This creamy pasta salad is going to quickly become one of your favorite side dishes. It’s perfect for pairing with almost any dinner, and we especially love it with some grilled chicken, a nice salad, or some burgers. It’s also perfect for taking to a potluck style dinner!
It’s finally warming up, and we are ready for all things sunshine, and being outside as much as possible. That includes eating dinner outside as much as possible. Our favorite is cooking some yummy meat on the grill, and pairing it with a yummy side dish, some fresh or grilled veggies, watermelon, and of course a yummy pasta salad like this!
This pasta salad is one of my favorites, and that’s saying a lot, because we have a lot of pasta salad recipes. This pasta salad is coated in a flavorful, creamy dressing, and paired with bacon, and peas to give it a great texture and flavor in every bite.
It’s so simple to make, and so delicious! It’s a great recipe because you can customize the mix-ins however you want, if you don’t like peas, add corn instead. Want tomatoes, throw them in too? Want a little more protein, add in some cooked chicken.
How to make Creamy Pasta Salad?
Start by boiling a large pot of water and cooking the noodles until they are cooked al dente. Drain the water out of the noodles with a colander and rinse the noodles with cold water to stop them from cooking. Dry off the pasta noodles as much as you can.
While the pasta is cooking make sure the peas are thawed, and cook the bacon, and crumble it up.
Add the noodles, bacon, peas, and parmesan cheese to a large bowl, and stir them together.
In another bowl whisk together all the ingredients for the creamy dressing in a small bowl, mayo, olive oil, vinegar, sugar, salt, garlic powder, onion powder, and black pepper.
Pour the sauce over the salad ingredients and stir everything together to coat them evenly. Place it in the fridge for about an hour or serve immediately.
Tips for making this Creamy Bacon Pasta Salad:
- This pasta salad is a great make ahead recipe. Add everything together, except for the bacon and half the dressing, cover with plastic wrap and store in the fridge. When you’re ready to serve the dish, toss in the crumbled bacon pieces, and the remaining dressing and serve.
- I like to use medium sized pasta for this salad, I love medium shells, rotini, and farfalle the most.
- Don’t overcook your pasta noodles. You want it cooked al dente so it’s not too soggy, especially as it sits in the dressing.
- Add in any additional veggies or mix-ins that you think would be delicious, chopped up carrots, bell pepper, corn. Even making it more hearty with some grilled chicken pieces, or cubed ham would be delicious too. Also some cubed cheddar cheese would be yummy.
This creamy pasta salad is full of peas, bacon, and pasta, all coated in a creamy and flavorful dressing. It’s the perfect side dish for any dinner, and perfect for a potluck!
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Creamy Pasta Salad
Ingredients
- 12 oz small pasta noodles
- 2 cup frozen peas (thawed)
- 12 oz thick cut bacon (cooked and chopped)
- 1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
For the Creamy Dressing:
- 3/4 cup mayonnaise
- 2 TBS olive oil
- 1 TBS apple cider vinegar
- 1 tsp granulated sugar (to taste)
- 1 tsp salt (to taste)
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder (to taste)
- 1/2 tsp onion powder (to taste)
- 1/4 tsp black pepper (to taste)
Equipment
- Large Mixing Bowl
Instructions
- Cook the pasta noodles in a large pot of water according to their package directions, until cooked al dente. Drain the water out, and rinse the noodles in cold water.
- While the pasta is cooking, make sure the peas are thawed, bacon is cooked and crumbled, and parmesan is grated. Set aside.
- In a small bowl, add the mayonnaise, olive oil, vinegar, sugar, salt, garlic powder, onion powder, and black pepper. Whisk them together till combined.
- Add the pasta, peas, bacon, and parmesan to a large bowl. Pour the dressing over the top. Stir it all together till everything is coated evenly in the dressing.
- Cover the pasta bowl with a lid or plastic wrap and place it in the fridge to chill for 1 to 2 hours, or serve immediately.
Traci says
I pinned this recipe almost a year ago, and finally made it today! Sooooo delicious. I will be making this many more times in the future 😃 Thanks for the great recipe!
Aimee says
I love hearing that! So glad it’s a new favorite
Shawn says
My son has an egg allergy so I try not to use mayo. What would you suggest to use as a substitute…?
Aimee says
You could use greek yogurt, I’d probably add a little extra salt and pepper, for more flavor
MLG says
Best alternative premade dressing options?
Aimee says
It’ll be a totally different taste, so just pick whichever dressing you like. Ranch is fine 🙂
Shirli Goodman says
Great recipe, I took this to a party and the bowl was empty when I went back for seconds. I made it again for dinner the next day because it was so delish. Will be making this again, thinking of adding shrimp next time.
Ellen says
It is so wonderful to hear this. We love to know when the recipe is something that is enjoyed so much. Shrimp addition sounds great.
Grace says
Quick question will canned peas work or should I use frozen??
Aimee says
I don’t love the texture of canned peas, but if you like it, they should work fine. Drain, and pat dry first.
