Greek Pasta Salad, Trail Version
Cook, drain, dress, eat cold out of the pot. Olives and feta do the work.
- calories
- 720
- weight
- 6 oz
- cal / oz
- 120
- protein
- 19 g
- serves
- 2, scales
- prep
- 5 min
- cook
- 12 min
- total time
- 17 min
- water
- 900 ml boiled
- cost
- $$
Calorie and protein figures are my own estimates, good enough for planning a food bag and not meant as precise nutrition data.
- Dinner
- Lunch
- Canister stove
- Liquid fuel
- Campfire coals
- Car camping
- Basecamp
- Backpacking
- Canoe / raft
- Vegetarian
- Nut free
- One pot
- Pre-mix at home
- Shelf stable
- Basic
Ingredients
| Small dry pasta | 6 oz | rotini or elbows; gluten-free rotini works |
|---|---|---|
| Sun-dried tomatoes | 1/3 cup | the dry-packed kind, chopped at home |
| Pitted kalamata olives | 1/3 cup | shelf-stable pouch, not a jar of brine |
| Feta | 3 oz | vacuum pouch; day one only, or use a dried feta powder |
| Olive oil | 3 tbsp | dropper bottle |
| Red wine vinegar | 2 tbsp | small leakproof bottle |
| Spicy brown mustard | 1 tsp | single-serve packets |
| Dried oregano | 1 tsp | |
| Dried basil | 1 tsp | |
| Garlic powder | 1/2 tsp | |
| Onion powder | 1/2 tsp | |
| Salt and black pepper | 1/2 tsp total | |
| Dried cucumber or freeze-dried peas | 1/4 cup | optional, stands in for fresh cucumber |
Method
- Boil 900 ml of water. Add the pasta and the sun-dried tomatoes together so the tomatoes rehydrate while the pasta cooks.
- Cook until the pasta is just soft, about 9 minutes. Drain into a spare bottle or off the side of the pot. Keep the water for a drink or for washing up.
- Let the pot sit uncovered for a few minutes. Hot pasta thins the dressing and melts the cheese into paste.
- Shake the oil, vinegar, mustard, herbs, garlic and onion powder, salt, and pepper in a small bottle until it goes cloudy. Pour it over the pasta.
- Stir in the olives and the dried cucumber, then crumble the feta over the top and fold it in once. Eat warm or let it cool while you set up camp.
The original is a picnic salad built on fresh cucumber, grape tomatoes, and a cold fridge. None of that travels. Sun-dried tomatoes replace the grape tomatoes and rehydrate in the pasta water for free. Cucumber is mostly water and adds nothing once dried, so it is optional here. The olives and feta are the parts worth carrying: both are salty, both are fatty, and both survive a day in a pack without refrigeration.
Drain well and wait before dressing. Wet pasta dilutes the vinegar and the whole thing goes flat. The mustard is not a flavor note, it is an emulsifier, and it is the reason the oil and vinegar cling to the pasta instead of pooling at the bottom of the pot.
Packing
Pasta, tomatoes, and the spice mix go in one bag. Oil, vinegar, and mustard ride in bottles inside a second bag, because they will leak eventually. Feta stays in its unopened pouch until camp.
Variations
- Skip the feta and add 2 tbsp of nutritional yeast for a vegan version that still tastes salty and sharp.
- A foil pouch of tuna or a handful of dried salami turns the side dish into a full dinner.
- No stove: cold-soak the pasta and tomatoes in cold water for two hours, drain, then dress.
https://dontwastethecrumbs.com/yummy-recipe-greek-pasta-salad-greek-salad-dressing