This light and refreshing Zucchini Noodle Pasta Salad is bursting with bold, savory Mediterranean flavors in every bite. Tossed with a tangy homemade dressing, it's the ultimate healthy twist on traditional pasta salad.

FREE EASY KETO DINNERS EBOOK
Jump to:
- ❤️ Why You'll Love This Zucchini Noodle Pasta Salad
- 🛒 Ingredients for Zucchini Noodle Pasta Salad
- 🔪 How to Make Zucchini Pasta Salad
- ☑️ Storage Instructions
- 🍴 What to Serve with Zucchini Pasta Salad"
- 💡 Tips
- 🔄 Substitutions and Additions
- Can I Make This Salad Ahead of Time?
- Is Zucchini Keto? What Are the Carbs in Zucchini?
- Is This Salad Gluten-free?
- What are Some Other Tasty Ways to Eat Zucchini?
- What Other Veggies You Can Spiralize?
- 🍽️ More Keto Salad Recipes
❤️ Why You'll Love This Zucchini Noodle Pasta Salad
- Healthy spin on traditional pasta salad
- Colorful combination of fresh veggies, cheese and salami
- Tossed in an easy homemade dressing
- Quick and easy to make
- Perfect for potlucks or BBQ's
Zucchini Noodle Pasta Salad is everything you love about a classic pasta salad, but with a fresh, healthy twist. Spiralized zucchini noodles replace traditional pasta, making this dish lower in carbs while still delivering all the texture and flavor you crave. It’s loaded with colorful veggies, creamy mozzarella, and salty salami, creating a perfect balance of crunch, creaminess, and zest.
But let’s not forget the incredible homemade dressing! It’s super simple to make and it's packed with vibrant Mediterranean herbs. Whether you're prepping for a potluck or adding something bright to your BBQ spread, this salad is quick, easy, and guaranteed to impress all your friends and family.
If you love zesty salad, you should also try my other Greek Zucchini Salad or this Easy Greek Salad with Dressing.
🛒 Ingredients for Zucchini Noodle Pasta Salad
- Zucchini
- Cucumber
- Cherry tomatoes
- Mozzarella cheese
- Kalamata olives
- Marinated artichoke hearts (with liquid)
- Salami
- Pepperoncini
- Olive oil
- White wine vinegar
- Garlic
- Dion mustard
- Fresh parsley
- Salt
- Ground black pepper
*Exact measurements are listed in the recipe card below.
🥣 Recommended Tools
- Mixing bowl
- Veggie spiralizer
- Serving salad bowl
- Salad dressing shaker or whisk and mixing bowl
🔪 How to Make Zucchini Pasta Salad
Add the dressing ingredients into the salad dressing shaker. If you don't have a shaker, you can use a mixing bowl and a whisk.
Shake until well combined and emulsified. Then set aside while you make the salad.
Cut the ends off your washed and dried zucchini. Spiralize them using your spiralizer and cut them into small pieces to make it easier to eat.
Add the zucchini noodles to a large mixing bowl.
Add in the sliced cucumber, tomatoes, salami, pepperoncini, Kalamata olives, artichoke hearts and fresh chopped parsley.
Pour the dressing over the top, then toss to combine.
It's ready to serve, though it's best to chill in the fridge for at least 1 hour before serving.
☑️ Storage Instructions
It's really recommended that you make and serve this low carb zoodle salad fresh or having marinated for a few hours in the fridge. Because of the varying ingredients in it, it's not recommended for freezing.
But because this easy Keto salad comes together so quickly, you can have it ready and on the table in no time!
🍴 What to Serve with Zucchini Pasta Salad"
- These Keto Baked Cheese Crisp Crackers add a delightful texture contrast and are perfect for scooping up every bit of your salad.
- Keto Ranch Crackers are infused with zesty ranch flavor that complements the fresh flavors of the salad beautifully.
- Juicy Grilled Skirt Steak Chimichurri is a flavorful beef entrée that complements the salad's fresh ingredients.
- This Keto Chicken Milanese is made with pan-fried chicken cutlets, pairs wonderfully with the lightness of the zucchini salad.
