This fresh, vibrant, and utterly delicious Tortellini Salad feeds a crowd on a dime. My favorite part? It only takes a few minutes to put together. Plus, you can make it ahead of time and store it in the fridge for up to 3 days. Win! Win! Win! It’s perfect for picnics, potlucks, or a light lunch at home. Get ready to put this Tortellini Salad recipe on repeat!
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“We love this recipe! It’s so customizable. We added fresh sweet corn this time around, which was a treat. I don’t like tomatoes or onions so my husband just adds them to his portion with a little extra dressing. We even made it as part of our meal prep and it keeps well for a few days. I love that you don’t have to cook the zucchini and it just softens with the salt and dressing.”
Emily
Quick and Easy Tortellini Salad Recipe
Here’s the thing—I absolutely love how easy this Tortellini Salad is to throw together. If you’re not familiar with tortellini, it’s a delicious pasta stuffed with goodies like cheese, meat, or veggies and shaped into a small ring. It’s like getting a built-in flavor bomb with every bite! For this salad, I mix the cooked and cooled tortellini with fresh summer veggies, herbs, greens, and a zesty vinaigrette. But what really makes this recipe a winner for me? It comes together in just three simple steps, it’s super filling, and it’s a lifesaver when you’ve got a crowd to feed but don’t feel like spending hours in the kitchen.
Budget-Friendly Tip
Sometimes, I bulk up this salad with more low-cost, in-season veggies to transform a pound of tortellini into 16 servings instead of 12. You can use any fresh veggies, greens, and fresh summer herbs you have on hand. Just cut everything in similar sizes.
Tortellini Salad
Servings 12 cupsIngredients
- 1 lb cheese tortellini* ($2.98)
- 1 summer squash ($1.10)
- 1 zucchini ($0.93)
- 1/2 tsp salt ($0.02)
- 1 pint cherry tomatoes ($2.98)
- 1/2 red onion** ($0.47)
- 1/2 cup chopped Italian Parsley ($0.27)
- 2 cups fresh baby spinach, packed ($2.18)
- 1/2 cup sliced black olives ($2.37)
- 3/4 cup Italian dressing*** ($0.78)
- 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese ($0.33)
Instructions
- First, cook the tortellini according to the package directions. Then drain well and cool in a very large bowl in the fridge.
- While the tortellini is cooking, slice the summer squash and the zucchini into 1/4-inch rounds and then quarter the rounds. Add them to a large bowl and sprinkle with salt and mix.
- Slice the cherry tomatoes in half. Slice the red onion in 1/4 inch half moons and soak it in cold water to dull its sharp flavor. Chop the parsley, and if the baby spinach leaves are large, chop them as well.
- Once the tortellini has cooled, top it with the cherry tomatoes, red onion, zucchini, squash, baby spinach, and sliced black olives. Then drizzle with 1/2 cup of Italian dressing.
- Next, top the salad with chopped Italian parsley and Parmesan cheese. Then drizzle with the final 1/4 cup of Italian dressing. Finally, mix, and serve! Wasn't that easy?
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Notes
- Tortellini: If you can’t access this ingredient, substitute it with rotini, farfalle, penne, orecchiette, or gnocchi. (And call it Pasta Salad!)
- Cherry Tomatoes: If you’re not a fan of tomatoes, try using red bell peppers instead.
- Red Onion: You can substitute with green onion, white onion, or yellow onion.
- Summer Squash and Zucchini: Try cucumber or carrots.
- Black Olives: Substitute with green olives or capers.
- Baby Spinach and Italian Parsley: Adds herbaceous peppery notes. Substitute the spinach with kale or arugula. You can also switch the parsley with fresh basil.
Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?Mention @budgetbytes or tag #budgetbytes on Instagram!How to Make Tortellini Salad Step-By-Step Photos
Cook the tortellini: Start by cooking one pound of tortellini as shown on the package instructions. You can use any type of tortellini you love, but I personally use cheese tortellini in this recipe! Drain the pasta well, transfer it to a very large bowl, and chill it in the fridge.
Prep the squash and zucchini: As you wait for the tortellini to cook, you can slice one summer squash and one zucchini into 1/4-inch rounds, then quarter the rounds. Place the quartered veggies into a large bowl, sprinkle them with 1/2 tsp salt and mix.
Prep the other vegetables: Slice 1 pint of cherry tomatoes in half. Then, slice 1/2 a red onion in 1/4 inch half moons and soak it in cold water to dull its sharp flavor. Chop 1/2 cup fresh Italian parsley, and if your 2 cups of baby spinach leaves are quite large, chop them, too.
Make the salad: When the tortellini has cooled you can assemble the salad. To do this, add the zucchini and squash to the same bowl as the cooled tortellini. Then, add the halved cherry tomatoes, sliced red onion, baby spinach, and 1/2 cup sliced black olives. Finish it off with 1/2 cup of the Italian dressing (I use our homemade Italian dressing, but store-bought will also work.)
Next, top the salad with the chopped Italian parsley and 1/4 cup of Parmesan cheese. Then drizzle with the final 1/4 cup of Italian dressing.
