Seafood Pasta Salad

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Upgrade your summer cookout with this crowd-pleaser.

Seafood Pasta Salad
Photo: Photographer and props: Jennifer Causey Food Stylist: Emily Nabors Hall
Active Time:
25 mins
Total Time:
45 mins
Servings:
8

This summertime salad is a hearty mix of shrimp, bell pepper, grape tomatoes, celery, and scallions coated in a flavorful, mayonnaise-based dressing. If you have cooked crawfish or crab on hand, they both work great as an option instead of shrimp too. While any shaped pasta will do, we love a good theme. Medium-sized pasta shells not only play up the sea-inspired fun, but they also work wonders to capture the salad's flavor inside the "cup" of the pasta. A welcomed departure from your typical pasta salad, this Seafood Pasta Salad has a little bit of a kick thanks to a touch of Tabasco. If you're not able to find Creole mustard, whole grain mustard works well as a substitute. To revive tight and cold pasta salad, try stirring in a bit of milk. It will loosen the salad up, and you can add in any seasoning again before serving if needed.

Ingredients

  • 12 ounces uncooked medium pasta shells

  • 1 cup mayonnaise

  • 1 tablespoon Creole mustard (such as Zatarain's)

  • 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice (from 1 lemon)

  • 1 teaspoon Creole seasoning (such as Tony Chachere's)

  • ¾ teaspoon hot sauce (such as Tabasco)

  • Pinch of kosher salt

  • 1 (16-oz.) pkg. frozen peeled cooked extra-small shrimp, thawed

  • 1 small (8 oz.) red bell pepper, chopped (about 1 1/4 cups)

  • 1 cup halved multicolored grape tomatoes

  • ½ cup finely chopped celery (from 2 medium [2 1/2 oz. total] celery stalks)

  • 1/3 cup thinly sliced scallions (from 2 large [1/2 oz. each] scallions)

  • 1/3 cup thinly sliced fresh chives

  • 1/3 cup finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Directions

  1. Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain. Spread pasta on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Let cool completely, about 20 minutes.

  2. Stir together mayonnaise, mustard, lemon juice, Creole seasoning, hot sauce, and salt in a large bowl. Gently stir in cooled pasta, shrimp, bell pepper, tomatoes, celery, scallions, chives, and parsley until thoroughly coated. Serve immediately, or store in an airtight container in refrigerator up to 2 days.

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