Crab Salad with Pasta is an irresistibly delicious side dish perfect for cookouts with hamburgers and hot dogs. This recipe uses imitation crab as it’s more cost-effective and easily accessible; real crab could also be substituted if desired.
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, add pasta noodles, and boil for al dente texture before draining and rinsing with cold water for quick cooling down.
Ingredients
Make this delicious crab pasta salad by mixing sour cream, low-fat mayonnaise (low-fat or both), lemon juice, honey mustard sauce, fresh dill leaves, fresh peppercorns, and fresh onions together in a mixing bowl. Also necessary is shell pasta of any variety (natural or imitation), along with red and green bell peppers and onions for color contrast.
Cook the pasta according to package directions until al dente while you chop vegetables. Once finished, drain and immediately rinse it under cold water in order to cool it quickly.
While your pasta cools, mix the sour cream mixture, vegetables, and crab meat together in a large bowl. Once the pasta has finished cooling down, stir in the creamy sauce mixture until fully covered by it; toss well to combine flavors before seasoning to your taste!
Crab pasta salad makes an excellent complement to BBQ classics like hamburgers and hotdogs, or it can stand alone as an appetizer. Crab salad can also pair well with roasted vegetables, breads, dips or sandwiches, and wraps!
As a low-calorie option try serving this salad in lettuce boats or cucumber cups for an easy, low-calorie option. It also tastes fantastic stuffed inside an avocado! For even more creative Crab Salad With Pasta ideas, check out our Pinterest board! Be sure to make this pasta salad ahead of your meal time, as the ingredients require time to chill before being assembled into one delicious salad dish!
Prep Time
This delicious salad features imitation crabmeat paired with pasta and peppers in a creamy-tangy dressing for a tasty dish that pairs nicely with chicken, fish, or vegetarian fare. Go ahead and refrigerate before enjoying!
This creamy and tart dressing is made with mayonnaise (preferably low fat), reduced-fat ranch dressing, white sugar, minced parsley and Old Bay seasoning or celery salt for its classic seafood taste. Feel free to customize it however you like: add or substitute vegetables or fruits you desire and swap out pasta shapes like farfalle, rotini, or elbow macaroni as desired!
Replace imitation crab with other seafood such as cooked chopped shrimp or salmon and shrimp, or include veggies such as celery or shallots, green or red bell peppers, black olives, or shredded carrots as desired – even adding extra seasonings such as paprika or hot sauce can enhance this dish!
To start off this recipe, bring a large pot of salted water to boil and follow the pasta package instructions when cooking your pasta. Drain and rinse well to speed cooling before combining your pasta, crab salad, and other ingredients into one large serving bowl and stirring regularly throughout its refrigeration for 8 hours or overnight storage in your refrigerator.
Cook Time
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, add dry pasta noodles, and cook according to package directions for al dente (approximately 8 minutes). Drain, run cold water over it, and set aside while the pasta cooks. In the meantime, combine sour cream, mayonnaise, lemon juice (fresh or bottled), honey mustard dill & seasonings in a large bowl until creamy; stir into this mix cooked shell pasta imitation crab meat chopped veggies until everything has been evenly distributed throughout.
This seafood salad should be served cold. Cover and chill it for at least one hour or overnight prior to refrigerating; if necessary, gently reheat in either the microwave or stovetop before resuming preparations.
Although this recipe calls for imitation crab, you could easily substitute fresh lump crab if desired. Although fresh crab prices have skyrocketed recently, imitation crab can usually be purchased more cost-effectively from most grocery stores.
Add some shredded carrots, black olives, and/or green peas for even more nutritional variety in this hearty salad recipe! Not only is this an ideal recipe to bring on picnics or camping trips, but it can also be enjoyed at BBQs and potlucks as a side dish or as part of a complete meal by pairing it with sandwiches, chips, and dill pickle dip or monster cookies!
Total Time
This creamy pasta salad, bursting with large shrimp, chunks of imitation crab meat, and plenty of vegetables, is simply irresistible! Perfect as a summer side dish or picnic/potluck salad idea that should be eaten slightly chilled.
To begin making this crab salad, bring a large pot of lightly salted water to boil and follow package directions for shell cooking until al dente; drain and run cold water over them after draining to stop their further development and set aside. Next, whisk together sour cream, mayonnaise, honey mustard, lemon juice, parsley dill, and salt together until creamy in another large bowl; combine this mixture with cooked pasta, veggies, imitation crab meat, herbs, and seasonings from above into an irresistibly creamy salad before tossing together cooked pasta veggies alongside imitation crab meat before refrigerating for at least an hour before refining for at least an hour prior to refining and refining for at least an hour prior to refining for one hour after prep before refining for at least an hour before refining!
This dish uses imitation crab meat, although you could switch it out for real crab if desired. Customization options abound: add or omit vegetables/herbs as desired and switch out Italian salad dressing for ranch or bleu cheese instead if you wish!
Make this crab salad at least 24 hours prior to serving so the flavors have time to develop and combine. However, you can still enjoy this seafood pasta salad by simply serving it straight from the fridge!
