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Bacon, lettuce, and tomato are a few of the delicious ingredients in this easy BLT pasta salad. It’s almost no-cook and comes together in minutes. You get all of the creamy, tomato, crunchy bacon flavors as the BLT sandwich, but in pasta salad form. Make this delicious side dish for summer BBQs, potlucks, or picnics!
What’s In BLT Pasta Salad?
If you’ve never experienced the deliciousness of the classic BLT sandwich, let’s break it down! BLT stand for “bacon lettuce and tomato.” The summer sandwich features toasted bread surrounding crispy bacon, fresh lettuce and juicy tomatoes all slathered with creamy mayo.
This BLT pasta salad recipe has everything in a classic BLT! And everything you want in a summer pasta salad side dish. It features the best summer produce, it’s quick to bring together, and it has every texture: juicy tomatoes, crisp lettuce, and crunchy bacon.
The only changes from sandwich to pasta salad are crunchy red onion to round out the flavor and a few fresh herbs and lemon juice in the dressing to brighten it up. I promise everyone at the potluck will be asking you for this recipe!
Need another pasta salad? Try Mexican street corn pasta salad or roasted vegetable pasta salad next.
How to Make BLT Pasta Salad
Here are the quick steps with photos to make this BLT pasta salad! Skip to the recipe card for the exact instructions and measurements.
- Cook bacon: Bake the bacon at 425 for about 20 minutes, until it’s nice and crispy. You could also make it in the air fryer.
- Make dressing: mix all of the dressing ingredients in a mixing bowl.
- Mix the pasta salad: Chop the rest of the ingredients and mix with al dente pasta and the chopped bacon. Toss with the dressing.
- Serve: garnish with more bacon bits, fresh chives, and dill.
What Kind of Pasta To Use
The best pasta for pasta salad is a short and twisty one with lots of nooks and crannies to catch all the creamy dressing. Rotini and fusilli are classic pastas for pasta salad. But you can also use small shells, farfalle (bowtie), or gemelli.
Quality chickpea gemelli held up well when I tested it! I love to use chickpea pasta because it’s high in fiber and naturally gluten free.
I also love the extra twisty fuilli corti bucati I used in this Mexican street corn pasta salad.
Storing Leftovers
This BLT pasta salad is best served the same day, and even benefits from chilling in the fridge for 20-30 minutes. You can make this the same day and have it ready in the fridge for when guests comes.
You can store leftover pasta salad in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. The pasta starts to absorb the moisture of the dressing and will eventually dry out some. By day three, make extra dressing and serve it with the pasta salad for best results.
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BLT Pasta Salad Recipe
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Ingredients
Pasta Salad
- 10 slices bacon
- 1 lb short cut pasta such as rotini, fusilli, or bowtie I used chickpea gemelli
- 2 cups cherry tomatoes halved
- 3 cups shredded romaine lettuce or baby spinach
- 1 medium red onion finely chopped
Dressing
- 1 cup plain Greek yogurt or mayonnaise
- 1/3 cup sour cream
- 2 Tablespoons buttermilk or regular milk
- 1 Tablespoon lemon juice (about 1/2 a lemon)
- 1 Tablespoon fresh chopped dill
- 2 Tablespoons fresh chopped chives
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- Salt and fresh cracked black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425°F and line a baking sheet with foil. Place a wire rack on top (optional) and lay the bacon flat. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until crispy. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate to drain and cool. Chop cooked bacon into bite-sized pieces.
- While it's cooking, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook according to package instructions until al dente. Drain and rinse under cold water to stop the cooking process and cool the pasta.
- While the pasta and bacon are cooking, halve the cherry tomatoes, chop the lettuce and finely chop the red onion. Mix the dressing ingredients together in a medium bowl.
- Add the pasta, bacon, lettuce, tomato, and red onion to a serving bowl. I like to reserve some of each to garnish at the end. Drizzle 3/4 of the dressing on top and toss to coat. Before serving, garnish with any remaining bacon, lettuce, and tomato. Drizzle with the remaining dressing, top with fresh dill and chives, serve and enjoy!
Equipment
- Sheet Pan for cooking bacon
- Large Mixing Bowl
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