Shelly says
What kind of Mayo do you use?
Aimee says
I just grab whatever, store brand, Best Foods, Hellmans, whatever I can find
Inda says
i made this 4 times so far. its super deicious! thank you for the recipe ❤️
Margie H. says
This salad is super delicious and super simple! I added sundried tomatoes and a little extra apple cider vinegar to mine and it was a bit hit at the party I brought it to 🙂
Elizabeth says
I’ve now made this twice, and it was fantastic and got rave reviews each time. I added thawed frozen peas, as well as thawed frozen corn. Yummy! But what’s so cool about this recipe is that the veggie options are open! Add anything you like for extra flavor & color!
I tend to double recipes and did so with this one. With pasta/potato based salads, I think the trick is to always bump up the dressing quantities (i.e. with double recipe, I make a triple amount of dressing). The reason for this is that starchy foods like pasta, potatoes, rice, etc. soak up sauces big time, especially if made ahead or if eaten as leftovers. Reserve the extra dressing to add later on, and it really perks the salad up. Be sure to also check your seasonings, as these often get a bit lost in your dishes’ flavor with time.
Thanks so much for a simple, quick pasta salad recipe that can be made from ingredients that you probably already have on hand!
Pam says
What would you serve for light side dish
Aimee says
A side salad, fresh or roasted vegetables, or fruit
Mary says
Please stop all the ads!!!! Difficult to read and follow recipe.
Aimee says
Sorry you feel that way Mary, we make money by providing free recipes, and try and keep a balance of what is acceptable in our helpful tips for our readers. We do offer a jump to recipe button at the top so you can skip straight down to the recipe card without the ads.
Shelle says
I am so happy to have found this recipe. I have tried making pasta salad in the past and have always failed. I was hesitant to try again but this was fantastic! All I had was corn (no peas) but it is soooo good. Thank you for a great recipe.
Kate says
Great make ahead salad for a 90 degree plus day. I used mini wagon wheel pasta as that is what I had in the pantry. I also added chopped celery, red bell pepper and walla walla sweet onion to add more veggies. I also chilled the plates! Will definitely make this salad again! Thank you!
Aimee says
Sounds perfect. Glad you enjoyed it!
Make a meal says
Great recipe ,thanks! We camp with picky eaters and everyone enjoys this salad just as the recipe was given!
Aimee says
Yay, so glad to hear that!
Kelly says
I followed exactly & it was a huge hit! Made several times now.
Thanks so much!
Aimee says
Glad to hear that!
Amanda LePage says
I doubled the dressing and added rotisserie chicken…
Helen Bagley says
Going to make this today, do you use hellmans mayo or miracle whip?
Aimee says
I use mayonnaise. Any brand will work.
Teresa says
Way way to many ads plse stop
Maddy C. says
I definitely think everyone has different taste preferences, this one didn’t quite get there for me. I ended up making the sauce recipe twice. I doubled the sauce because I used 16oz of pasta. Did a whole package of bacon (I can’t remember how much this recipe called for) The second time I made the sauce I omitted the mayo (mostly because I didn’t have any more, I did half and half with Greek yogurt the first time) and only did Greek yogurt. I also left out the apple cider vinegar. I’m starting to think that mine is extra strong… I exchanged the peas for broccoli. I grated 1 large garlic and used a food processor to chop up about (probably less) a 1/4 cup of onion. I cooked my bacon until completely brown, it was perfect and won’t get soggy (a happy accident since I forgot about it in the oven). I also added dill. Turned out great!
Sally says
Delicious! My family really enjoyed this for dinner tonight. Definitely keeping this one on file.
Joyce Finney Riley says
I used fresh garlic and grated onion, just my personal preference, and threw in a couple of chopped basil leaves because I have an overabundance right now! It tastes delish!
Catherine says
This was a huge hit. I added the bacon bits at the last minute. In future, I’ll double the dressing so that I can make it as creamy as I’d like. The amount given didn’t quite make it. I had to add extra mayonnaise at the end.
Aimee says
Great tip, if you want it extra creamy and saucy 🙂
Brittany says
What is the approximate single serving size?
Aimee says
About 3/4-1 cup
Jan says
What a find! Discoverd this on Pinterest and loved all the positive reviews and some of the tweeks too!
I stuck to the recipe but added sweet red peppers.
Thank you
Donna says
That’s a great idea! Thank you so much for your reply. I sincerely appreciate it when an author actually reads and responds to comments. You are one of a very small group. All the best.
Donna D says
I’m looking forward to making this salad for 2 BBQs I’m attending. Is there a store bought dressing that would be similar in taste to the dressing here? I just want to get an idea of what it will taste like as I’ve never made a dressing other than oil and vinegar. (I’m Italian 🤭) Thank you.
Aimee says
I’m not sure what dressing it is similar to in the store, its mostly a slightly tangy, slightly sweet mayonnaise. You could cut the dressing amount in half and make that before the whole dish to make sure you like it. I always recommend adding your own seasonings to taste 🙂