Ruby Tuesday’s spaghetti salad, cooked from scratch. Rotini pasta, chopped ham, peas, and green pepper create the ideal summer side dish! Bring a pitcher of raspberry ros sangria as well as the fixings for some grilled peaches.
In general, I am not a fan of chain restaurants. I love for discovering small hole-in-the-wall cafés, family-run eateries, and places that exclusively utilize food farmed locally.
Yet there are a few exceptions, and one of them is the Ruby Tuesday salad bar. I adore their salad bar, sweet mama.
On my initial pass, I heap olives, an egg, peas, peppers, carrots, and a smidgeon of lettuce on top of everything. But on my second pass, I add the fruit salad and pasta salad.
I can’t get enough of the pasta salad; I’m not sure what it is about it that makes it so appealing to me.
The Ruby Tuesday nearest to me is, well, not even close. I had a terrible yearning for pasta salad lately, and my sole aim was to create a knockoff recipe (I know, youre shocked).
And although it may not be perfectly accurate, it is quite near.
Contents
- Tips for making copycat Ruby Tuesday pasta salad
- Does it matter what brands I use?
- What kind of ham should I use?
- Do I have to use rotini pasta?
- Chilling is essential for the flavor
- Copycat Ruby Tuesday Pasta Salad
- FAQs
- Should you let pasta cool before making pasta salad?
- Why is my pasta salad not creamy?
- Why does mayo disappear in pasta salad?
- Is it better to make pasta salad the night before?
- Do you rinse pasta after boiling for pasta salad?
- Why do you rinse pasta for pasta salad?
- What if I put too much mayo in my pasta salad?
- Should I salt the water for pasta salad?
- How do you keep pasta from sticking to cold pasta salad?
- How do you reduce the vinegar taste in pasta salad?
Tips for making copycat Ruby Tuesday pasta salad
You just need eight ingredients, most of which you probably already have on hand:
- Rotini is a kind of pasta.
- Ranch seasoning
- Mayonnaise
- Green chili pepper
- Ham
- Peas in the freezer
- Salt
- Pepper
2 Tablespoon kosher salt. Be sure to salt the water in which you’re cooking the pasta. 1 pound of pasta (as used in this recipe) plus at least 1
Cook the pasta until it is just beyond al dente. You don’t want it to be mushy from overcooking, nor do you want it to be rough from not cooking it long enough.
After cooking, be sure to rinse the pasta in cold water. If you rinse it with cold water, it will stop cooking further, so taste it before you remove it from the fire.
In terms of the cold water rinse, the spaghetti does not need to be chilled before dressing. In fact, you’d be doing yourself a disservice if you did! You want to put together the salad with all of the ingredients as soon as possible so that it can absorb all of the flavors.
Does it matter what brands I use?
Not really, in general. Use whichever ranch dressing and mayonnaise brands you choose or have on hand.
For what it’s worth, my go-to condiments are Hellman’s Genuine Mayonnaise and Hidden Valley Ranch.
What kind of ham should I use?
I usually purchase packages of boneless ham steaks from Boars Head and dice them. Each 8-ounce packet contains about 2 cups chopped ham.
Nevertheless, if you happen to have a freshly cooked ham on hand, you may totally use it!
Do I have to use rotini pasta?
Yes, to get as near to the original recipe as possible!
Outside of that, though, absolutely not. You might also use another short pasta form, such as fusilli, penne, cavatappi, or elbow macaroni. Your pals are nooks and crannies! Just be sure to use dried spaghetti rather than fresh since it holds up better in pasta salads.
Chilling is essential for the flavor
The most difficult aspect of this recipe is waiting for it to cool before diving in. I also despise waiting.
Several people have said that it didn’t taste quite right when they tasted it before cooling it in the fridge, and you’re totally correct.
The flavors don’t merge together perfectly until it’s been in the fridge for at least an hour. The good news is that the wait was well worth it!
Additionally, it’s so simple to create a large amount to serve during a summer party, and it can be made ahead of time so you can focus on other essential things the day of the party, such as décor, music, and inflating pretzel-shaped pool floats.
what? Is that just me? Fine.
Copycat Ruby Tuesday Pasta Salad
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Description
Equipment
- a big pot
- Colander
- blending bowls
- Spoon made of wood
Ingredients
- 1 pound of rotini pasta
- 1 cup of ranch dressing
- cupmayonnaise
- 1teaspoonsalt
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1 diced green bell pepper (about 1 cup)
- 2 cups cooked and diced sham (about 1-8 ounce ham steak)
- a cup of frozen peas
Instructions
- Cook the pasta according to the package instructions, then drain and rinse under cool water. Put aside to cool fully.
1 lb rotini pasta - 2 tsp. black pepper
1 teaspoon salt, 2 cups mayonnaise 1
Combine ranch dressing, mayonnaise, salt, and pepper in a large mixing basin.
1 quart ranch dressing - 2 cup peas, frozen
Stir in the green pepper, ham, and peas. Stir in the spaghetti until well combined.
2 cups ham, 1 green bell pepper - Place the bowl in the refrigerator to cool fully.
- Enjoy when cold!
Notes
- Rinse the pasta in cold water once it has finished cooking; this will halt the cooking process entirely and allow it to cool more rapidly.
- In the comments, people have made some AMAZING ideas, including some from actual former Ruby Tuesday workers. If you want to make something more real, look into them. I’m not adding them in my recipe card since it wasn’t my idea, I like my version as is, and I don’t want to give away their secrets without giving them credit.
Nutrition Facts
The recipe was first published in June 2015 and was updated in April 2019 with additional photos.