Customize this easy vegan pasta salad in a jar to your liking! Use this recipe as inspiration for creating a convenient lunch with the veggies you need to use up from your fridge!
Simple preparation
A light but flavourful balsamic vinaigrette
Packed with colourful veggies
Completely customizable meal prep
And fun to eat!
When you're ready to eat, just shake up the jar OR dump the contents into a bowl you keep at work for easy enjoyment.
The Dressing
This simple balsamic vinaigrette is the perfect light dressing for this pasta salad in a jar. I love putting the dressing in the bottom of the jar and adding my protein source on top.
The chickpeas (lentils, or whichever cooked protein source you choose) marinate in the dressing while the jar sits in the fridge. This infuses the protein source with flavour and also creates a barrier between the dressing and the pasta. This way, the pasta doesn't absorb the dressing while the jar sits waiting.
For a one litre jar I make this simple dressing with:
- 2 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
- ½ tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- Plus salt and pepper to taste
Making Pasta Salad In A Jar
If you haven't already cooked your pasta you can boil the pasta while you make the dressing and chop your other ingredients. When the pasta is cooked, rinse it under cold water and let it cool.
- Add the dressing ingredients to the bottom of the jar.
- Shake the jar around to mix the oil with the other ingredients.
- Add in your protein source.
- Then layer your chopped fresh vegetables.
- Sprinkle in some greens like spinach and/or fresh herbs (basil is lovely).
- Top with the cooled pasta.
- And garnish the very top of the jar with sprouts, nuts, seeds, pickled red onion, or anything else you love!
Store your jar in the fridge for up to 3 days and take it with you on the road when you're ready!
Recipe Cost
This vegan pasta salad in a jar makes one large serving and costs us approximately $2.60 CAD using my chickpeas I have cooked from scratch. I always cook my beans from scratch for the best savings. Using canned chickpeas my cost goes up to just over $3 per jar.
Dried beans tend to be priced quite a bit lower than canned beans. They take a little bit of time to cook but the process is quite hands off and very simple. You can control the texture and flavour of the beans if you wish AND you can cook big batches so you have lots to freeze.
Let me know in the comments below how you customize your pasta salad in a jar! You might also love my Instant Noodle Soup in a jar! Just add hot water when you're ready to eat and you have a delicious Asian inspired noodle bowl!
Print
Vegan Pasta Salad In A Jar
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 1 serving 1x
Description
Take this easy vegan pasta salad in a jar to work, on a picnic, or simply prepare it ahead of time for a convenient lunch or dinner at home!
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- ½ tbsp olive oil
- ½ - 1 tablespoon lemon juice (plus zest if using a fresh lemon)
- ½ tsp dried oregano
- salt and pepper to taste
- ½ cup chickpeas (cooked from scratch for best savings)
- ½ cup tomato, chopped*
- ½ cup cucumber, chopped*
- ¼ cup olives, chopped
- ¼ cup spinach, chopped and packed (or fresh herbs)*
- 2 cups cooked pasta of choice
*Fresh ingredients you need that are not part of our pantry and freezer tips.
Instructions
- Cook your pasta according to the package instructions.
- Meanwhile, chop the vegetables you are including in the jar. Feel free to use whatever you have on hand!
- When the pasta is cooked, drain the cooking water and rinse with cold water to cool the pasta down.
- Add the dressing ingredients to the bottom of the jar and shake the jar to combine the vinegar, oil, lemon juice, oregano, salt, and pepper.
- Put the chickpeas (or cooked lentils) in the bottom. Then add in the chopped vegetables. Finally add in the cooled pasta and garnish the jar with sprouts, nuts, seeds or any other desired toppings.
- Store the jar with the lid on in the refrigerator until you’re ready to take it on the go.
Notes
Approximate Cost: $2.60 CAD per jar using chickpeas cooked from scratch and just over $3 using canned chickpeas.
- Category: salad
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: American, Canadian
Diane W
Why didn't I think of this. Looks so easy and delicious. What size is the jar? Mine look smaller so I might have smaller portions.
Kathryn Alexandre
haha it is so easy and makes lunch a bit more fun for sure! This is a pretty large 1 litre jar so one portion can often feed both my husband and I if we pack it for a picnic. If I take it to work on my own I can probably save half for the next day. If your jars are smaller you can decrease the pasta, veg, and protein as needed but I would probably just keep the measurements for the dressing the same. There isn't a ton of dressing so if you make this in a smaller jar you will have more dressing but the salad still probably won't be swimming in it. I'm glad it caught your eye and let me know how you like it when you try it!