- Crock pot Sausage and Peppers is a savory dish with robust flavors that work well with the fresh, tanginess of the salad.
- This easy Keto Eggplant Parmesan is a comforting, cheesy entrée that pairs nicely with the crisp vegetables and zesty dressing of the salad.
- Creamy and hearty Keto Beef Stroganoff Casserole is a comforting main dish that works well with any salad.
- This Garlic Butter Shrimp and Veggies Skillet is a quick and delicious seafood option that pairs excellently with the salad.
💡 Tips
- Spiralizer: If you don’t have a spiralizer, use a vegetable peeler to create thin zucchini ribbons.
- Pat dry: Lightly pat the noodles with paper towels to remove excess moisture and prevent a soggy salad.
- Chill: Let the salad sit in the fridge for at least an hour for the flavors to meld beautifully.
- Fresh herbs: Fresh parsley adds a vibrant touch, but fresh basil or dill would also work wonderfully.
- Taste and adjust the dressing: Everyone’s palate is different, so adjust the salt, vinegar, or oil to suit your preference.
🔄 Substitutions and Additions
Honestly, the possibilities are endless with this low carb salad and can certainly be tailored according to your personal taste. Here're some variations that often work really well:
- Dressing: If you don't want to use balsamic dressing, you can simply use extra virgin olive oil and a little lemon juice as a dressing or any other of your favorite low carb dressings.
- Cheese: If feta cheese isn't your thing, you can used shaved parmesan instead.
- Mushrooms: For a really great addition, these Marinated Mushrooms, are fantastic sliced and mixed in with the salad.
- Olives: Most grocery stores have an olive bar that offers a variety of mixed olives. These make a wonderful change and add even more color to this salad.
- Add some crunch: Sliced yellow or red bell peppers are a great idea! Or even pecans or walnuts will add some crunch, if you'd like.
- Kick of heat: If you want to add a little more heat, you can substitute the pepperoncini peppers for jalapeno rings.
Can I Make This Salad Ahead of Time?
Yes, this salad can be made a day in advance. Add the dressing just before serving to keep the veggies crisp.
Is Zucchini Keto? What Are the Carbs in Zucchini?
Zucchini is a versatile Keto friendly vegetable. For a one cup serving, there are only 3 net carbs in zucchini. It can be eaten raw or cooked in many Keto main courses. Not only is it ideal as a pasta replacement, Zucchini is the perfect Keto side dish.
It's not only a low carb veggie, it's also very nutritious. It is loaded with vitamins A and C, is a great anti-oxidant and is a wonderful source of fiber!
Is This Salad Gluten-free?
Yes, the recipe is naturally gluten-free since it swaps traditional pasta for zucchini noodles.
What are Some Other Tasty Ways to Eat Zucchini?
- Use zucchini boats as a carrier for all your favorite low carb toppings. These Lasagna Stuffed Zucchini Boats make and excellent Keto entrée.
- Did you know that zucchini could even be dessert? Well it can. Try them in these delicious Chocolate Zucchini Muffins. Your kids will love them and they'll never know what the secret ingredient is.
- Are missing something crunchy? These gluten free Zucchini Fries make the perfect Keto side dish. And the sugar free dipping sauce is just out of this world delicious!
- You can also thinly slice zucchini and use it as pasta sheets in Keto Zucchini Lasagna! Your family will love you for this one. The meat sauce is amazing!
What Other Veggies You Can Spiralize?
If you hate kitchen gadgets with a single purpose, then you'll love your spiralizer. This gadget can make meal prep a breeze when you need things sliced in julienne form or want your fruit for the kids spiralized for a fruit salad.
You can use it with bell pepper, summer squash, cucumbers, cabbage and onions. It makes salad prep a breeze but it can also help veggie prep for stir fry and other quick cook meals.
For more meal prep tips and tricks, check out this article, 25 Meal Prep Ideas.
