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Clean Out Your Fridge To Make A Pasta Salad Without A Recipe

Those last few frozen broccoli florets. A little bit of diced dill pickle. Two kinds of pasta — farfalle and giant shells. And those items are just the beginning. When it comes to making up a flavorful pasta salad from the odds and ends in your refrigerator, pretty much anything goes.

This kind of smorgasbord pasta salad starts with the noodles. In a pinch, you can use any pasta — even ramen noodles if that's your thing. However, if you're trying to be more intentional about it, look for pasta that'll soak up and hold onto the dressing you're going to dress the salad with. In light of this, you may want something like a ziti, bowties, large shells, penne, or even elbow macaroni. 

If you're really scraping the bottom of the barrel and trying to use up an assortment of pastas, you can do that, too. Just be aware that some pastas may cook at a different rate than others, so you'll want to cook them accordingly. For example, elbow macaroni needs between nine and 12 minutes to cook, while ziti pastas may only require about eight minutes of stove time. In this scenario, the elbow macaroni goes into the pasta pot a couple of minutes before the ziti would since the macaroni takes a bit longer. 

Finally, you'll want to allow the pasta to cool before you add in any other ingredients — unless you like hot pasta salad. Just drop the ingredients in as you find them and stir.

Ingredient ideas from the fridge and freezer

Start looking for ingredients for the salad by "shopping" your fridge. Diced pickles have already been mentioned, and both the sweet and sour varieties work. It's just a matter of preference. Once you move beyond pickles, search the crisper drawer for those last few carrots in your mini carrot bag and chop those up into bite-sized chunks. As well, if you keep block cheeses or mozzarella cheese sticks in there, cube them up and toss them in.

Other raw veggies to work into the salad include sliced green onions, a leftover bell pepper, brown or white mushrooms, celery, cucumbers, fresh zucchini squash, and even different kinds of sprouts. Alfalfa or broccoli sprouts, in particular, add crunch and freshness.

You're not limited to just veggies, either. If you have some roasted chicken, leftover beef from those fajitas the other night, or pulled pork, those items are fair game, too. Do note that any seasonings you have on leftover meats will flavor the salad, so get creative. Fajita meat, for example, gives your salad a Tex-Mex vibe, so dress the salad accordingly by adding salsa, avocados, and corn to the mix if you have them.

Finally, look in the freezer. Frozen green peas, organic corn, and bagged Asian stir-fry mix count among the tastiest ingredients you'll find. Just heat them in hot water to pull the frozen off, and they're ready to go into your salad with the rest of the fixins.

What to look for in the pantry

Not all of the ingredients that go into your salad come from the fridge. Some of the yummiest ones are hiding in the depths of your pantry. Many proteins that could go into the salad, like your favorite canned tuna brand, are there. Other canned meats to try include chicken, crab, or shrimp. Many of your sprinkle cheeses, like dried Happy Belly Parmesan cheese, live in the cupboard before they're opened, so you might pull those out. They're great for adding some smokiness to the salad after the dressing goes on.

Some of the best veggies for pasta salads are also found in the cupboard. Olives, artichoke hearts, bamboo shoots, canned corn, green chiles, and mushrooms present great options. On a similar note, if you keep canned beans in the pantry, kidney, black, and pinto beans add flavor and fiber, plus some amazing textural elements that you won't find anywhere else.

Finally, if you stash your condiments in the cupboard, you'll want to pull those out, too. Most types of salad dressing work for pasta salad, with ranch, including spicy ranch, blue cheese, and Italian being some of the most popular options. Those go into the salad once you've filled it with all the other ingredients, adding a creamy savoriness that helps tie all the flavors together in each bite.

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