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Greek Pasta Salad with Feta Cheese

Greek pasta salad with feta cheese featuring penne or rotini tossed with cucumbers, tomatoes, olives, red onion, and a bright Greek-style vinaigrette. Chilling for an hour lets the pasta absorb the dressing for a flavorful, tangy Mediterranean salad with crumbled feta in every bite.
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Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
chilling 1 hour
Total Time 1 hour 30 minutes
Servings: 8 servings
Course: Side Dish
Cuisine: Greek
Calories: 520
Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Pasta salad
  • 1 lb penne or rotini pasta Use dried pasta; rinse cold after cooking to cool and prevent clumping.
  • 2 cup cherry tomatoes Halve for bite-size pieces.
  • 1 large cucumber Dice for even texture.
  • 1 cup Kalamata olives Pit and halve.
  • 0.5 cup red onion Thinly sliced.
  • 8 oz feta cheese Crumbled; reserve some for topping.
  • 0.25 cup olive oil For the vinaigrette.
  • 3 tbsp red wine vinegar Adds tang.
  • 1 tbsp lemon juice Brightens the dressing.
  • 2 clove garlic Minced.
  • 1 tsp dried oregano Greek flavor.
  • 1 salt To taste.
  • 1 pepper To taste.

Method
 

Cook and rinse the pasta
  1. Bring a pot of water to a boil and cook penne or rotini pasta according to package directions. Cook time is about 10 minutes until tender, then drain.
  2. Rinse the cooked pasta with cold water until cool to the touch. This stops cooking and helps prevent sticking.
Make the Greek dressing
  1. Whisk olive oil, red wine vinegar, lemon juice, garlic, dried oregano, salt, and pepper in a bowl until blended. Stop when the dressing looks uniform and no garlic clumps remain.
Assemble and chill
  1. In a large bowl, combine pasta, cherry tomatoes, cucumber, Kalamata olives, red onion, and most of the feta. Toss gently so the vegetables are evenly distributed.
  2. Pour the dressing over the salad and toss gently to coat. Continue tossing just until everything looks glossy with vinaigrette.
  3. Refrigerate the pasta salad for at least 1 hour. Cover it so the flavors meld while the feta softens slightly into the pasta.
  4. Right before serving, top with the remaining feta. Sprinkle over the top so you get visible crumbles in every serving.

Notes

Pro tip: Rinse the pasta with cold water so it cools fast and won’t clump when chilled. Store covered in the refrigerator up to 3 days; the salad can be frozen for 1 month, though cucumber texture may soften after thawing. For a lower-fat option, use reduced-fat feta (still crumble generously for the same tangy bite).