta and vegetables until everything is coated in dressing. Serve immediately or refrigerate until ready to eat.
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Notes
Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?Mention @budgetbytes or tag #budgetbytes on Instagram!How to Make Grilled Vegetable Pasta Salad – Step by Step Photos
These are the vegetables I used for my salad: one zucchini, one yellow squash, one red bell pepper, 1 pint grape tomatoes and 1/2 of that red onion. I always like to try to get at least three colors, and always pick smaller vegetables than you think you need because once you slice them up you’ll have more than you expected.
Remove the stems from the zucchini, squash, and red bell pepper, and remove the seed pod from the bell pepper. Slice the zucchini, squash, bell pepper, and red onion into thick slices (so they won’t fall through the slats on the grill. If you’re grilling the vegetables you can add the grape tomatoes to the salad fresh (slice them in half).
If you’re using your oven’s broiler, you can broil them with the other vegetables so they burst and get a little charred as well. Place all the vegetables on a baking sheet, drizzle with 2 Tbsp of olive oil, and gently toss until the vegetables are WELL coated in oil. Then add a pinch of salt and pepper.
If you’re using a grill, grill the vegetables over direct flame until they are charred and tender (again, add the tomatoes fresh because they’re too small to go on the grill surface without falling through). If using your oven’s broiler, adjust the rack so that it’s six inches below the broiler unit. Turn the broiler on, place the baking sheet of vegetables under it, and watch it closely until the vegetables are charred and tender (10-15 minutes, depending on exactly how close they are to the heat). Let the vegetables cool.
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil for the pasta. Once boiling, add 1 lb. penne pasta, and continue to boil until the pasta is tender. Drain the pasta in a colander and let it cool. Meanwhile, make the creamy balsamic vinaigrette. In a jar or bowl combine 1/3 cup olive oil, 3 Tbsp balsamic vinegar, 2 Tbsp mayonnaise, 1/2 Tbsp Dijon mustard, 1 minced clove of garlic, 1/2 tsp dried basil, 1/2 tsp salt, and some freshly cracked pepper. Whisk the ingredients together or close the jar and shake until combined.
Once the vegetables are cool enough to handle, chop them into 1-inch pieces. Roughly chop 1/4 bunch parsley.
When the pasta is cooled to the point where it is no longer steaming, place it in a large bowl with the chopped vegetables and parsley. Add the creamy balsamic vinaigrette and gently stir until everything is coated. Start with half of the dressing and add more as needed (I used it all).
Serve the Grilled Vegetable Pasta Salad immediately or refrigerate until ready to eat. The dressing WILL absorb into the pasta and mellow out, so if you like a tangier dressing, wait to add some of the dressing right away to keep everything from drying out, but reserve some to add just before serving.
Delicious recipe! Great to make ahead for lunches. I only needed half the dressing at first but may add more to the leftovers. Made it using vegan mayo and I only added 2 T balsamic vinegar.
I like to use celery leaves in my pasta salad for a fresh herbal note instead of parsley. It tastes good and keeps them from going to waste.
The photos make my mouth water, amazing. This recipe is delicous too, only compliments to give!
This is so good! I have been doing something similar for years now. I don’t use a dressing but sprinkle a little Herbs de Provence over the veggies and toss along with the olive oil before placing the pan in the oven. I mix the roasted veggies with the pasta and sprinkle a little freshly grated Parmesan over it. It is a meal in itself.
I’m eating this right now served on a bed of baby spinach, delicious. I also put in some mushrooms and sun-dried tomatoes.
Looks like the perfect recipe to make ahead and take for weekday lunches! Really like all the fresh vegetables in it. Thanks!
I just made the most delicious dish inspired in your sausage skillet recipes. I cooked some sausage in a skillet, removed, added some onion and peppers and a bit of garlic to cook in the fatty goodness, added back the sluced sausage and some water. It starts getting sauce-ish and thick. When the water has almost consumed I added some tomato sauce and potatoes, that I previously fried in a pan till they where almost but not quite done, so they finish cooking in the sauce. The result is a thick, delicious stew, to dip some bread in. I love ur blog!
I made this last night, and it was great! I will make it again in the future. I appreciated the dressing recipe, too.
The roasted veges look delicious. I’m going to try this out
I admit that I still have a problem with salting the pasta water cause my guy, a heart bypass guy, has an issue with salt.
This looks amazing! I have a 4th of July BBQ to go to, and had no idea what to bring. So excited to try this!
This looks so tasty! I’m definitely going to try this for a 4th of July party. I’ll probably use my go to “Just Mayo” vegan mayonnaise for this recipe rather than leave it out. Fortunately, I find mayonnaise to be the easiest thing to replace as a vegan, because I was using Just Mayo for a long time back when I still ate meat, without knowing it was vegan!
This was very delicious and made a great meal. Thank you!!
I really appreciate your salad dressing recipes. I used to like ‘bought’ salad dressings well enough when I was young in the 60s, 70s, amd 80s but now they just aren’t worth the calories, really. All I can taste is salt, sugar, oil and vinegar and, I can do that at home. Really, no seasoning to speak of. I can’t tell if ‘bought’ dressings have gone downhill or if I need more seasoning now that I’m older..
I appreciate your redoing this recipe. Question about balsamic vinegar. The one I have is Pompeii brand. Sometimes, dressings just don’t taste right to me with it or I am turned off by the dark, dark color of my salads. I can’t tell if I just don’t care for the flavor of balsamic vinegar or if it’s the brand. I can’t afford super duper expensive ‘real’ balsamic vinegar but is there another brand you like which I am likely to find in a supermarket? Otherwise, what might I substitute? I always have rice and red wine vinegars in the house. Either of those? Or something else? Thank you for the instructions on broiling the vegetables. For one thing, I don’t have a grill and, for another, leaning over a hot grill is the LAST thing I would do in Central Texas in the summer, lol! Too bad I don’t have a handy boyfriend or husband to grill for me! :) I look forward to trying this soon
Hi Marion! If you can find it, try white balsamic vinegar. It has a more mellow flavor to it, and will eliminate the dark color that may find off putting. If you can’t find it, or it’s to pricey, I often sub in red wine vinegar in place of balsamic – I love it!
Thank you, Leslie!
Red wine vinegar is also really good with this recipe. While it tends to be a bit more acidic than balsamic, it doesn’t have that bitter flavor that some less expensive balsamic vinegars can have. Whichever type of vinegar you decide to try, a little sugar goes a long way in the dressing to mellow the acidity and counteract any bitter flavors. If you have a Whole Foods near you, their 365 brand balsamic is pretty good and very reasonably priced. :)
Thank you, Beth. That’s good to know. I’ve never heard that less expensive balsam vinegar may be bitter but maybe that’s what the problem is with mine, I’ve tried it twice with your Cowboy Caviar recipe and something has just been a little bit off. I am sensitive to bitter flavors but can’t always pinpoint it unless it’s truly horrible. I don’t have a Whole Foods locally but I’ll see if I can find the 365, at the store or Amazon.