Dill Pickle Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad is the best way to celebrate warm weather season! Tender macaroni pasta is tossed with bold, mouthwatering ingredients like dill pickles, bacon, cheddar cheese, and more.
Dill Pickle Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad
This easy pasta salad is a version of our Dill Pickle Bacon Cheeseball, one of our all time most popular recipes! As spring and summer are upon us, it’s time to start planning all of those picnics in the park and backyard barbecues. At either occasion, consider making this easy-peasy Dill Pickle Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad. It’s a tried and true family favorite of mine that everyone loves, even the picky eaters!
I’m a big pasta salad fan, and usually make some of my favorites like BLT Pasta Salad and Jalapeño Popper Pasta Salad for my summertime parties. However, you can NEVER have too many trusty pasta salad recipes to choose from! I love making this one, because it’s positively loaded with everyone’s favorite ingredients. With a mix of pickles, ranch, bacon, cheese, and more, you can’t really go wrong.
How to Store This Pasta Salad and Make ahead:
Store your leftover pasta salad in an airtight food storage container in the refrigerator. There, it’ll stay fresh for about 3-4 days. This is an excellent make-ahead recipe! If making ahead, you can add the bacon right before serving if you prefer to keep it nice and crisp!
What to Serve with Dill Pickle Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad
This bacon, pickle, cheese, and ranch pasta salad is best served on a paper plate with a plastic fork in someone’s backyard! While it’s delicious all by itself, here are a few of my other favorite BBQ/picnic staples that pair perfectly with it.
Ingredients and Recipe Notes:
- Bacon – Pork bacon is hands down my favorite kind to use, not just for the flavor, but also because of how it crisps up. However, turkey bacon also works well in this recipe if preferred.
- Cheddar Cheese – Use sharp cheddar cheese! A medium cheddar cheese won’t pack as much of a flavorful punch. When tossed with bold ingredients like bacon and pickles, you’re going to want your cheese to be noticeable.
- Dill Pickles – Chop them up to the consistency you’d like. While they can be sliced down to an almost relish-like consistency, I enjoy a little crunch from them, which is why I slice mine to the size that I do. Also, avoid using sweet pickles at all costs! Sweet pickles will NOT pair well with the ranch or bacon.
Enjoy!
~Nichole
Dill Pickle Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad
Ingredients
- 16 Ounces Rotini or Macaroni
- 1 Pound Bacon Cooked and Crumbled
- 1 1/2 Cups Mayonnaise
- 1 Packet Dry Ranch Dressing Mix
- 2 Tablespoons Dill Pickle Juice
- 1 teaspoon Garlic Powder
- 1/4 teaspoon Black Pepper
- 2 Cups Diced Dill Pickles
- 1 1/2 Cups Cubed Sharp Cheddar Cheese
- 1/2 Cup Diced Green Onions
Instructions
- Cook the pasta according to package directions. Drain and then rinse under cold running water until cool.
- While the pasta and bacon are cooking, whisk together the mayo, ranch mix, dill pickle juice, garlic powder and pepper in a large bowl.
- Add the cooked pasta to the bowl with the dressing and stir to combine.
- Add all of the remaining ingredients and stir gently.
- Chill until ready to serve.
- This pasta salad lasts in the fridge for 3-5 days. You can leave the bacon out until ready to serve if you want it to stay crispy.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
