Dill Pickle Pasta Salad is literally my favorite pasta salad ever! In this creamy pasta salad recipe, dill pickles play a starring role and add tons of flavor and crunch! This recipe is even better when it’s made ahead of time making it the perfect potluck dish!
I have a thing for dill pickles. I always have. My sister and I have exchanged pickle themed gifts for about 20 years now… I’ve received everything from pickle erasers and a case of pickle pops (like freezies.. but pickle juice) and given her everything from a yodeling pickle to pickle soap and jewellery. One thing we haven’t exchanged yet is a dill pickle recipe, so of course I have to dedicate this delicious pasta salad recipe to my sister Candace.
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I like pasta salads, I make a ton of them. They’re easy to make and usually better if made ahead of time. They’re the hit of every potluck meal and perfect to pack the next day for lunch. As much as I like pasta salads, this Dill Pickle Pasta salad is honestly one of the best pasta salads I’ve ever had! Pickles (or even dill pickle relish) usually play a supporting role in recipes, especially pasta salad recipes and potato salads.
But not this time… nope, this time the prized dill pickle plays the starring role, front and center.
* cheer * yay * cheer *
There is pickle flavor infused throughout this recipe (in 3 different places) yet it’s just the right amount of pickley (if pickley is even a word!?). Yup, time to get pickled people (in the dill pickle sense of course).
When buying pickles for this recipe, I love baby dills if you can find them because I love the crunch they give and I love how they look in little rounds. I’m a bit freakish about my pickles so I actually pick up all of the pickle jars at the store and try to choose jar with the the smallest pickles. I look like a person trying to choose the perfect produce, only in the pickle aisle. If you only have bigger dill pickles (or homemade pickles), they’ll still be great in this recipe too, just chop them but not too small, you want them to keep that crunch.
If you have (or love) sweet pickles you can also throw a handful of those in here too. I mean, sweet and salty, crunch creamy… perfection right?!
Oh, and when you’re scooping out your pickle juice to add to the dressing in this recipe, try to grab all of those yummy little garlicky bits floating around and put them in the dressing too, they add extra flavor. And one last tip about the white onion… be sure to grab the onions with the white papery skin, the ones with the yellow skin are much stronger and will be a little bit overpowering in this dish.
This dill pickle pasta salad is pretty much guaranteed to be the hit of your next potluck and the best part is that it is awesome made the day before! If you’re lucky enough to have leftovers (which I doubt would happen) they’ll keep several days in the fridge and make the perfect lunch!
Items You’ll Need For This Recipe
* Dill Pickles * Shell Pasta * Cayenne Pepper *
Dill Pickle Pasta Salad
Ingredients
- ½ pound dry shell pasta about 3 cups
- ¾ cup sliced pickles
- ⅔ cup diced cheddar cheese
- 3 tablespoons minced white onion
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill
- ½ cup pickle juice
Dressing
- ⅔ cup mayonnaise
- ⅓ cup sour cream
- ⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 4 tablespoons pickle juice
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
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Boil pasta al dente according to package directions. Run under cold water to stop cooking.
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Toss cold pasta with about ½ cup of pickle juice and set aside for about 5 minutes. Drain & discard pickle juice.
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Combine all dressing ingredients in a small bowl and mix well.
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Toss all ingredients in a large bowl. Refrigerate at least 1 hour before serving.
Video
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Side Dish
Cuisine American
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A hit every time I make it. Perfect to prepare the night before as it’s better the longer it sits.
Oh my gosh, this dill pickle pasta salad is DELICIOUS. It is so good. The first time I made this it was for my daughter and it was easy to make and she loved it! I will definitely be using this recipe again!
I’ve made this 10+ times by now.
It’s my favorite pasta salad.
For my own preference, I usually increase the amount of pickle juice and cayenne. But it’s delicious just as written.
Whenever I take it to events, I don’t have any left to take home.
This is a great recipe.
Best one ever
made this for weekend with family everyone loved it.
A new family favorite! Everyone loves this. I have done it with bacon, added shredded cheese instead of cubed, You can customize this to make it your way, asked for over and over.
how many days in advance can I make this?
Up to 2 days in advance.
This was honestly pretty good! The only thing I would different is double the dressing to make it “creamier”. I feel like it would be better that way for leftovers.
This is a go to recipe of mine all summer long. When I’m feeling lazy I will top it with Ranch instead of the homemade dressing and while not as delicious it is still great! It is the number one requested dish by the toddlers in my house SWP Employee
I absolutely love this, never change a thing. I gave some to my boss and now I get requests from her! thanks….
Delicious and easy to bring to a potluck. Beware though – if you up the recipe to 2x or 3x the pasta still says “about 3 cups” next to the ingredient, you have to double or triple it yourself. Otherwise great yummy recipe.
Amazing!!!
I have made this pasta salad MANY times and shared the recipe again and again! I most recently made it with vegan mayo and vegan sour cream and it was still perfection
A family fav!!
This salad was an absolute hit with my family! I will definitely be making this again! ❤️
My family and I LOVE this recipe just as it is. I used up every single jar of my last season crop of pickled cucumbers. I do occasionally use a few pepperoncini peppers in addition for some extra heat and a twist on the original. Excellent recipe! Thank you for your content!
This is my go-to summer side dish to bring to potlucks and picnics! Always a hit and consistently good. Sometimes I add extra cayenne for a little more kick. I also get a jar of baby gherkins to cut up for quick pops of flavor. Great recipe!!
Excellent recipe! I make this recipe all the time since I found it five/six years ago. I use whatever pasta I have available. Sometimes I use onions, sometimes onion power. Sometimes cubed cheese, sometimes shredded from the bag. Always dry dill cause fresh isn’t easy to source. I have used regular or Greek yogurt, or Miracle Whip, or left it out and replaced with more mayo instead of sour cream. I even used dill relish once. This recipe never fails and always comes out delicious. Thanks Holly for this keeper for any time of the year and any occasion! So appreciated.
That sounds delicious, Jan! Thanks for sharing your alterations.
Excellent!
This has become my pot luck contribution go to. It’s always a hit and easy to make! 10/10
Awesome salad! A keeper for sure.