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Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad

Bacon ranch pasta salad is brimming with bacon, olives, tomatoes and peppers.  

We’ve added Kidney beans for fiber and low-fat protein. And a spot of color.

This creamy pasta salad recipe has lots of great flavor. The creamy dressing includes Dry ranch mix and a creamy garlic spread. This addition brings in richness and depth to the flavor profile.

Multi colored Bow tie pasta is just the right size for a fork and holds that dressing well.

Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad

This ranch pasta salad has a wonderful smorgasbord of flavors. The bacon, ranch dressing and pasta blend provide a good base for many varied ingredients.

A large pasta salad like this one is easy to hold in the fridge for several days for a quick bite of sustaining carbs and healthy fresh veggies when you don’t have time to fool with lunch.

Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad Single Serving

Bacon, olives and kidney beans and the ranch style dressing add flavor and texture to the cute bow tie pasta.

The grape tomatoes add wonderful pops of color and the peppers (any kind you like in all sorts of colors) make this a festive harvest dish with a satisfying crunch from the peppers.

Looking for MORE Pasta Salads?

Here’s a few of our favorites. Add even more protein to your ranch pasta salad with Chicken Bacon Ranch Pasta salad recipe. It makes a complete dinner or lunch replacement.

Italian pasta salad is a yummy filling salad with lots of healthy greens and a delicious oil dressing.

And if you need a wonderful salad that holds well at room temperature and is very popular at parties our Mediterranean pasta salad is just the thing.

Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad Recipe:

Bacon Ranch Pasta salad is very filling. Fortunately it will hold several days in the fridge. Make it for lunch or a heavy side with a light entre. It’s also very popular at pot lucks, barbecues and parties.

Just remember this salad mush be served cold at fridge temperatures for food safety!

Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad Forkful

TIP:

Keep the bacon thick cut and a high quality uncured bacon. This way the bacon provides a good presence in your salad without getting too greasy or salty.

Substitutions:

This is a flexible pasta salad recipe. Here are some ways to change this creamy pasta salad recipe and still keep the basic construct of a bacon ranch pasta salad.

  • replace the kidney beans with drained and rinsed black beans if you prefer.
  • use any type of peppers you prefer. We enjoy poblano and sweet bells mixed for flavor color and texture.
  • any tomato will work if chopped to a fork size. But watch out for too juicy tomatoes. Scoop out the seeds if using large beefsteak or on the vine tomatoes before chopping.
  • shell pasta can replace the bow tie.
  • The garlic spread can be replaced with crushed garlic cloves run through a garlic press.

Suggested Crunchy toppings include: toasted sunflower seeds, or pumpkin seeds

Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad In A Bowl
Yield: 15 servings

Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad

Prep Time: 40 minutes
Additional Time: 1 hour
Total Time: 1 hour 40 minutes

Bacon Ranch Pasta salad is brimming with bacon, olives, tomatoes and peppers.  Kidney beans add fiber and low-fat protein and color. All in a yummy ranch dressing. Add your own embellishments for a premium creamy pasta salad.

Ingredients

  • 17.6 oz bag bow tie pasta
  • 1/2 lb. uncured bacon (thick cut)
  • 14 oz. can organic black olives, diced
  • 14 oz. can red organic kidney beans, drained and rinsed
  • 1 Cup grape tomatoes, chopped in half
  • 3 peppers, try a mix of low heat peppers, like poblano variety, with sweet peppers diced fine.
  • 1 Cup mayonnaise
  • 3 Tablespoons ranch dry seasoning mix
  • 1 Tablespoon Johnny's dry garlic spread
  • salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

  1. Boil pasta 8 minutes until firmly done, al denté, in a large pot of water with one tablespoon of oil.
  2. Drain, rinse with cool water and set aside
  3. Chop bacon into one inch pieces and cook on medium heat in a large frying pan until it is thoroughly cooked.
  4. Drain the cooked bacon on a paper towel. Allow it to cool.
  5. In a large mixing bowl mix together the mayonnaise, dry seasonings and garlic spread.
  6. Add in the olives, cooled bacon, kidney beans and stir thoroughly
  7. Pour in the cooked, cooled and drained pasta.
  8. Add the chopped tomatoes and peppers. Stir thoroughly
  9. Place in the fridge, covered, 60 minutes or until cooled.
  10. Salt and pepper to taste at serving.
  11. Serve thei salad COLD. It mustbe kept at fridge temperatures for food safety.

Notes

This salad holds well in the fridge covered for several days.

TIP:

Keep the bacon thick cut and a high quality uncured bacon. This way the bacon provides a good presence in your salad without getting too greasy or salty.

Substitutions:

This is a flexible pasta salad recipe. Here are some ways to change this creamy pasta salad recipe and still keep the basic construct of a bacon ranch pasta salad.

  • replace the kidney beans with drained and rinsed black beans if you prefer.
  • use any type of peppers you prefer. We enjoy poblano and sweet bells mixed for flavor color and texture.
  • any tomato will work if chopped to a fork size. But watch out for too juicy tomatoes. Scoop out the seeds if using large beefsteak or on the vine tomatoes before chopping.
  • shell pasta can replace the bow tie.
  • The garlic spread can be replaced with crushed garlic cloves run through a garlic press.

Suggested Crunchy toppings include: toasted sunflower seeds, or pumpkin seeds

See our complete recipe demonstration in the video below.

Nutrition Information

Yield

15

Serving Size

1

Amount Per Serving Calories 312Total Fat 21gSaturated Fat 4gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 16gCholesterol 22mgSodium 616mgCarbohydrates 21gFiber 4gSugar 2gProtein 10g

Did you make this recipe?

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Bacon Bow Tie Ranch Pasta Salad

This recipe is adapted from Allrecipes.com

shweta

Thursday 22nd of July 2021

Love this fresh looking salad! This will definitely become a regular at my house. Thanks!

Diane

Thursday 22nd of July 2021

Hi Shweta, Its yummy. hope you enjoy it. Have a wonderful day!

Gwen @ simplyhealthyfamily

Tuesday 26th of May 2015

I'm SO jealous of your garden! It's so hard to grow much of anything here in Phoenix. Great salad for a potluck or picnic!

homemadefoodjunkie

Tuesday 26th of May 2015

This is a good salad! I wish you could grow your own produce too Gwen! But we envy you your fantastic warm winters!And lemon and orange trees!

Jessy @ The Life Jolie

Saturday 23rd of May 2015

Looks delicious! I love Pasta Salad and am always looking for a new recipe for it!

homemadefoodjunkie

Saturday 23rd of May 2015

Thanks Jessy. I hope you love it. This one is so good!

Betsy @ Desserts Required

Friday 22nd of May 2015

I can't even grow a plant and you have a greenhouse!! WOW!! I am a tad green with envy over this. Did you say, BACON?? Fresh veggies, pasta and bacon?? Yup, I'm sold!

homemadefoodjunkie

Friday 22nd of May 2015

Thanks Betsy!We love our greenhouse :)

Nicky

Friday 22nd of May 2015

Your tomato and pepper plants look fabulous. They did wonderfully in your greenhouse. Congrats on a successful season. Pasta salad are summer favorites here. They are an easy way to get more veggies in our diet.

homemadefoodjunkie

Friday 22nd of May 2015

I completely agree Nicky. Thank you for the visit!

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