A copycat recipe for Ruby Tuesday Pasta Salad just like they serve on their salad bar! Easy to make with just a few ingredients.
Using pre-diced ham purchased from the store shaves a bit of time off of the preparation.
Diced and cubed ham are available at most major grocery stores and I find that it is actually cheaper than other types of ham.
In addition, the pieces of meat are pretty darn even.
We use this ham for omelets, pasta salads, and recipes that call for leftover ham.
Make sure to test your pasta before draining off your hot water.
Sometimes the opinion at a macaroni factory is different from mine.
Al Dente means to the tooth, not crunchy like a Dorito in the middle…………
Even after an extra minute of cooking, I have had pasta come out of the water like it was half cooked.
I always add an extra minute to every mass-produced pasta just for this reason.
Rotini, penne, and bowties all seem to need more than an extra minute, so taste it first.
Rinse the pasta in cold water once it has been drained.
Rinsing pasta serves 2 purposes. It stops the cooking process and it rinses away the extra starch.
I know you are not supposed to rinse pasta.
Starch has its place in pasta dishes, just not macaroni and pasta salad.
The key to moist and creamy pasta salad is to get rid of all that starch.
The next key is to make sure the pasta is completely cooled. Hot and warm pasta will absorb the liquid.
While the pasta is cooling, drain the diced ham on paper towels to remove some of the salty liquid that the ham was packaged in.
I know we want the ranch pasta salad to be moist and creamy, but all this extra liquid will make it sloppy and salty.
Even with removing all of the extra starch, you might find that your macaroni salad goes dry after sitting for some time.
It tastes great since all of that flavor got absorbed into the pasta, but it won’t be quite as creamy.
You can add a bit more buttermilk or mayonnaise to the salad.
Or you can set some of the dressing and fixings aside for adding just before serving.
Or, you could make more dressing mix to add to the pasta right before serving.
When trying to achieve the same salad as that served at salad buffets you need to remember that those salads are probably hitting the buffet table almost immediately after mixing.
There just isn’t room in for them to save mass amounts of pre-made goods in a commercial kitchen.
It’s just as easy to mix it all up fresh as it is to add more of anything to the salad.
Ranch dressing out a bottle can be used as a substitute for the buttermilk, the dry ranch dressing, and all but 1/2 cup of the mayonnaise.
I prefer the flavor of ranch dressing when I have made it myself with Hidden Valley Ranch dry mix.
I suspect most restaurants are doing the same. It’s cheaper this way.
I buy it in the 16-ounce jar size since I use it for a lot.
Especially during the holidays and tailgate season when I seem to be cranking out spicy pretzels and spiced crackers for entertaining.
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Ranch Pasta Salad Recipe
Ingredients
- 16 ounces dry rotini pasta
- 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons mayonnaise not salad dressing
- 6 tablespoons buttermilk
- 1 1/2 tablespoons dry ranch dressing mix
- 1/2 teaspoon season salt
- 8 ounces diced ham patted with a paper towel to remove moisture
- 1 cup frozen green peas
Instructions
- Bring a pot of water to a boil and cook rotini until it is just past al dente.
- Drain into a colander and rinse with cold water until pasta is cool.
- Set pasta aside and allow to dry for about 30 minutes.
- While pasta is cooking, combine mayonnaise, buttermilk, ranch dressing mix, and season salt in a large bowl and mix until combined.
- Add in frozen peas and stir. The peas will thaw a bit during mixing and will finish thawing while pasta cools.
- Add ham and cool, dry rotini and mix until well blended.
- Can be eaten immediately, but flavors will improve by placing into the refrigerator for at least 4 hours.
Notes
- 1/2 cup diced green peppers and/or 2 cups of grated cheddar cheese can be added.
- Ranch dressing from a bottle, along with 1/2 cup of mayonnaise can be used as a replacement for the mayonnaise, buttermilk, and dry ranch dressing mix. The flavor will be a bit altered.
- Flavors inprove with refrigeration.
Nutrition
SHARING IS CARING!
Rose Melamed
Tastes nothing like Ruby Tuesday’s pasta salad. The ranch dressing overwhelms all the other ingredients. You taste only the ranch dressing.
Beth Mueller
Hi Rose!
I’m sorry you didn’t like it. My guests ask for more dressing sometimes.
Cheers!
Briana
What if I don’t have buttermilk?
Beth Mueller
Hi Brianna!
Add Briana! You could use regular milk or you can add a teaspoon of lemon juice or vinegar to the salad.
Hope this helps!
FSethman
Sounds like a great copycat!! I cannot wait to make this soon. Thx for posting
Catherine L Vaillancourt
I did try this and is close but I think I’m off on something, I used Cains mayonnaise and that’s the taste that stood out. What mayonnaise brand so you suggest?
Beth Mueller
Hi Catherine!
Hellman’s is my mayonnaise of choice. Hope this helps.
Cheers!
Amanda
Sounds yummy. Can I use canned peas instead of frozen?!
Beth Mueller
Hi Amanda!
I don’t see why not if the peas are drained really well. They will just be a bit mushy compared to lightly cooked frozen peas.
Cheers!
Anonymous
Where can I find your Italian pasta salad recipe? Please
Beth Mueller
I’m sorry, we don’t currently have an Italian pasta salad available. We have an Italian Dressing recipe, a macaroni salad recipe, and the ranch pasta salad recipe like Ruby Tuesday.
Nelly|explorewithnelly
Wow…. so simple and not to mention tasted great. I did use Italian seasoning as I love it. I just made a post on my blog but mine had mushrooms.
Beth Mueller
Hi Nelly!
Thanks for stopping by! I just looked at your Italian Pasta Salad and it looks amazing! I might need to make that before summer is over!
Cheers!
Susantraylor
If I use bottle ranch dressing, what would the measurements be?Sus
Beth Mueller
Hi Susan!
Thanks for stopping by! I would start with 1 1/2 cups of salad dressing. My favorite bottle ranch dressing is made by Ken’s, use the buttermilk version! I would still add the seasoning salt too.
Cheers!
heather mcardle
how much ranch if i use from the bottle?
Beth Mueller
Hi Heather!
Start with 1 1/2 cups and add more if needed.
Hope this helps!
Sabrina
Made this today and it came out really good ,our ruby Tuesday closed near me and im pregnant and craving their pasta saladdefinitely close to the real thing! Thank you!
Beth Mueller
Hi Sabrina!
Thanks for stopping by and leaving us a 5-star review!
I’m glad the recipe cured your craving!!
Kelly Mahan
This looks nothing like a salad, but I’m still curious to try the recipe ’cause it sure looks delicious!
Beth
Hi Kelly!
Thanks for visiting and leaving a comment!
It is delicious! We have eaten more than our fair share this summer!