Creamy Avocado Pasta Salad

This is an extremely satisfying salad. Avocado, dill, lemon, and yogurt are blended into a fresh, creamy dressing that coats the pasta like a dream. A little crunch from the red onion and some nice contrast with cherry tomatoes keeps the salad interesting, for some texture and sharpness.

A good pasta salad should always be made with pasta that has some texture – not spaghetti (dread) or penne lisce, neither of which can hold on to the sauce or other ingredients effectively. As written this is an excellent side dish but you could add more filling ingredients to the salad if you’d like to make it into more of a meal.

I’ve talked about this in other avocado recipes on the site, but I only get avocados a couple times a year in big boxes (5 kg or so) and have an avocado feast for a couple of weeks. This is one of our favourite things to make with them when tomatoes are still in season.

I don’t use affiliate links. Any links you see here are to other recipes or related information, not paid links.

Ingredients You’ll Need and Why

If you’d like a more in-depth guide for the dressing, see this post for my avocado dressing recipe. These are my notes from recipe testing and you can find the recipe card in full below with complete measurements and instructions.

• Avocado: you can see I have two different types of avocado here, and it doesn’t matter which type you use, as long as it’s ripe and tasty. Ripe avocados can be stored in the refrigerator for a few days.
• Pasta: pictured is emmer fusilli, my preferred shape for this salad. Use a short pasta with texture to give the dressing somewhere to go. Use a good gluten-free pasta if needed. I like chickpea-based pasta, which tends to hold up pretty well to a sauce and doesn’t break apart as easily as some other GF pastas.
• Dill: if you don’t like or don’t have dill, try fresh coriander (cilantro) or basil instead. Thawed frozen dill works well.
• Yogurt: I always use soya yogurt for this recipe, but any unsweetened plain yogurt can be substituted. I find coconut a little too sweet. Choose dairy yogurt if that’s your preference. If you prefer not to use yogurt, replace it with a little more avocado and an extra squeeze of lemon.
• Lemon: the zest is used, so try to get an unwaxed organic lemon if possible and wash it well.
• Onion: use a sweet onion in place of red onion if preferred. If you’re very sensitive to raw onion, you could try pickled red onions, or omit it.
• Garlic: if raw garlic is too strong for you, use roasted garlic for a more subtle flavour or leave it out.
• Add-ins: to make this more of a meal, I either add about 250 grams (equivalent to a 400g or 14 oz. can) of big white beans or chickpeas or a few sliced hard boiled eggs to the salad.

How to Make Avocado Pasta Salad

These are the two important steps: the dressing and mixing with the pasta. The other ingredients are add-ins and can be switched up, but making the dressing as written (change the herbs if you like) is the important element here. Use a small food processor, bullet blender, or immersion blender.

Step 1: blend the dressing until very smooth. Be sure to taste it and check for seasoning at this point, as it’s easier to add now rather than later. Remember the pasta will also be seasoned so don’t add too much salt.

Step 2: cook the pasta according to package instructions, overcooking slightly, then drain and mix with the dressing. Assemble the salad with the sliced avocado, onion, and tomatoes before serving.

Expert Tips for the Best Salad

• Try the dressing first: taste the dressing before adding to the pasta and make sure it has enough salt and lemon for your taste.
• Use a textured pasta: go for something like fusilli, something that has some folds or ridges to hold the dressing. It’ll slide right off smooth pasta.
• Grate garlic if needed: if your blender isn’t very strong, you can grate the garlic before adding it so that you don’t end up with big pieces in the dressing.
• Refrigerate your avocados: if you have too many ripe at once, or want to ripen them more slowly, keep your avocados in the refrigerator. I always buy bulk boxes from crowdfarming and once they’re ripe keep them cool until I’m ready to use. Ripe fruit will last at least a week this way.
• Overcook the pasta: a minute or two longer than it says on the package is ideal for pasta salad, which is usually served cold. Al dente pasta is too dense once chilled and has an unpleasant bite.

More Avocado Recipes

• Avocado Bean Salad
• Avocado Spinach Smoothie
• Mango Avocado Salad
• Greek Chickpea Salad