Basil and Olive Pasta Salad With Tomato Dressing

By Hetty Lui McKinnon

Published July 30, 2024

Basil and Olive Pasta Salad With Tomato Dressing
Bryan Gardner for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Greg Lofts.
Total Time
30 minutes
Prep Time
5 minutes
Cook Time
25 minutes
Rating
4(199)
Comments
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Ripe summer tomatoes are transformed into a fragrant, fruity dressing for this pasta salad. Giving the tomatoes a quick salt bath encourages them to release their tangy juices and further intensifies their flavor before they are blended with basil and garlic. While this dish is best with summer tomatoes, this salting technique makes it possible to use out-of-season ones, too. This dressing is thicker than most, so use a robust short pasta with lots of crevices, curves and swirls to hug and carry the sauce. Eat this pasta salad as is, or dress it with a creamy fresh cheese such as mozzarella, burrata or ricotta, or stir through some leafy baby spinach or arugula for freshness.

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Ingredients

Yield:4 servings
  • 1pint cherry or other small tomatoes, halved
  • Salt and pepper
  • 1pound short pasta such as orecchiette, elbows or fusilli
  • 1garlic clove, roughly chopped
  • 1heaping cup basil leaves, plus more for topping
  • 2tablespoons nutritional yeast or grated Parmesan
  • ½heaping cup olives (preferably Castelvetrano), pitted and roughly chopped
  • 2tablespoons capers, rinsed and roughly chopped
  • Extra-virgin olive oil, for drizzling
  • Crushed red pepper, for serving
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)

544 calories; 7 grams fat; 1 gram saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 4 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 102 grams carbohydrates; 8 grams dietary fiber; 13 grams sugars; 20 grams protein; 535 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Place the tomatoes in a medium bowl and add 1 teaspoon salt. Toss gently and allow to marinate for 5 to 10 minutes.

  2. Step 2

    Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook according to package instructions until al dente. Drain and run under cold water until the pasta is cool. Drain again.

  3. Step 3

    Place the marinated tomatoes, garlic, basil and nutritional yeast or Parmesan in a blender or food processor and blend until completely smooth. Taste and season with salt and pepper if the dressing needs it.

  4. Step 4

    Pour the dressing into a large bowl. Add the pasta and fold to evenly coat the pasta. Taste and season well with salt and pepper, keeping in mind the pasta will be topped with olives and capers.

  5. Step 5

    Distribute pasta among bowls. Top each with olives and capers, and drizzle generously with olive oil. To serve, top with more basil and some crushed red pepper.

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Ratings

4 out of 5
199 user ratings
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Comments

Laura

Some suggestions: To prevent the sauce from turning brown, don’t blend the basil. Top the finished pasta with torn leaves or a few dollops of pesto. Don’t rinse the pasta. Remove it from the stove and dress immediately. Unrinsed pasta soaks up the yummy flavors of the sauce.

KW

Made it pretty much as described, using half portions of all ingredients. Sauce ended up a brown/grey slightly mushy thing, and tomato flavor was completely lost in the end product. I'll be sticking to chopped tomatoes and shredded basil (as per usual) in my pasta salad for the future

Ags

Made this as written with red tomatoes and fusilli, except just blended half the basil. Then chopped the remainder and added it to the pasta with the olives and capers. Loved the way the sauce clung to the pasta and the boost of flavor from the olives and capers. Will absolutely make again!

AW

Made many of the changes other commenters suggested. Halved the amt of pasta (it was just 2 of us), increased the garlic and parm, added olive oil to the dressing before blending, didn’t add the basil til after blending and folded it in and added on top with a few dollops of pesto to increase that taste. Also halved the salt over the tomatoes and it all came together. Didn’t need anymore salt, used Greek olives because that's what we had and omitted the capers because we don't like them. Will totally make again and had leftovers for the next night. Got a roasted chicken and a baguette and it made a fab dinner. Will be adding this to our rotation. Was really quick.

Thomas

Blending tomato and basil creates an unfortunately, well, poop-coloured sauce. Besides the lack of aesthetic appeal, the taste is underwhelming with raw tomatoes and garlic. It feels caught between a pasta salad and a red sauce pasta meal, but not really serving well as either.

Marie

I felt like this was only ok. If I were to make it again, I'd generously increase all the seasoning, as I found it rather ho-hum. Also, the recipe makes a huge amount - if it's the main dish, it will serve four starving teenagers. As a side, it serves at least 10 people.

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