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Olive Garden Pasta Salad

ByTrisha Haas Published: 2026-08-242026-08-24

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This Olive Garden pasta salad is an easy cold rotini pasta salad made with crisp bell peppers, black olives, shredded carrots, Parmesan cheese, and Olive Garden Signature Italian Dressing.

This isn’t based on an Olive Garden menu item. The name comes from using Olive Garden Signature Italian Dressing, which makes an easy dressing for cold pasta salad without having to mix one from scratch.

Close-up of Olive Garden pasta salad with rotini, vegetables, black olives, and shredded Parmesan cheese

Recipe Recommendations

If you like this style of pasta salad, my Radiatore Pasta Salad is another Italian dressing-based option with pepperoni, vegetables, black olives, and Parmesan. Or, if you particularly love the Olive Garden Dressing, try slow cooker Olive Garden Chicken pasta.

Ingredients

Rotini pasta: A 12-ounce package, cooked, drained, and rinsed with cold water.
Green bell pepper: Seeds removed and chopped.
Red bell pepper: Seeds removed and chopped.
Shredded carrots: I shredded baby carrots with a cheese grater for this recipe.
Black olives: Drain and slice before adding.
Olive Garden Signature Italian Dressing: The dressing for the pasta salad and the reason behind the Olive Garden name.
Shredded Parmesan cheese
McCormick Salad Supreme
Salt and pepper

How to Make Olive Garden Pasta Salad

Cook the rotini according to the package directions. Drain and rinse the pasta with cold water.

Add the cooled pasta, green bell pepper, red bell pepper, shredded carrots, sliced black olives, Olive Garden Italian Dressing, Parmesan cheese, and Salad Supreme to a large bowl.

Chopped bell peppers, shredded carrots, and sliced black olives in a mixing bowl for pasta salad

Cooked rotini pasta being added to chopped vegetables and black olives in a mixing bowl

Mix well until the dressing and seasoning are evenly distributed throughout the pasta salad.

Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Olive Garden Signature Italian Dressing being poured over rotini pasta salad ingredients

Spoonful of rotini pasta salad with bell peppers, black olives, carrots, and Parmesan cheese

Serve immediately or cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. Stir well before serving.

Shredding Carrots for Pasta Salad

I had baby carrots on hand, so I shredded them with a cheese grater instead of buying a separate bag of shredded carrots.

The smaller pieces mix easily throughout the pasta and give you a little carrot in more of the bites rather than larger chunks.

Can Olive Garden Pasta Salad Be Made Ahead?

Yes. Prepare the pasta salad, cover it, and refrigerate until you are ready to serve.

Give it a good stir before serving. Pasta can soak up some of the dressing while it sits, so stir everything together first before deciding whether you want to add a little more dressing.

What to Serve with Olive Garden Pasta Salad

This cold pasta salad makes an easy side for cookouts, potlucks, burgers, sandwiches, grilled chicken, and other casual meals.

For a cookout where you want a few different cold salad choices, BLT Pasta Salad has a creamy ranch and mayo dressing, while Ham Pasta Salad combines pasta with ham and corn.

For something with a little more heat, try my Jalapeño Popper Pasta Salad.

How to Store Leftovers

Keep leftover pasta salad covered in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days. Stir well before serving again to redistribute the dressing and seasonings throughout the pasta.