best sauces for pasta salad?

Question

I hate coleslaw... with a passion!!! I have quite a plain taste, can anyone recommend dressings for pasta or potato salad that make a change to the usual mayonnaise and salad cream?

Answer 1

Warm walnut oil, white wine vinegar and a little honey. Also add some grainy mustard if you like it.

Answer 2

Sauce Pairing

When pairing pasta with a sauce, remember that:
Thin, delicate pastas, like angel hair or thin spaghetti, are better served with light, thin sauces.
Thicker pasta shapes, like fettuccine, work well with heavier sauces.
Pasta shapes with holes or ridges, like mostaccioli or radiatore, are perfect for chunkier sauces.

No-Mayo Vegan Potato Salad
INGREDIENTS:
3 large baking potatoes or 7-8 small potatoes, lightly boiled and sliced into 2-inch chunks
1/2 red onion, diced
2 ribs celery, diced
2 cups frozen green peas, thawed
4 green onions, diced
2 leaves kale, shredded (optional)
3 tablespoons olive oil
3/4 teaspoon sea salt, or to taste
3/4 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper, or to taste
PREPARATION:
Be careful not to over-boil the potatoes. They shouldn't be too soft so that they fall apart. Allow to cool before chopping into pieces.
Gently toss all ingredients together in a large bowl. Add more salt and pepper, to taste.

Answer 3

You could always take that basic mayonnaise dressing and just add a lil something else to mix it up. like paprika and cumin is a good combo. curry is good for pasta salads. you could try adding some different chuttneys to. (sorry my spellings not so great and i hate spell check) Mango Chuttney is a good one for potato salad. just try addin new and different things your basic recipe. you never know what you might come up with.
\m/ >_< \m/

to the one above i agree pesto is a good choice and easy to make..

Answer 4

I like pesto for a pasta or potato salad. It's super simple but better than the usual creamy stuff.

Answer 5

Pampered Chef's Jerk Chicken Salad is excellent!

1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 Tbsp. Jerk Seasoning (or more, to taste)
1 pound chicken
1 medium pineapple (I use canned pineapple)
1 red bell pepper
3 green onions (white and light green parts only)
1 can black beans, drained (15 ounces)
1 pound rotini pasta
6 slices of bacon, crumbled

Dressing:
2 limes
1/3 cup Miracle Whip
2 Tbsp. pineapple preserves

* Mix together oil and Jerk seasoning. Add chicken and coat. Set aside.
*Cook chicken and pineapple. (I usually grill them, but you can cook them stovetop.)
*Cook rotini noodles, set aside
*Thinly slice pepper and onion. Set aside.
*Drain and rinse beans. Set aside.
*Make dressing: zest one lime AND juice the 2 limes into a large bowl. Add Miracle Whip and pineapple preserves to the bowl and mix well.
* Add all the ingredients to the large bowl and mix. Wait to add the bacon until you serve, as it gets funky.

This is an excellent alternative to regular pasta
salad!

Answer 6

when i make salads I use a little garlic flavored red wine vinegar, a little juice from a jar of green olives, and a little juice from a jar of pepperoncini, and mayo and mustard of course. Good bacom bits and crubled blue cheese goes really good with a potatoe salad and always use red potatoes.

Answer 7

For pasta salad I use ZESTY ITALIAN salad dressing......

Answer 8

mustard, mixed with balsamic viniger and oil....i havent tried it...
If you are REALLY plain-jane, then use Ranch or classic ceasar dressing

Answer 9

oil blue chesese dressing

Answer 10

Try tomato and chilli