Greek Salad Pasta (Tomato, Feta and Olive)

Dinner can be on the table in less than 15 minutes with this easy midweek after work supper dish, inspired by the classic Greek salad. This vegetarian Greek salad pasta dish will transport you the islands and villages of Greece.

Greek Salad Pasta

Pasta makes an excellent after-work midweek staple – comforting, easy and super speedy, which is just what you need after a busy day at work and a long crowded commute home.

This Greek salad pasta made with tomato, feta and olives is perfect all year round – best served with a glass of wine.

This dish uses a few pantry and fridge staples all of which can be picked up from the corner shop or local supermarket on the way home.

A great midweek after work supper

This delicious Greek salad pasta is a fusion dish that would probably horrify both Greeks and Italians, but as I’m neither, I’ve no qualms about making dishes like this. Obviously this isn’t in anyway authentic, and I’d never pretend it is, but it is delicious, quick and easy which ticks all my boxes for a stress free supper.

Making the sauce takes about the same time as cooking the pasta, so dinner can be on the table in double quick time. Pasta with a simple sauce of tomato, onion, olives, feta and oregano, serve with some cubes of cucumber.

When shopping for this dish select pitted olives in oil if possible, it doesn’t matter if they are black or green, and the most fragrant vine tomatoes you can find.

We’ve given amounts for two people, but it’s easy to scale this recipe depending on how many people you’re feeding, or double it up and take the leftovers to work the next day as a packed lunch.

How to make Greek Salad Pasta

Step one – Start cooking the pasta in a large saucepan of salted boiling water. Use your largest pan, the pasta needs room to move as it cooks.

Generally boiling the kettle to fill the pan is faster and more energy efficient than heating the water on the stove top.

Step two – Pour a good glug of olive oil into a large frying pan. Fry the red onion and garlic with a sprinkling of salt, until it starts to go soft, add a good pinch of oregano. Chop the tomatoes, and add to the frying pan along with the olives.

Add a few spoons of the pasta water to the sauce – the starchy water helps coat the pasta and adds a silkiness to the sauce.   I find that adding pasta water also makes it less likely that I’ll add another glug of oil to the dish.

Step three – strain the pasta when cooked and give it a good shake.

Step four – Add the pasta to the sauce in the frying pan and stir to mix. Add the cubed feta, check the seasoning, and stir gently a couple of times. Serve immediately with some freshly chopped parsley or chives.

I like to serve a few ribbons of cucumber on the side of this dish for that all important portion of extra veg.

Our top tips for Greek Salad Pasta

• Use whatever pasta you have, but this recipe works particularly well with larger shapes.
• It’s very easy when cooking pasta to cook far too much. We have learnt to always weigh out a portion of pasta; about 60g is a generous portion per person.
• If the tomatoes in the shops look insipid, pale, watery and lacking in flavour, then you can use sun dried tomatoes as a substitute.
• Olives should be pitted, if possible. If you only have olives with stones, then just think of it as an opportunity to play tinker, tailor!
• If your jarred olives come in olive oil then use that oil for frying the onion and garlic.
• Slice leftover jarred olives and free freeze them before packing into a plastic tub then cook from frozen, that way you don’t forget all about them and they go mouldy at the back of the fridge.

How to use leftover feta

Feta will keep for several months in a sealed packet in the fridge before you open it, once opened store in an airtight box in the fridge and eat within 5 days.

Leftover feta can be used in all sorts of ways

• In my spicy chicken pasta
• In my feta filo pie
• Sprinkled onto a shop pizza to jazz it up
• Crumbled over soup
• In salads – feta is especially delicious when paired with watermelon
• Whizzed with some Greek yogurt and oregano into a dip

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Greek Salad Pasta

Prep Time

5 mins

Cook Time

10 mins

Total Time

15 mins

 

Dinner can be on the table in less than 15 minutes with this easy after work tomato, feta and olive based pasta dish, inspired by the classic Greek salad. This Greek salad pasta dish will transport you the islands and villages of Greece.

Course: Light Meal, Main

Cuisine: Fusion, Greek, Italian

Keyword: weeknight supper

Servings: 2 servings

Calories: 396 kcal

Author: Helen Best-Shaw

Ingredients

• 120 g pasta
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 small red onion (peeled and sliced)
• 1 clove garlic (peeled and sliced)
• 1 tbs black olives (sliced)
• 1 tbs green olives (sliced)
• 150 g tomatoes (chopped)
• 1 tsp oregano
• 50 g Greek feta (cubed)
• salt and pepper (to taste)

Instructions

1. Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil and add the pasta.

2. Pour a good glug of olive oil into a large frying pan. Fry the red onion and garlic with a sprinkling of salt, until it starts to go soft, add a good pinch of oregano. Chop the tomatoes, and add to the frying pan along with the olives.

3. Add a few spoons of the pasta water to the sauce - the starchy water helps coat the pasta and adds a silkiness to the sauce.

4. Strain the pasta when cooked and give it a good shake

5. Add the pasta to the sauce in the frying pan and stir to mix. Add the cubed feta, check the seasoning, and stir gently a couple of times. Serve immediately with some freshly chopped parsley or chives.

Recipe Notes

• Use whatever pasta you have, but this recipe works particularly well with larger shapes.
• It's very easy when cooking pasta to cook far too much. We have learnt to always weigh about 60g is a generous portion per person. 
• If the tomatoes in the shops look insipid, pale, watery and lacking in flavour, then you can use sun dried tomatoes as a substitute
• Olives should be pitted, if possible. If you only have olives with stones, then just think of it as an opportunity to play tinker, tailor!
• If your jarred olives come in olive oil then use that oil for frying the onion and garlic.
• Slice leftover jarred olives and free freeze them before packing into a plastic tub then cook from frozen, that way you don't forget all about them and they go moldy at the back of the fridge.

NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION

• This recipe is 13 Weight Watchers Smart Points per portion

Nutrition Facts

Greek Salad Pasta

Amount Per Serving (2 servings)

Calories 396 Calories from Fat 126

% Daily Value*

Fat 14g22%

Saturated Fat 5g31%

Cholesterol 22mg7%

Sodium 412mg18%

Potassium 332mg9%

Carbohydrates 54g18%

Fiber 3g13%

Sugar 6g7%

Protein 12g24%

Vitamin A 520IU10%

Vitamin C 11.4mg14%

Calcium 156mg16%

Iron 1.4mg8%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

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Update Notes: This recipe was originally posted in 2012, but was rewritten and republished with new photos, step by step instructions and hints & tips in February 2019.