Cucumber Bacon Pasta Salad
Last updated on October 14th, 2025
I love a good pasta salad, especially as the weather gets warmer! This Cucumber Bacon Pasta Salad gives a creamy, dilly, smoky, sort of pickle vibe! It’s crunchy, tangy, cheesy and delicious! This was super easy to make, and it was a huge hit at our house! I love how unique it was too; these flavors aren’t something I’ve really had before so it was exciting to experiment! This would be the perfect dish for any potluck or party!
Why cucumber and bacon? How do these flavors go together?
This is like cucumber salad meets pasta salad! It’s creamy, tangy, crunchy – it’s got everything you could want in a pasta salad! The dill and parsley really bring all the other ingredients to life! That fresh garlic in there, the cheddar – it’s the perfect flavor bomb!
What do I need to make Cucumber Bacon Pasta Salad?
Bacon
Mini Cucumbers
Elbow Macaroni
Mayo
Vinegar
Shredded Cheddar
Green Onion
Garlic
Dill
Parsley
Salt
Onion Powder
Black Pepper
How do I make it?
Add all ingredients to a large bowl, but leave a bit of the parsley, green onion, and bacon bits out for garnish. Stir well until thoroughly mixed. Cover and refrigerate at least an hour for best flavor. Garnish with parsley, green onion, and bacon bits just before serving. Enjoy!
Tips:
- This pasta salad will keep for 3-5 days in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
- You could make this a day ahead and just add the bacon on right before you plan to serve it! That way it doesn’t get all soggy!
- It doesn’t have to be mini cucumber; you could definitely use a regular sized cucumber in this recipe too!
Check out some of my other potluck friendly sides!
Cucumber Bacon Pasta Salad
Ingredients
- 5 slices of bacon cooked and crumbled
- 3 mini cucumbers thinly sliced
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 1 green onion finely chopped
- 12 oz elbow macaroni cooked to package instructions and rinsed with cold water
- ¾ cup mayo
- ½ cup vinegar
- ½ cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 1 tbsp dried dill
- 1 tsp parsley minced
- ¾ tsp salt
- ½ tsp onion powder
- ¼ tsp black pepper
Instructions
- Add all ingredients to a large bowl, but leave a bit of the parsley, green onion, and bacon bits out for garnish. Stir well until thoroughly mixed.
- Cover and refrigerate at least an hour for best flavor. Garnish with parsley, green onion, and bacon bits just before serving
Notes
Nutrition
Please be aware that nutritional values are approximate and intended as a helpful guide
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This recipe is a definite keeper for me. I make pasta salads often in the summer and always welcome a new twist. I love that this consists of ingredients I always have on hand. Thank you!
I love that, us too! The flavor was POPPIN! Please consider leaving a rating if you decide to make it and I hope you love it as much as we did!🩷
I’ll be making it for sure within the next couple of days. I cooked a big batch of lean bacon in the air fryer this morning, so it’s easy- peasy from there.
Awh, you made my day!🩷
Hi again! I haven’t made this yet, as we have a family event this weekend that I plan to take it to.
A couple of questions:
1. How many servings does this recipe make (apologies if I missed that in your post)
2. Can I substitute the cooked crumbled bacon with real bacon bits?
3. Can it be made a day in advance or would that make the bacon too soggy?
Thanks in advance for your reply 😊
Hey Terry! So happy to hear you are wanting to make this! Depending on the family event size, I would just double it. You’re probably gonna wanna bring some home anyway! 😋
I used real bacon here and crumbled it so you would definitely be fine using bacon bits! I would just caution to get a high quality bacon bit as some of them can have an artificial flavor and the smokiness of this pasta salad is a large part of the flavor! If you don’t have time to fry bacon you could always bake it on a sheet pan too and you can make the bacon in advance, crumble, and refrigerate as well.
You can totally make this a day in advance and I would recommend it for the best flavor!