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.
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 medium shells about 3 cups
- ¾ cup sliced pickles
- ⅔ cup diced cheddar cheese
- 3 tablespoons minced white onion
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill
- ½ cup dill pickle juice
Dressing
- ⅔ cup mayonnaise
- ⅓ cup sour cream
- ⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 4 tablespoons dill pickle juice
- salt and black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Boil pasta al dente according to package directions. Run under cold water to stop cooking.
- Toss cold pasta with about ½ cup of pickle juice and set aside for about 5 minutes. Drain & discard pickle juice.
- Combine all dressing ingredients in a small bowl and mix well.
- 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
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I love dill pickles, so I am definitely going to make this salad.
Can you use bread and butter instead of dill ??
I have only tried this recipe as written, although it would work, it will also change the flavor. I’d love to hear how it works out if you do try it!
This sounds great! Was just given some garden fresh dill and was looking for a new recipe to try. I’ve got a mayo hater in my family…any thoughts on using all sour cream or a greek yogurt combo? Thanks for the help!
I have only tried this recipe as written, so I can’t say for sure. Both sour cream and greek yogurt are more tart than mayonnaise so you may need to add a pinch of sugar. I’d love to hear how it works out if you do try it!
You might be able to sneak it by. The pickle juice in the dressing thins it out so you don’t get the consistency of the mayo, and between the actual pickle, the pickle juice rinse of the pasta, and the fresh dill, the mayo gets burried in there pretty deep. Just make sure you don’t have it out when the mayo hater is hanging out in the kitchen, and certainly don’t mention it, and you might be surprised. ;)
Omg that is the best salad ever! I used whole zesty dill pickles and chopped them up, came out great.
Everyone needs to try it.
So glad you loved it Todd! I agree, everyone needs to try it!! ;)
so dying to try the dill pickle salad. Sounds delicious! Plan on doing it tuesday
:) Enjoy Linda, it’s so good!!
Can you substitute the 2 tablespoons of fresh dill with dill weed, if so, how much of the dill weed would you use?
Fresh is best if possible in this recipe. If you use dried, I would suggest using 2 teaspoons and adding it right into the dressing.
I want say I made this using red onion for color an red onion my opinion is best but white is good also keep up the great recipes
Thank you Kat! :)
Making the dilll pickle salad for an graduation openhouse. Everyone loves baby dills
Do you use an 8 ounce box of shell pasta for the pickle pasta recipe or 12 ounce or 16 ounce
I used 8oz. (which should give you 3 cups of dry pasta).
What a nice twist on macaroni salad. I confess that I deviated from the recipe and used gherkins only because I didn’t have sour dill pickles in the house. Delicious nonetheless. And the cayenne adds just the right amount of pinch.
I’ve printed this out and am ready to try it – after a trip to the store. Have everything except the sour cream. Have you ever added peas. When reading the recipe and seeing the cubed cheddar I immediately thought of English Pea Salad… I think I might give it a try. Thanks for sharing this…. have had potato salad with pickles but never pasta – and who knows why? I can’t wait to make this.
I haven’t added peas to the recipe but I’d love to hear how it works out if you do try it! Enjoy!!
I can’t wait to try this! I have always LOVED pickles! I remember the first time I saw a gallon jar of pickles in the store. I told my parents that that was all I wanted for my birthday that year. :-) I even grew up saying “Eeny meeny miney mo, catch a pickle by the toe…” My kids laugh but I still say pickle instead of tiger when saying the rhyme.
LOL!
I knew this would be right up my alley! Love it
Wouldn’t the cayenne make it too spivey or hot? Never have used cayenne before do you think this could be omitted or can I substitute with…..?
The cayenne adds a tiny bit of heat but it doesn’t make it too spicy. You can certainly leave it out or try adding less.
Can you use the Klauson pickles
Yes, any dill pickle would be great in this recipe!
Holly, I have to take exception to this. Any dill pickle does NOT work for me. The macaroni salad I was raised on called for genuine dills, definitely not kosher dills. That’s all I’ve ever eaten. It’s like using Miracle Whip instead of mayonnaise. We always use mayo. Our recipe calls for pickle juice to be mixed with the cooked macaroni and sits in the frig overnight. Or at least a few hours to meld the flavors. Then mixed with the other ingredients. Yum. Best there is!!!!
Sounds delicious Di! Thanks for sharing.
will have to try this, but knowing me I will use red onion> I love red onions.
My youngest granddaughter has loved dill pickles since she was three years old. She’s eighteen now. I buy dill pickles when I travel as gifts for her upon my return. I’m going to surprise her with this recipe for her going away to the Naval Academy party later this month. She just wants a cookout for her closest friends. This will be on the menu for sure. Although I can’t find them here in southern Virginia, I recommend Milwaukee’s Midget Kosher Dill Pickles as the best in the country.
This dish is PERFECT for her cookout and I hope she loves it! I haven’t tried Milwaukee’s Midget Kosher Dill Pickles but it sounds like I’ll need to find a place to get my hands on a jar! :)
They are the ABSOLUTE best pickle I’ve ever had too!
Small, medium or large pasta shells?
I use the large shells.
Thank you! Excited to try.
You’re welcome, enjoy!! :)
I am extremely sensitive to spice and am afraid I could not tolerate the cayenne pepper. Do you have any suggestions for a substitute?
You can reduce the amount of cayenne or you can substitute it for a little bit of white pepper.
what about smoked paprika instead i dont like cayene either
Has anyone tried making this with red onion instead? I like themy more but it will be my first time making this recipe so I don’t want to mess it up right out of the gate haha
Yes I’ve used red onion it’s delicious.
Do you have a low fat version? I’m going to make this regardless but I thought I’d ask.
Thank you…
SheriO
I don’t but you could substitute the mayo & sour cream for lighter versions and it should work just fine!
We have dairy allergies in our house. What would you suggest instead of sour cream? Maybe leave it out? This sounds amazing. Thank you for the recipe
Do you have a lactose free plain “yogurt” type product you can use? If not, you can certainly leave it out.
How does one keep pasta salad creamy? Mine soaks up the dressing and is dry no matter how much I add. What is the secret like that found in the Deli?
As the pasta sits it will certainly soak up some of the moisture drying it out slightly. If I am leaving it a long time (overnight for example), I do ensure there is plenty of dressing.
Deli salads tend to contain more oil (and other ingredients) which helps keep them creamy. While this recipe has plenty of dressing, if I do make a creamy pasta salad that isn’t as creamy as I’d like I find stirring in a little bit of heavy cream before serving helps to make it creamy again.