Vegan Pasta Salad with Roasted Vegetables - This is a quick and easy vegan pasta salad where the cooked pasta is loaded with roasted veggies along with a simple vinaigrette. This is a cold pasta salad.
This roasted vegetable vegan pasta salad is not only quick but also healthy with loads of nutritious veggies. Here I have added zucchini and summer squash. Also, roasted onion & garlic add extra flavor to this vegan pasta salad. This is a cold pasta salad for summers that can be stored in the refrigerator and great for meal prep as well.
You can also add some other veggies like eggplants, tomatoes, broccoli, cauliflower, some baked greens also for that crunch in your salad. For protein-punch add baked tofu or crispy tofu or chickpeas.
Read my Mediterranean Chickpea Salad & Roasted vegetable Quinoa Salad with Tahini Dressing.
Vegan pasta salad
Ingredients
Pasta of your choice - Best are fusilli, penne, rotini, farfalle
Vegetables - Zucchini, Summer Squash, Red Onions. Add any vegetables of your choice.
Cooking Pasta - Pasta + water + salt
For roasted vegetables - Vegetables of choice, olive oil, garlic powder, onion powder, black pepper, salt
For Dressing - Olive oil, red wine vinegar, maple syrup, Dijon mustard, dried herb mix (oregano, basils), salt, pepper.
Instructions to make vegan pasta salad with roasted vegetables -
Cook the pasta al dente
In a large pot put 4 quartz of water and 1 tsp salt. Bring it to a boil. Now add the pasta and cook till it's just cooked tender (al dente). After cooling down, the pasta becomes a little chewy. So don't undercook the pasta or overcook. Just be careful with instructions of time it needs to be cooked.
Once cooked take out the pasta and strain the pasta using a large colander. Pass it through normal water to stop cooking and over-cooking of the pasta even after removed.
Roasted Vegetables
Here you can use your oven or the air fryer for getting the roasted vegetables. Add any vegetables of choice. I have taken zucchini, squash, onions, etc.
Preheat the oven at 400 F (200C). Add diced vegetables to a mixing bowl. Add 1 tsp olive oil, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper. Mix them gently with the vegetables. Now roast for 10 - 12 minutes flipping in the midways.
Prepare salad dressing
In a small mixing jar, add the ingredients mentioned above in the dressing ingredients category. Mix it well. The dressing is ready.
Final Step - Mix them all
Transfer the pasta to a large mixing bowl. Add all roasted vegetables and the dressing prepared. Mix them all gently.
Vegan Pasta salad with roasted vegetables is ready. Serve them warm or refrigerate to serve cold. Save some dressings if making them as a cold salad. Add that just before serving the salad.
Can you make ahead this vegan pasta salad?
Yes. You can make this salad ahead of time and refrigerate it for 3 - 5 days. That's how it makes a quick dinner idea for those busy weekdays. But best is to make it the day or a day before max. If you want some freshness in the salad, you can make fresh roasted veggies and mix them into the cold pasta and add simple dressing. It will give a taste of fresh pasta salad only.
What is the best type pasta for pasta salad?
For the best pasta salad, use dried pasta instead of fresh pasta. Also, short pasta with nooks and crannies helps to hold up the dressings and herbs more. Some of the best pasta are fusilli, rotini, penne, farfalle. However, linguine and spaghetti are not for such salads.
Here, I have taken both penne & fusilli pasta for this cold pasta salad with roasted vegetables.
When to add dressing to the salad?
If the pasta gets cooled completely, it may not absorb the flavor of the dressing or the seasonings. Add half of the seasonings when it's still warm. And rest half just before serving the salad. This is when we are serving this as a cold pasta salad. Otherwise, add the dressing all together when it's warm and serve immediately.
In fact, while boiling pasta, add a little more salt so that the pasta will absorb it and will not taste totally bland.
Pasta Salad with Roasted Vegetables
Vegan Pasta Salad With Roasted Vegetables
Equipment
- Dutch oven/ pot
Ingredients
- 6 cup dried pasta
- 1 tbsp salt
Roasted Vegetables
- 1 zucchini
- 1 summer squash (yellow zucchini)
- 1 medium onion
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1/2 tsp salt (or to taste)
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tbsp mixed dried herb
Salad dressing
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 1/4 cup red wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard
- 2 tsp maple syrup
- 1/2 tsp oregano (dried)
- 1/2 tsp basil leaves (dried)
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
Instructions
- In a pot or Dutch oven boil water adding salt to it.
- Add pasta and boil till its cooked tender.
- Overcook slightly (not mushy) as it will harden a bit when cooled.
- When cooked, strain out from water and run it under normal water.
- Drizzle a tbsp olive oil and mix well so that it won't start sticking.
Make Roasted Vegetables
- Preheat oven at 400 F (200C).
- Chop zucchini and summer squash into bite sized pieces.
- Slice onions and chop other vegetables (if any) you are adding to the pasta salad.
- Season with salt, pepper, garlic powder and drizzle olive oil on it.
- Now bake for 10 minutes flipping in between.
- Once vegetables are roasted, add it to the bowl of pasta.
- Give it a nice stir.
Prepare the salad dressing
- In a mixing jar, add olive oil and other ingredients mentioned above in ingredients list under dressings.
- Mix it well. Dressing is ready for further use.
Mixing roasted vegetables & pasta
- In a large mixing bowl, add pasta, roasted vegetables.
- Now drizzle the prepared salad dressing.
- Mix them all gently.
Notes
- Mix the veggies to the pasta when it's still warm.
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