Epic Pasta Salad Starts With The Right Shapes

It wouldn't be a barbecue or potluck dinner without a big old bowl of pasta salad. Whether you're on team vinaigrette or a classic mayonnaise fan, there's a pasta salad recipe for everyone. In fact almost any sauce will do, including pesto, like in our grilled corn pesto macaroni salad, or try spicy peanut or even creamy miso (which can do a lot more than make soup). Don't let the shape of the pasta itself be an afterthought, however. Different styles of pasta work better for salads depending on the consistency of the dressing and what other ingredients are mixed in. Try to stick with short-noodle, twisted pastas for salads that have thinner, vinaigrette dressings and small, bite-sized shapes for salads with thicker, creamy dressings.

Choosing a pasta shape can be a bit of a personal choice. Some people are passionate about penne, for example, while others wouldn't be caught dead boiling a batch of bowtie. Thankfully, there are plenty of choices in each category of pasta salad-worthy shapes. Just aim for something that will grip onto the dressing that is also easy to spear and eat with a fork.

The bottom line when it comes to pasta salad shapes is how well the starchy stuff holds onto the sauce. Short-noodle shapes like rotini, gemelli, fusilli, cavatappi, farfalle (bowtie), penne, and casarecce are the best all-purpose shapes that will work in almost any pasta salad, whether you're working with a recipe or winging it with whatever's in the fridge. They really shine, however, with vinaigrette dressings because they have creases and crevices that can hold onto the dressing, herbs, and chopped ingredients.

Salads with mayonnaise-based dressings, on the other hand, are better with smaller shapes like cavatelli, elbows, shells, radiatori, and orecchiette. It's okay to choose shapes with smoother textures here because the dressing will stick to the pasta regardless. Smaller shapes are also a little more appealing with a heavier dressing.

If you're feeling a little overwhelmed with choices, however, don't stress too much about pasta shapes. Most recipes, like our Southwestern pasta salad, list a suitable variety in the ingredients so there's no guesswork. If you can't find a particular shape at the grocery store, however, or you want to try something a little different, just choose something similar. You can also go your own way and experiment with tortellini, orzo, or even bucatini, which we think is underrated in pasta salad. Just make sure the sauce stays put, and remember that no matter what shape you choose, all pasta is salad-worthy.