If you need a new pasta salad recipe, you have to make this Creamy Ranch Vegan Pasta Salad. This dish is filled with high-fiber, nutrient-dense veggies like tomatoes and celery, along with chickpeas for extra protein. The homemade hempseed ranch dressing takes this pasta salad to another level. It stays fresh in the fridge for days, making it a great option for meal-prep. If you love pasta salad, try my Vegan Tuna Pasta Salad and Holiday Tortellini Pasta Salad next! For more ranch recipes, make my Vegan Buffalo Tofu Poppers with Homemade Ranch next.
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Notes on Ingredients
- Pasta: Any shape works but I like a short noodle best for pasta salad like fusilli or rotini. Use gluten-free pasta to make this salad gluten-free friendly.
- Chickpeas: Drain and rinse the chickpeas well before mixing in. You can substitute another bean like adzuki, white beans, or pinto beans if that’s what you prefer.
- Tomatoes: Cherry tomatoes work best in this salad because they are bursting with flavor but don’t make the salad soggy. If you don’t have cherry tomatoes, you could substitute another kind of tomato, finely chopped bell pepper, or sun-dried tomatoes.
Please take note that this is important information about the ingredients used in this recipe and the FULL recipe with measurements and details can be found DOWN BELOW (scroll to it) in the recipe card.
How do you make Creamy Ranch Vegan Pasta Salad?
- Cook your pasta.
- Prep the veggies – chop the celery, halve the cherry tomatoes and chop the fresh dill. Rinse and drain the chickpeas.
- Make the hemp seed ranch by blending all the ingredients in a high-speed blender until smooth.
- Strain the pasta and add into a large mixing bowl. Toss with the dressing, veggies and chickpeas. Garnish with fresh dill.
- Serve and enjoy!
- Step 1: First, cook the pasta and chop the veggies (celery, tomatoes, and fresh dill). Then, make the hemp seed ranch by blending everything together.
- Step 2: Add the strained pasta to a large mixing bowl along with veggies and dressing. Mix well to combine and garnish with fresh dill!
Commonly Asked Questions
Store this pasta salad in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 4 days. No need to reheat as this salad is meant to be eaten cold.
I recommend shorter noodles for this recipe like fusilli, bow tie, or penne. Feel free to use a gluten-free pasta noodle if needed.
Try pine nuts, cashews, or blanched almonds instead. Or make my creamy yogurt dressing instead!
I love adding finely diced cucumbers or bell peppers. Really anything you enjoy! Olives would be delicious too. For another veggie-filled pasta salad, try my Vegan Tuna Pasta Salad or Vegan Greek Pasta Salad.
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Extra Helpful Tips
- Use gluten-free noodles to make this pasta salad gluten-free.
- Careful not to overcook the noodles. Al dente pasta works best for pasta salad so stop cooking the noodles at 1-2 minutes less than the duration the box says to.
- Make a double batch of the hemp seed ranch dressing and use it for dipping veggies, salad dressing, or more pasta throughout the week.
- Be sure to drain and rinse the chickpeas well to help prevent gas or bloat.
- Serve this salad with a side of crispy air-fried tofu nuggets.
How to Store
Store this pasta salad in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 4 days. No need to reheat as this salad is meant to be eaten cold.
If you tried this Creamy Ranch Vegan Pasta Salad or any other recipe on my blog, please leave a 5-star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below. Thanks for visiting!
Creamy Ranch Vegan Pasta Salad
Equipment
Ingredients
- 8 oz pasta of choice I used whole wheat rotini
- 1.5 cups cherry tomatoes halved
- 1.5 cups celery chopped
- 1 15 oz can chickpeas rinsed and drained
- 2 tablespoon fresh dill chopped
Hemp Seed Ranch
- ½ cup hemp seeds
- ¾ cup water
- juice from 1 lemon
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 2 teaspoon dried dill
- 1 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Cook your pasta.
- Prep the veggies – chop the celery, halve the cherry tomatoes and chop the fresh dill. Rinse and drain the chickpeas.
- Make the hemp seed ranch by blending all the ingredients in a high-speed blender until smooth.
- Strain the pasta and add into a large mixing bowl. Toss with the dressing, veggies and chickpeas. Garnish with fresh dill.
- Serve and enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
This post is sponsored by Josie’s Organics. I am so honored to partner with such an amazing organic produce company.
Jill says
I just made this tonight and WOW! Your photo looked good, but this is out of this world! It’s now in my regular summer rotation. So easy too!
Danielle Keith says
You made my day! So glad you loved it
Diana says
How many servings does this make?
Danielle Keith says
6-8!
Sally says
such a perfect blend of flavors!
I sub’d raw cashew for the hemp seeds, used 1 large clove of garlic instead of the garlic powder, and added red onion (finely diced) a chopped cucumber and yellow bell pepper, chopped. So delicious!
Emily says
This is a delicious recipe. Thank you!,
Emily says
I make this recipe almost weekly. It is so delicious!! I use navy beans but otherwise make no changes, because it’s perfect. Thank you!!
Jill P. says
Delicious and perfect for potlucks!
JJ says
Hi the pasta salad with chickpea and dill looks great! Is there something missing in dressing to make it creamy like in picture?
Taylor From HealthyGirl Kitchen says
the blended hemp seeds will make it creamy.
Athena says
I would really love to eat this, but I see that calories/macros are never included in your recipes. As someone who’s on a diet and is just overall very conscious about their health in general, this information would be incredibly helpful. Thank you.
Darcie Muise says
I admit it: I am shocked at how good this is. I used hemp hearts (maybe that’s the same as hemp seeds) because that was all the grocery stores in Nova Scotia had. used a 19 ounce can chickpeas, and added some red onion. Wow, so so yummy.
denise says
I’m going to a brunch, can I make this a day in advance? It looks delicious!
Danielle Brown says
Yes!
Erin says
Oh. My. Gosh!!! This is amazing!!! Even my meat eating, picky, standard American diet following Mother LOVED it! She was shocked that something plant-based and so healthy was THIS good. I’m taking it to a 4th of July party and can’t wait for everyone to try it.
Anne White Flores says
This is the BOMB!! Best vegan oil-free ranch ever! Easy, quick, beautiful & scrumptious! Total winner here. This is going to bevin my regular rotation!!
Jordan Stacy says
This pasta salad recipe is soo good – 10/10!!! The hemp seed ranch is one of my favorite homemade dressings ever… I make it weekly!