Make this easy shrimp and pasta salad for your next picnic or potluck! It's made with tiny pink shrimp, pasta, a handful of veggies, and a simple lemon vinaigrette. Ready in 20 minutes.

Photography Credit: Elise Bauer

Here’s a simple and easy shrimp pasta salad! Fresh basil, red bell peppers, red onions, and a lemon and olive oil dressing with just a sprinkle of red chili pepper flakes play so well in this shrimp pasta. You can assemble the whole salad in the time it takes to heat the pasta water and cook the pasta.

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Which Shrimp to Buy

Any small, cooked, peeled shrimp will do. When available, the best shrimp for this salad are the little “pink shrimp” from Maine (so called because they are pink even when they’re raw). Frozen cooked shrimp works well for this recipe because all you have to do is put it in cold water for a few minutes to defrost, and the salad is served chilled.

A Great Potluck Dish!

We’ve made this salad several times, most recently for a potluck where it was a big hit. If bringing to an outdoor gathering, do keep it chilled.

Tips for Making this Shrimp Pasta Salad

You can make this pasta salad a few hours ahead of serving. Keep it chilled in the fridge until ready to serve.

This shrimp pasta salad is best eaten the day it’s made.

The pasta will absorb the dressing the longer it sits. If your salad seems a bit dry when you’re ready to serve, just toss in another tablespoon or two of olive oil and lemon juice.

You can used canned shrimp if that’s what you have, but be sure to rinse the shrimp and drain them very well to avoid a watery salad.

This recipe is easily doubled. Just double all of the ingredients, including the salad dressing.

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