Pasta Salad
Search for “pasta salad” on the internet, and you’ll see a rainbow of ’sta-lads out there. To Anna Billingskog, our Italian-American food stylist with very strong feelings on Italian-American food, pasta salad means “corkscrew pasta, cubed deli meat butts, and a red wine vinaigrette.” To Trevor, my partner, it requires mayo and diced hard-boiled eggs. To me, it means all of my favorite things in one bowl: buttery olives, salty meat ribbons, bouncy bocconcini, and leafy parsley.
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup slivered red onion
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice, plus more as needed
- 2 tablespoons white or red vinegar, plus more as needed
- 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 pinch dried oregano
- 1 pinch crushed red pepper flakes, plus more as needed
- 1 teaspoon flaky salt, plus more as needed
- 2 cups cooked (from ¼ pound dried) fusilli pasta, warm or at room temperature
- 1 cup prepped cured meat (such as half a 5.5-ounce salami, cut into ¼-inch sticks, or 2 ounces prosciutto, torn)
- 1 cup olives in brine, such as castelvetrano or kalamata (or a mix), pitted and torn
- 2 cups greens, such as picked parsley, shredded lettuce, and/or arugula
Directions
- Combine the red onion with the lemon juice and vinegar in a small bowl. Leave to lightly pickle for about 5 minutes. Meanwhile, combine the pasta, meat, and olives in a large serving bowl. Add the remaining dressing ingredients to the quickled onions, and stir to emulsify. Pour the dressing over the pasta salad and fold in the herbs, lettuce and/or arugula. Adjust seasonings to taste with flaky salt, chili flakes, and lemon/vinegar.
