Creamy Lemon Dill Pasta Salad
Sunshine In A Bowl
Creamy Lemon Dill Pasta Salad is bright tasting delight made with a sour cream and mayo based dressing that offers earthy flavors to balance the citrus. You will enjoy the crunch of celery, cucumber, and red onion in this delicious, creamy pasta salad.
We were having our cousins over yesterday who just had their second baby. I was making a new chicken meatball recipe and I wanted a side dish that wasn’t a potato or rice.
I was thinking about a Lemon and dill pasta salad for a long time and came up with this Creamy Lemon Dill Pasta Salad. This salad is very bright tasting and is perfect for the warm weather most of us are still in the midst of.
The recipe is super easy to make and uses pretty basic ingredients as you will see in the recipe card below. I will highlight a couple of ingredients that may not be familiar to everyone.
Mexican Crema For The Unique Flavor
I love using Mexican Crema or Mexican Sour Cream. It has a milder and slightly sweeter taste than regular sour cream.
Using this crema rounds out the very sour flavor of the fresh lemon juice used in this recipe. I use this same ingredient in my Cheddar Sour Cream Pasta Salad and also in my Ranch Dressing Hack.
You can find this crema in most grocery stores. You may have just never looked for it, but it is usually there.
If you cannot find it, you can add a little sugar and a splash of milk to regular sour cream to mimic the flavor and texture of the Mexican crema. The crema is usually pretty runny compared to thick sour cream.
Hang Out With Veggies
I like to let the vegetables hang out for a bit in some of the seasonings and the vinegar. This gives them a chance to macerate.
Basically they make their own “juice” which gives this salad a great flavor. If you have the time, prep the vegetables a couple of hours beforehand so that they get extra juicy.
This wall make your dressing even better tasting!
Yes! Lettuce In Pasta Salad
I have no idea if this is a Midwestern thing or what, but every time I post about the addition of lettuce in a pasta salad, SOME people lose their minds. To me, lettuce in a pasta salad is quite common.
I have been making my Tangy Tomato BLT Pasta Salad this way for years and it is always a hit!
There is also lettuce in my delicious Caesar Chicken Pasta Salad. Everyone also loves this salad!
Creamy Lemon Dill Pasta Salad Recipe
Creamy Lemon Dill Pasta Salad is a light and bright tasting pasta salad made with rotini pasta, cucumbers, celery, red onion, and a cool and creamy dressing made from mayonnaise, sour cream, lemon, and dill. This salad will have all your guests asking for the recipe.
Ingredients
- 1 box of Rotini Pasta (16 ounces)
- 3/4 cup of Mayonnaise
- 1/2 cup of Sour Cream (I prefer to use the Mexican Crema that is pictured in the post before the recipe card)
- 4 tablespoons of Red Wine Vinegar *divided
- 2 tablespoons of Dried Dill
- 1/2 tablespoon of Lemon Pepper
- 1/2 tablespoon of White Sugar
- 1 Lemon
- 1 small to medium Red Onion
- 1 seedless Cucumber
- 3 Celery Ribs
- 1/4 cup of finely sliced Chives
- 1 head of Romaine Lettuce
- Salt and Pepper
Instructions
- Wash and drain all the vegetables, then pat dry. Boil the pasta according to package directions, drain, and rinse with cold water.
- Dice the onion and celery into a fine dice and add to a bowl. Then cut the cucumber into small, bite sized quarter pieces and add to the bowl as well.
- Sprinkle the diced veggies with one tablespoon of the red wine vinegar, a sprinkle of the white sugar, add a sprinkle of salt and pepper, a sprinkle of lemon pepper, and some of the dried dill. Seasoning measurements are a suggestion so add a little at a time and taste. You will be adding the same seasonings to the dressing which is why I don't add too much to the veggies. Give the veggies a good stir and let them sit to the side. You can even make these a couple hours before and let them sit for more flavor.
- In a large bowl, add the mayo, sour cream, remaining red wine vinegar, remaining dill, lemon pepper, and sugar as well as all the juice from the one lemon. Whisk together, add salt and pepper if needed, and adjust the seasonings if needed by tasting and adding more.
- Add the diced veggies to the dressing and toss well to coat. Next, add the cooked and rinsed and drained pasta and toss well to coat.
- Before serving, chop the romaine lettuce and toss into the salad. Top the salad with lemon slices and a sprinkle of dried dill and black pepper. I also added very finely sliced chives since I had them growing in the garden.