🍽️ More Keto Salad Recipes
- Asian Grilled Chicken Salad
- Greek Salad with Dressing
- Grilled Shrimp Salad with Apricot Dressing
- "Big Mac" Cheeseburger Salad
- Cauliflower "Potato" Salad
- Jalapeno Popper Egg Salad
- Broccoli Salad with Bacon
- Classic Cobb Salad with Ranch Dressing
FREE 20 EASY KETO RECIPES EBOOK
Zucchini Noodle Pasta Salad
Ingredients
For the Salad
- 2 large zucchini, spiralized
- ½ English cucumber, sliced and quartered
- ¾ cup cherry tomatoes, halved
- ½ cup Salami, sliced and quartered
- ½ cup mozzarella cheese pearls
- ½ cup marinated artichoke hearts, chopped (liquid reserved)
- ¼ cup Kalamata olives, halved
- ¼ cup pepperoncini, sliced
- 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
For the Dressing
- ¼ cup olive oil
- ¼ cup white wine vinegar
- 2 tablespoons reserved artichoke hearts marinade
- 1 clove garlic, grated
- 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
Instructions
To Make the Dressing
- Add the dressing ingredients into the salad dressing shaker. If you don't have a shaker, you can use a mixing bowl and a whisk.
- Shake until well combined and emulsified. Then set aside while you make the salad.
To Make the Salad
- Cut the ends off your washed and dried zucchini. Spiralize them using your spiralizer and cut them into small pieces to make it easier to eat.
- Add the zucchini noodles to a large mixing bowl. Add in the sliced cucumber, tomatoes, salami, pepperoncini, Kalamata olives, artichoke hearts and fresh chopped parsley.
- Pour the dressing over the top, then toss to combine. It's ready to serve, though it's best to chill in the fridge for at least 1 hour before serving.
*Make sure to scroll up and read the post for substitutions, additions and helpful tips for making this recipe.
*Nutritional data is provided as a courtesy and is accurate to the best of my knowledge. You can verify it using the nutrition calculator of your choice. All data is based on net carbs, without sugar alcohol: Swerve, Erythritol, Monk Fruit or Allulose.
© Copyright for Keto Cooking Christian LLC. Please use the share buttons to share on social media, but please do not copy/paste the recipe.
Rate this Recipe*Originally published on March 9, 2019, updated on February 25, 2025 with improvements to the recipe, new photos, new recipe information and helpful tips.
Emily
I rarely leave comments, but this was so good I had to! I didn’t miss the noodles at all and the flavor of the creamy balsamic dressing combined with the feta and kalamata olives was spot on. This might be my new favorite salad!
Keto Cooking Christian
Oh, how I love hearing this! I am so glad you enjoyed it.
Kerri Martin
Do you cook the spiral zucchini or leave it raw
Keto Cooking Christian
I leave mine raw, but you can cook it slightly if you'd like.
Gail
A new summer go+to for me! Only change I made was using giardinarra for pepperocini. I highly recommend using the creamy balsamic as .mentioned here. Another new favorite!
Keto Cooking Christian
Sounds fabulous!
Marji
This looks really yummy, but I live in Australia and I haven’t been able to find Swerve Brown Sugar. Is there a way around this!
I love today’s verse too. Last week an uncle of mine who lives in Virginia was buried. My comfort is in knowing he is now with our Saviour in heaven and I will see him when I get there.
Keto Cooking Christian
Hi Marji,
I'm so sorry to hear about your uncle! But as you said, you can rest knowing he is with our Lord and in a much better place than we are. You will get to spend eternity with him and our Lord, what a comfort indeed! On the brown swerve, I'm not sure if granular would work instead, because I've never tried it. If there is another brown sugar substitute that is available to you there, that should work. Like brown sugar, it gives it a molasses sort of flavor and texture that's different from regular erythritol. I'm not sure what else you could try honestly, possibly a tiny bit (1/2 teaspoon maybe) of blackstrap molasses and a few drops of maple extract?
Natasha
Hi Marji, you can get Sukrin Gold in Australia which is a brown sugar substitute.
https://sukrin.com.au/collections/sweeteners/products/sukrin-gold-500g