Sicilian Pasta Salad with Tomatoes, Olives & Fresh Herbs
A simple but delicious pasta salad that everyone can eat and everyone will love. Full of juicy ripe tomatoes and fresh herbs, it’s both vegan and gluten-free.
Do you have a go-to summer pasta dish? This Sicilian pasta salad with tomatoes, olives and fresh herbs is mine. I learnt the basic recipe from my Sicilian sister-in-law many years ago and as the tomato season draws nigh, I wait in eager anticipation. Andiamo!
Sicilian Pasta Salad
It’s a very simple recipe, so the quality of the ingredients is crucial. Ripe, juicy flavoursome tomatoes are a must as is a good flavoursome cold pressed olive oil.
When I was first shown how to make this Sicilian pasta salad, it only had eight ingredients: olive oil, tomatoes, olives, garlic, basil, salt, pepper and pasta. Of course, it’s very adaptable and I change it a little each time I make it. I tend to use whatever fresh herbs I have to hand, although basil is my favourite. I also add a dash of chilli sauce.
Just ensure the tomatoes marinade for at least an hour before adding the pasta and it will never cease to delight. Buon appetito, but beware the post-prandial abbiocco which follows if you overindulge.
And if you’re looking for something delicious to serve it with, try this spinach sesame salad from PBF. It’s not at all Italian, but it goes remarkable well.
For an equally delicious, but cooked pasta dish, try my vegan spaghetti alla puttanesca. It’s remarkably similar in both ingredients and flavour.
Vegan Summer Pot Luck
This Sicilian pasta salad is a great dish for summer as the only cooking required is the pasta. It can also be made well in advance and is just as delicious the next day. I tend to make double the quantity I need, just so we have enough for the morrow.
It makes a good pot-luck dish for this very reason. As the dish is vegan and can easily be gluten-free too, everyone can tuck in with complete freedom. Serve it warm as soon as the pasta is added or at room temperature, but don’t eat it straight from the fridge. I find the flavour and texture is spoiled when cold. All we need now is for some Italian style sunshine before summer’s over. Magari!
Gluten Free Pasta
I used brown rice fusilli pasta this time, just to see how a gluten-free pasta would stack up. I was actually quite impressed. Molto delizioso. I’m lucky enough not to be gluten intolerant, but it’s good to know there are an increasing amount of good quality gluten-free ingredients out there.
The pasta came from Suma with my latest order along with the olive oil, olives, capers and black pepper. In the end I decided not to use the capers.
Other Italian Recipes You Might Like
- Caprese salad bowl
- Courgette strata
- Homemade pizza
- Homemade ravioli (vegan)
- Sausage traybake (vegan)
- Vegetable frittata
Keep in Touch
Thanks for visiting Tin and Thyme. If you make this Sicilian pasta salad, I’d love to hear about it in the comments below. And do please rate the recipe. Have you any top tips? Do share photos on social media too and use the hashtag #tinandthyme, so I can spot them.
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If you’d like more pasta recipes, follow the link and you’ll find I have quite a lot of them. All delicious, of course.
Choclette x
Sicilian Pasta Salad. PIN IT.
Sicilian Pasta Salad – Get the Recipe
Sicilian Pasta Salad with Tomatoes, Olives & Fresh Herbs
Ingredients
- 250 g tomatoes ripe, fragrant & juicy – chopped
- 20 black olives pitted & quartered
- 4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil use the best quality you can get
- 2 clove garlic finely chopped
- 1 handful basil or other herbs – chopped (I used marjoram, thyme & chives)
- good grinding of black pepper
- 1 pinch sea salt
- ½ tsp chilli sauce optional
- 320 g dried fusilli pasta I used organic brown rice fusilli
Instructions
- Place all the ingredients, except the pasta, into a large bowl. Give it a good stir and leave to marinate for an hour.
- Cook the pasta as per pack instructions. Drain it and mix into the other ingredients whilst the pasta is still hot.
- Serve warm or at room temperature.
