Are you looking for a quick side dish that is full of fresh, flavorful ingredients? If you answered yes, then this Low Carb Creamy Pasta Salad recipe is a quick and easy recipe.

It will be delightful for all the summer picnics, potlucks, or even just weeknight dinners.

The Best Low-Carb Summer Side Dish

It’s summertime when meals cookouts and grilling for many of us. If you’re looking for the perfect side dish to go with your grilled proteins this Low Carb Creamy Pasta Salad is just what you need. It is easy and delicious.

Full of fresh, flavorful ingredients, this Low Carb Creamy Pasta Salad recipe is a quick and easy dish for picnics, potlucks, or light and satisfying dinners.

The refreshing summer ingredients like cucumbers, tomatoes, and green onions pair so well with the creamy ranch dressing. Toss in some bacon and cheese and you are set for one tasty side dish.

No matter when you serve this pasta salad, be it for your family’s dinner or for a cookout this summer, it will be a crowd-pleasing meal that makes summer entertaining easy!

This low-carb and gluten-free version of a traditional pasta salad is made using a heat of palm noodles that works out so great in this recipe.

The noodles soak up all the flavors of the veggies and dressing and you’ll never know they aren’t traditional noodles.

Well, okay, if you are a tough critic, you might know, but I promise you they are delicious in this salad and you’ll be surprised at how well they work like pasta.

Here Are The Ingredients You’ll Need To Make This Creamy Pasta Salad

• Palmini Linguini Noodles
• Roma Tomatoes
• English Cucumbers
• Crumbles Bacon
• Cheddar Cheese
• Mayo
• Ranch Dressing Mix
• Salt and Pepper To Taste

Once you have all your ingredients it’s time to do a little cooking with the pasta before you mix up this great side dish.

With the heart of palm noodles, you’ll need to drain them when you remove them from the package and rinse them really well.

This will remove any of the liquid they were stored in. Next, if you prefer the pasta to be softer than it comes, cook the pasta in salted water for about 15 minutes at a rolling boil.

Once the pasta is cooked, drain and rinse the pasta under cold water to stop it from cooking more. You really don’t want to over-cook these noodles and have them mushy.

Make sure you drain any excess water before mixing up your salad. Now, add the cooled pasta to a large bowl, and add in your chopped veggies, mayo, ranch mix, bacon, and cheese.

Mix up the salad thoroughly and cover it tightly. Refrigerate the pasta salad and let it chill. This salad will just get better the longer it sets so let it chill for at least 30 to 60 minutes, but I recommend longer.

PREPARATION AND STORAGE TIPS For This :

This salad is very easy to make ahead of your cookout or dinner the next night.  You can prepare this salad up to 24-48 hours in advance. As we mentioned before, the longer this salad chills the better it will taste.

This means this is a great side dish to make ahead. While it’s great when made in advance, I recommend only keeping creamy pasta salad in an air-tight container so it stays fresh.

This low-carb creamy pasta salad will stay fresh in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. But after that, the texture may start to lose some of its integrity.

You guys know I’m a huge fan of freezer meals, however, this is one recipe that I do not recommend freezing. Sadly the pasta salad will not hold up to the freezer, and it will have a mushy texture when thawed.

Also keep in mind if you are serving this at an event outdoors that it does have mayo, so that means it will not last long out in the heat before it can become hazardous to eat.

I suggest keeping it outside until you are ready to serve your guests and immediately put it back in the refrigerator once everyone has eaten. If any is left that is!

What To Serve With Low-Carb Pasta Salad

While it’s delicious on its own, the pasta salad also pairs nicely with grilled Italian sausages, chicken, pork loin, and even grilled burgers and hot dogs.

Everyone is going to love this salad as it highlights the season’s best produce in a simple and satisfying dish that will disappear fast! No matter what you serve it with.

