To Dread Summer Pasta Salads?

[EggInANest]

IMO pasta 'salad' is revolting.

Pasta was surely not made to be eaten cold? It is stodgy, claggy, and invariably mixed up with mayo and sweetcorn to make it even more claggy and gunky and horrid.

I keep seeing it recommended for buffets and BBQs. Alongside Coleslaw and Potato salad, both of which are also creamy beige, mayo drenched and one very carby. Fine if you like these salads (I do like good coleslaw and good potato salad) but not all three together, surely? We need contrast and variety!

Does summer have to come with a side of pasta salad?

I probably don't belong here, I like most types of beige food and I dislike cold pasta with pesto, vinegrette or any oil based dressing.....but that's OK - it leaves more for the food snobs! 😄

I had one (admittedly a warm one) tonight with a dressing of lime juice, olive oil, Dijon mustard and white wine vinegar, with shallot, walkout, rocket, apple and spinach plus the pasta and chicken. Was lovely.

Warm is better. Lots of oil based pasta salads would be nicer if you left out the pasta.

Yeah, but to be fair, it seems the Italians agree with me. 🛵 ⬅️ Vespa

Sweet corn does not belong in pasta salad.

mayonnaise rarely belongs in pasta salad.

a nice vinaigrette, a peanut sauce, or a spicy chili sauce all make delicious cold pasta dishes.

Equalled only by cold rice salad.

There is someone on FB that does piss take recipes for Mid Western American "salads" and they are some of weirdest shite I have ever seen. Why any of them are called a salad is beyond me.

I'll take a Greek salad over a rice or pasta salad anyday.

I think I'm just put off as my mil would insist she was the best cook ever, and every single time she would whip up her famous pasta and rice salad. Both exactly the same, except one was pasta and one was rice. And made with curried mayonnaise.

Put me off for life I tell ya.

She's an ex mil, so I thank every star above me for never having to face the curried abominations ever again.

And this tip isn't from my mil.... But add a bit of condensed milk to your potato salad.

I don’t like cold pasta or rice in most forms BUT I do like Orzo Greek salad

Sounds gross 🙈

Oh god no.

And here I was thinking it was a tinned rice salad 🤣

Actually, I am not sure which would be worse.

Anything mixed with shop bought mayonnaise is inedible imo 🤮

yanbu!

american jello salads and all that malarkey is a whole other level of 'what the holy fuck'.

I hear what you're saying but when I make pasta and intend to save it cold I always add pasta water to it so it doesn't go dry or claggy. It's much more palatable. I love cold pasta salad.

I also like to make cold pasta pesto salad. I usually like to add some olives, cherry tomatoes and cucumber and, if I’m bothered, small chunks of mozarella and freshly grated Parmesan.

Native German here. My sympathies.

This sounds heavenly 🙂

That’s odd. Some of my Italian colleagues love a bit of cold pasta salad during the summer. Perhaps their tastebuds have changed 🤔 DP prefers warm pasta salad, at room temp, but I prefer mine to be cold.

Potato salad with capers added is lovely too.

That’s how I make my potato salad as well. I’m often making a huge portion for potlucks as it’s usually highly requested. Pasta salad for me is just a quick and easy lunchbox option.

I have just googled Ambrosia salad as I’d never heard of it. There are simply no words.

I'm with you OP. Revolting.

A good potato salad on the other hand, is a thing of beauty.

I can't believe how many of you haven't had pasta with tuna, sweetcorn and mayo Your missing out. I know this is mumsnet and half of you ate half a lettuce leaf for your tea that you grew in your garden but come on

I hate pasta salad and jello salad Blergh!
I'll eat a proper salad with veg and lettuce, but anything else called salad is awful.

But tuna mayo is MUCH better on brown toast, white crusty bread, even a tortilla chip, than on pasta. And pasta is nicer with about 4000 things than tuna mayo.

It' not the individual things, it's the combination.