Notes
Nutrition Estimate
Sharing
This Sicilian pasta salad with tomatoes, olives and herbs is my tenth recipe for the Suma Blogger’s Network.
The salad also goes to Jac at Tinned Tomatoes for Meat Free Mondays.
Cook Once Eat Twice at Searching for Spice gets a share as well.
As does #CookBlogShare which is hosted by Recipes Made Easy this week.
Lastly I’m sending this Sicilian pasta salad to Le Coin de Mel for #FreeFromFridays as it’s pretty much everything free.
Some of the ingredients for this recipe were provided by Suma. I was not expected to write a positive review and all opinions are, as always, my own. Thanks to my readers for supporting the brands and organisations that help to keep Tin and Thyme blithe and blogging.
Hello again. This might sound like an idiotic question but is the 320g fusilli pasta weight dried or cooked?
Not an idiotic question at all. It’s 320g dried pasta. I shall go and make my recipe clearer right now.
The result is an absolutely gorgeous, easy and elegant salad – wonderful – thank you.
So pleased you liked it NJ. It’s one of my favourites for summer when tomatoes are at their best.
I absolutely love olives, so this salad is right up my street.
I remember trying olives for the very first time as a child and finding them quite peculiar. I persisted though as I didn’t want to seem like a silly child. Luckily, it didn’t’t take me long to love them too.
Oooh yes please! This looks so lovely and wonderfully easy peasy. I love pasta and I love sicilian flavours so this would be a winner for me. Eb x
Haha, yes this is definitely up your street Eb 😀
Oh an thanks for submitting it to Meat Free Mondays x
Thanks for hosting Jac.
This is my kind of pasta dish Choclette. We often have a cold pasta salad for dinner, even in the winter. My boys love them.
You’ve trained them well 🙂 Not cold though, I hope. Room temperature is the way to go.
Oh yummy! I love the combination of basil, olives and tomatoes and this pasta salad sounds simple but delicious. It would definitely be a great recipe for making a big batch of them eating up over the next few days so thanks for sharing with #CookOnceEatTwice.
Yes, it’s really tasty and lasts well Corina. Now, I just need to find some more delicious tomatoes!
I love uncomplicated straightforward dishes like this! #CookBlogShare
Thanks Monika, it’s a good one and I make it several times every summer.
Sometimes the simplest dishes are the most delicious. This looks utterly wonderful. I shall make it as soon as my few meagre tomatoes ripen. C’mon little guys, sorry for neglecting you!
Good luck with those tomatoes. The smell of ripening tomatoes is a true scent of summer. I’m hoping we’ll be in a position to grow some next year.
Sounds delicious. I think most tomato dishes tend to need serving at room temperature or above. Im definitely going to try this recipe. Thanks for sahring to #CookBlogShare
Thanks Jacqui. It’s a good one. Just make sure you use ripe flavoursome tomatoes. I’m completely with you on room temperature. I remember being served a Greek salad once where the tomatoes were so cold I could barely eat it.
Molto delizioso! Aggiungo anche peperoncino alla mia insalata di pasta! :-p
Well I think I understood that Nico!
Simple can often be so delicious, and I love the flavour combinations in your Sicilian pasta salad. I love the same flavours hot and cold, so would certainly enjoy this dish!
Thanks Kavey – it’s a cherry easy simple summer pleaser.
This looks delicious and would make a great packed lunch for work just as well as it would for lunch or as a BBQ side dish! Yum.
You’re absolutely right. I used to take this into work for lunch in the old days, but WARNING, it does smell quite garlicky 😉
Oh, I wouldn’t care about that! teeheeee 🙂
Well I obviously didn’t either 😀
There is something so satisfying about a simple pasta salad, just right to go with some BBQ veggies or steaks!
Very true and this is the best pasta salad ever 😉
Hey Choclette,
Looks something new to try as Salad with Pasta. Hope, it will yummy 🙂
It’s definitely yummy. Let me know if you make it.
Simple but very delicious and healthy!
Simple and delicious is a winner – especially in the summer.