Make this easy Shrimp Pasta Salad for your next picnic or potluck! It’s made with tiny pink shrimp, pasta, a handful of veggies, and a simple lemon vinaigrette. Ready in 20 minutes.
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Here’s a simple and easy shrimp pasta salad! Fresh basil, red bell peppers, red onions and a lemon and olive oil dressing with just a sprinkling of red chili flakes pair so well with this shrimp pasta. You can assemble the whole salad in the time it takes to heat the pasta water and cook the pasta.
Any small, boiled, peeled shrimp will do. When available, the best shrimp for this salad are the small Maine “pink shrimp” (so-called because they are pink even when raw). Frozen cooked shrimp work well in this recipe because you only need to place them in cold water to thaw for a few minutes, and the salad is served chilled.
A great potluck dish!
We’ve made this salad several times, most recently for a potluck where it was a huge hit. If you’re bringing it to an outdoor gathering, keep it chilled.
Tips for making this Shrimp Pasta Salad
- You can prepare this pasta salad a few hours before serving. Keep chilled in the fridge until ready to serve.
- This Shrimp Pasta Salad is best eaten the day it is made.
- The noodles will absorb the dressing the longer it sits. If your salad seems a bit dry when you serve it, simply add a tablespoon or two more olive oil and lemon juice.
- You can use canned shrimp if you have some, but be sure to rinse and drain the shrimp very well to avoid a watery salad.
- This recipe can easily be doubled. Simply double all the ingredients, including the salad dressing.
More great pasta salads to try!
- Greek pasta salad
- Pasta salad with shrimp, bacon and avocado
- Pasta and Bean Picnic Salad
- Pasta salad with corn, bacon and buttermilk ranch dressing
- Pasta salad with smoked salmon
Shrimp Pasta Salad
Prepare the ingredients while you heat the pasta water and cook the pasta.
You can easily double the amount of pasta if you want to stretch the salad even longer.
The salad tastes best on the day it is prepared, otherwise the basil will be a bit wilted and the pasta a bit sticky.
ingredients
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1/2 lb Necktie (farfalle) or orecchiette pasta or other short pasta
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Salt
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2 lb small frozen, already cooked and peeled shrimp (if available, Pink Shrimp aka Maine Shrimp)
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1 rolled Red pepper
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1 rolled Red onion
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1 chopped clove garlic
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1 Cup chopped basil leaves (loosely packed)
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1/3 Cup Extra virgin olive oil
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1 teaspoon Lemon peel
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1/4 Cup lemon juice
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1 teaspoon red chilli flakes
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Black pepper, taste
method
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Defrost shrimp:
Thaw frozen shrimp by placing them in a bowl of cold water. Keep refrigerated until needed.
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Cook pasta:
Cook the pasta in well-salted water (1 tablespoon salt to 2 liters of water) until al dente, slightly firmer than you would normally eat. (The noodles will absorb some of the salad dressing and become even softer after cooking.)
Rinse the noodles in cold water to stop cooking. Drain well and place in a large bowl.
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Assemble the salad:
Rinse the shrimp and drain well. Pour into the bowl with the noodles and mix. Add the remaining ingredients and mix gently until well combined.
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Cool and serve:
Chill the salad for at least an hour before serving. Serve chilled.
| nutritional information (per serving) | |
|---|---|
| 545 | calories |
| 22g | Fat |
| 28g | carbohydrates |
| 56g | protein |