But if you need some inspiration for what to pair this salad with, I’ll share a few entrees that go particularly well with the creamy pasta salad recipe:

Asian-Inspired BBQ Chicken– This chicken recipe is no ordinary grilled chicken. It features a delicious Asian-inspired BBQ Sauce that adds just the perfect amount of umami and sweetness to your chicken. No need to have the same old boring BBQ Chicken when you have this with your pasta salad.

Air Fryer Chicken Nuggets – tender and juicy pieces of chicken breast coasted in an easy but delicious low-carb and gluten-free coating then fried to perfection in the air fryer. This is one of my favorites to make and serve with this pasta salad.

Instant Pot BBQ Country Style Ribs – These melt-in-your-mouth country-style ribs come together with some quickness in the Instant Pot. Add some sugar-free BBQ Sauce and you have the perfect summer friend meal when paired with this low-carb creamy pasta salad.

Substitutions and Tips and Tricks for Recipe Success

• Be sure to only cook your Palmini pasta until it is just soft. You don’t want to overcook the heart of palm pasta just like you wouldn’t on a regular past! Overcooking the pasta will result in pasta that becomes mushy and falls apart when you mix up this cold salad.
• If you can’t find the Palmini, or any brand heart of palm noodles in your local stores you can swap them out for any type of low-carb noodle you enjoy. Some might be comfortable with using Dream Field pasta, whereas some may want to do the lower-carb and keto-friendly konjac noodles instead. Either will work fine.
• Feel free to swap your favorite ingredients – black olives, artichoke hearts, roasted red peppers, or even some spicy peppers like jalapeno or red chili peppers. All would be such wonderful additions to this salad. Just know that adding more ingredients will also change the nutritional value when it comes to carbs. So if you’re watching carbs just keep that in mind when adding extra ingredients.
• Just like any dish, seasoning is important! In this recipe I mention “salt and pepper to taste”, Some I know will take the issue to this because they think I should include exact measurements. However, with everyone’s tastes being so different, it is hard to give you exact amounts. Just be sure to season with salt and pepper as you mix up this pasta salad. That way if you think it needs more, you can add more!

Yield: 6 servings

Creamy Pasta Salad

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Additional Time: 1 hour

Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes

This creamy low-carb pasta salad is made with fresh veggies, crumbled bacon, and a heart of palm noodles all tossed in a delicious ranch creamy dressing.

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Ingredients

• 2 pouches or cans of Palmini Noodles
• 2 small Roma Tomatoes, diced
• 1/2 cup of chopped Englis Cucumber
• 1/2 cup of real mayonnaise
• 1/2 cup cheddar cheese
• 1/3 cup of real bacon crumbles
• 2 to 3 tablespoons of homemade ranch seasoning

Instructions

1. Open and drain the Palmini Noodles and rinse them well before adding them to a medium pot with water covering them.
2. Bring the noodles to a boil and boil for 15 minutes then remove them from the heat and drain them well.
3. Next, add the drained noodles to a large bowl and add the chopped cucumber, green onions, bacon, and tomatoes.
4. Toss the noodles and veggies together and then add the mayo and homemade ranch seasoning.
5. Stir to combine well and taste for seasoning. Add salt and pepper to taste or more homemade ranch if desired. Mix thoroughly.
6. Refrigerate and chill for at least one hour before serving.

Nutrition Information

Yield

6

Serving Size

1/6 of the recipe
Amount Per ServingCalories 205Total Fat 19.5gTrans Fat 0gCholesterol 18.3mgSodium 331mgCarbohydrates 5.2gNet Carbohydrates 2.7gFiber 2.5gSugar 1gProtein 3.9g

I am not a nutritionist. If you have strict dietary needs I always recommend using an online nutrition calculator to calculate your totals using your exact brands you're using in this recipe as values may vary per brand.

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Keri Bucci

I am a southern girl through and through that loves to laugh, cook, read and spend time with family. My passions outside of home schooling my son are ministering to those in need and creating art in the kitchen! Every day is an adventure in our little house and I wouldn’t trade it or the chance to share here with you for anything!