Serve: Finally, mix and serve! Wasn’t that easy? Now go feed your army and enjoy your time with them instead of spending it in your kitchen!
Tips For Making The Best Tortellini Salad
- You can use store-bought Italian dressing for convenience, but for a more flavorful salad, use our recipe for Italian Dressing.
- Add a little acidity and heat with pickled cherry peppers or banana peppers.
- For a heartier salad, add chopped grilled chicken or shrimp. Or try adding chopped salami.
Serving Suggestions
While I often enjoy this Tortellini Salad on its own, it shines even more when served alongside a bigger meal, like a backyard barbecue or picnic. One of my go-to pairings is Greek Marinated Chicken, which is a tangy, herb-infused chicken that perfectly complements the fresh veggies in the salad. Or, if you’re in the mood for seafood, I also love serving it with Shrimp Scampi. And I can’t resist pairing it with our No-Knead Homemade Focaccia to soak up any extra dressing at the end!
How To Store
Tortellini salad keeps up to 3 days in the fridge. Just make sure to store leftovers in an airtight container. If you want to make the salad ahead of time, I recommend making the tortellini, chopping and salting the squash and zucchini, and prepping the rest of the ingredients. Add the tortellini to a large container and top with the vegetables and then the greens. Mix with Parmesan and dressing when you’re ready to serve.
It’s so delicious. It’s my family’s favorite.
https://www.budgetbytes.com/tortellini-salad/
I always throw the zucchini and summer squash in with the pasta to cook it a bit! Love this recipe.
Yet again, another customizable recipe! Delicious! I used what I had “in stock”, as this is classic Budget bytes style. Used my garden fresh zucchini and cherry tomatoes; was able to use up the rest of a bag of spinach (so satisfying to use that sucker up before it goes bad) and the bag of parsley. Didn’t have parmesan (I know – what am I thinking!?) but had feta which really worked! Wanted this to be lunch, so I omitted olives (some of my people hate them) and added shredded chicken. Had to “taste test” it – was so good it was my breakfast, lol. Thank you, Monti! I especially appreciated your tip to dull the red onion. Overall – it was a win! Can’t wait to make it with all of the ACTUAL ingredients, but appreciated the adaptability of this recipe- which is how we all REALLY save $.
Really good! Made this for dinner just now without parsley because we didn’t have it. I have never eaten raw squash before. Surprised we liked it!
So I don’t like red onion or summer squash, but I used it anyway. I was AMAZED at what a little salt can do to the squash and dulling the red onion with water. Subbed the zuch for 1/2 a cucumber (no salt) and used 1.5 pds of tortalini because that’s how Sam’s sells it. Also the dressing is a huge win, and I had plenty plenty even with the extra tortalini. Very impressed. Will be making again next week.
Thank you Sarah!
We love this recipe! It’s so customizable. We added fresh sweet corn this time around, which was a treat. I don’t like tomatoes or onions so my husband just adds them to his portion with a little extra dressing. We even made it as part of our meal prep and it keeps well for a few days. I love that you don’t have to cook the zucchini and it just softens with the salt and dressing.
This was so good! I switched the olives for a bell pepper since I had one to use up and I really don’t care for olives lol. I was worried that the dressing recipe wouldn’t be enough because I had a 19oz bag of tortellini, but it was totally fine and delicious! I was also skeptical about the raw squashes, I thought they would be firmer. But nope, it was great as is. Love that I don’t have to turn on the oven and it’s super quick :)
The recipe is great but we had to cook the zucchini and squash – are y’all out here eating raw zucchini and squash? It’s hard as a rock until it cooks a little, right? My family insisted I cook the zucchini and squash a little.
I’m a bit confused — is it 12 servings as a potluck side, or 12 meal-sized servings? I definitely want to make this, but I also definitely don’t have twelve people to feed! :)
It makes about 12 cups, so the serving size and number of servings is up to you. A one-cup serving size would be more of a side dish serving to me.
Made 5 generous dinner-sized servings! I forgot red onion and swapped in kalamata olives instead of black ones, and it was still delicious. 100% going to make this one again, it was a perfect summer meal.
Thanks Rae!
I made this and I literally threw everything into the bowl. I added the Greek marinated chicken to mine. I also didn’t add ALL the dresssing (did the 1/2 cup but didn’t add the last 1/4 cup) and I still found it to be so flavorful! Very delicious and full of veggies!! Would definitely make again 😊
Why salt the squash? Is it for seasoning or are we draining moisture?
It does a little of both! xoxo
Very tasty! Keeps well as leftovers if you don’t add the dressing until you serve it. Easy to make too. We didn’t have summer squash so we just added more zucchini. A little protein on the side and you’re good to go!
Delicious! I opted to roast my squash, zucchini, tomatoes, and onion and make this a hot dish. I also added cannellini beans to make it an all-in-one dinner. It was so easy (I was able to prep it all while in a meeting) and a big hit. Perfect for summer – definitely going in the rotation!
I made this tonight and even made the Italian dressing from scratch following the recipe. It was a big crowd pleaser. I grilled my yellow and green squash just right, which added a bit more complexity and “summer time.” Love this salad!!