Pasta and Pickles Salad 

By Hetty Lui McKinnon

Published July 25, 2024

Pasta and Pickles Salad 
David Malosh for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.
Total Time
30 minutes
Prep Time
10 minutes
Cook Time
20 minutes
Rating
5(356)
Comments
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This recipe is your invitation to the pasta and pickle party. Dill pickles work double time here: The brine is added to the creamy dressing to bring acidity, while a generous amount of pickles are used in the salad, bringing crunch and saltiness. The sourness of the pickles and the punch of the quick-pickled shallots really cut through the heaviness that is often found in creamy, mayonnaise-laden pasta salads. (This one skips mayo for lighter crème fraîche or sour cream.) An emphatic handful of dill reinforces the grassy notes of the pickle; if you have parsley or scallions lying around, you could throw those in too. Experiment by adding other pickles — sauerkraut, beets, radish, daikon would all work — or bulk this pasta salad up with some chopped romaine, chickpeas or hard-boiled eggs. 

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Ingredients

Yield:4 servings
  • 1shallot, thinly sliced 
  • 1tablespoon vinegar, such as white or red wine vinegar, apple cider vinegar or other favorite
  • Salt and pepper 
  • 1pound short pasta, such as fusilli or cavatelli
  • 1cup crème fraîche or sour cream
  • 1garlic clove, finely grated
  • 5tablespoons pickle brine plus 2 cups sliced dill pickles
  • 2tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • 2tablespoons finely grated Parmesan, plus extra for topping
  • Big handful chopped dill
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)

625 calories; 21 grams fat; 8 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 8 grams monounsaturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 91 grams carbohydrates; 4 grams dietary fiber; 6 grams sugars; 18 grams protein; 495 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Place the shallot and vinegar in a small bowl. Add a pinch of salt and 2 tablespoons of water. Set aside to pickle while you prepare the rest of the salad.

  2. Step 2

    Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil. Add the pasta and cook according to package instructions until al dente. Drain pasta and run under cold water until cool. Drain again.

  3. Step 3

    Meanwhile, place the crème fraîche or sour cream and garlic into a large bowl. Add the pickle brine and sir to combine. Season with salt and pepper.

  4. Step 4

    Drain the shallots and discard the pickling liquid.

  5. Step 5

    To the crème fraîche mixture, add the cooled pasta, pickles, olive oil, grated Parmesan and dill; toss to combine. Taste and season with salt and pepper. To serve, top with quick pickled shallots and more grated Parmesan.

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Ratings

5 out of 5
356 user ratings
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Comments

Captain O

I love, really, really love, pickles but 2 cups plus the brine is way over the top even for me. And pickled shallots for more acidity plus parm for more salt? Yikes. Half the readers of the NYTimes will need to adjust their BP meds.

karen b

I adjusted all ingredients to taste using less pickle brine using Orzo pasta and sour cream. Added: chopped flat leaf parsley and dill (dried or fresh). I skipped the cheese. I like the chopped pickles, but next time I will do half mayo, half sour cream.

Jack

Wild recipe

Lauren

I really wanted to love this but the flavors just weren’t there. I followed the recipe as written and used my home canned (very flavorful) dill pickles. I ended up adjusting it by adding mayo, more pickles, more dill, more brine, and it still seemed bland. I’d absolutely recommend swapping the sour cream for mayo at the start.

Berk

Great thing about pasta salad for dinner is pasta salad for lunch the next day. I discovered a hack the second day - addition of a few drops of hot sauce 🔥. I used a haba

Berk

Made as instructed, except I also had homemade pickled daikon and carrots, so added matchsticks of those. Pretty tasty dinner that's very easy to make. Agree with others that it needs more pepper, but disagree skipping the shallots - the crunch is really nice (along with the radishes and carrots)...

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