Dill Pickle Pasta Salad is the delicious side dish you’ll want to make for every cookout, picnic, potluck, and family dinner from now on. Mini pasta shells, chopped dill pickles, cheddar cheese, onions, fresh dill and other seasonings mixed up with a homemade dressings… this pasta salad is sure to be everyone’s favorite!
Dill Pickle Pasta Salad
Dill pickle fans will love this zippy version of homemade pasta salad! It’s actually quite simple to make pasta salad from scratch and it gives you control over the ingredients.
Pasta salad usually contains some pickle relish, but true pickle lovers know… it’s just not enough! With this in mind, we made an awesome pasta salad filled with dill pickle flavor.
Looking for more side dish inspiration? Check out Black Bean and Corn Salad, Loaded Broccoli Salad, Doritos Taco Salad, Low Carb Cauliflower Salad, The Best Creamy Pasta Salad, and Doritos Taco Pasta Salad.
Watch The Recipe Video!
The Ingredients
Here’s what you’ll need to make Dill Pickle Pasta Salad (the exact measurements and full recipe instructions are below in the printable recipe card):
DRESSING
- 2/3 cup mayonnaise – we used regular full-fat mayonnaise.
- 1/3 cup sour cream – we also used regular full-fat sour cream for this recipe.
- 1/4 cup dill pickle juice – use the juice from the baby dill pickles you will use in the pasta salad. One jar should give you enough pickle juice to use in this recipe.
- 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper – this is optional and is just meant to add a little hint of spice to the dressing.
- Salt and pepper to taste
SALAD
- 3 cups mini pasta shells – the mini pasta shells might also be listed as “pasta salad shells” on the box.
- 1/2 cup dill pickle juice
- 3/4 cup baby dill pickles – you’ll slice these small pickles into bite-sized pieces for the salad.
- 3/4 cup cheddar cheese – dice the cheese into very small cubes. You can use sharp, medium, or mild cheddar depending on your personal preference.
- 1/4 cup white onion – peel the onion and dice it into small pieces.
- 2 tablespoons fresh dill – chop the dill finely.
Making the Pasta Salad
Cook the pasta until al dente according to the package directions. Drain the pasta, then pour it into a medium bowl and toss it with pickle juice; set aside.
In a small bowl, whisk together the ingredients for the dressing. Cover the bowl and chill the dressing until you’re ready to add it to the pasta salad.
Drain the pickle juice from the pasta shells. In a large mixing bowl, combine the pasta shells, diced onion, diced cheese, sliced baby dill pickles, and chopped fresh dill.
Pour the salad dressing over the salad.
Mix the salad well until completely coated with the dressing.
Cover the bowl and chill the pasta salad until serving.
How to Store the Salad
Store the pasta salad in an airtight container, or a bowl covered with plastic wrap, for up to three days. Always keep the salad chilled until serving.
Dill Pickle Pasta Salad
Ingredients
Salad Dressing
- 2/3 cup mayonnaise
- 1/3 cup sour cream
- 1/4 cup dill pickle juice
- 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper optional
- salt and pepper to taste
Salad
- 3 cups mini pasta shells
- 1/2 cup dill pickle juice
- 3/4 cup baby dill pickles sliced
- 3/4 cup cheddar cheese diced into small cubes
- 1/4 cup white onion peeled and finely diced
- 2 tablespoons fresh dill finely chopped
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the ingredients for the dressing. Cover and refrigerate while you move on to the next steps.
- In a large pot, boil the pasta shells according to package directions until al dente. Drain the water and place the pasta in a large mixing bowl. Add the 1/2 cup of dill pickle juice to the pasta; set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the sliced baby dill pickles, diced cheddar cheese, diced white onion, and chopped fresh fill. Drain the pickle juice from the cooked pasta shells, then add the pasta to the other ingredients in the large mixing bowl.
- Pour the salad dressing over the pasta salad and stir until all ingredients are coated in the dressing.
- Chill the pasta salad until serving, then serve cold.
Last Step:
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4 comments on “Dill Pickle Pasta Salad”
Tried to leave 5 stars. Would not let me. Incredible. I had to use shredded cheese since it was all I had. Added a bit more lite mayo and no cayenne since we do not like hot. Best pasta ever.
I love this recipe and so did all of my coworkers at the (pre-COVID era) potluck! Everyone wanted the recipe.
Also, thank you for not making me scroll through some five paragraph story of inspiration behind the recipe before I could get to the actual recipe.
What could I use as a replacement for “dill”?
I love dill pickles, but don’t like fresh dill.
I’m using bread and butter pickles. SO YUMMY!!