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Chicken Pasta Salad on a plate
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Chicken Pasta Salad

Chicken pasta salad is a cold pasta recipe with plenty of indulgent veggies, refreshing herbs and a wholesome blended dressing that is zestalicious!
Course Salad
Cuisine American
Keyword Chicken Pasta Recipes, Chicken Pasta Salad, pasta salad recipes
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 9 minutes
Total Time 39 minutes
Servings 12 servings
Calories 298kcal
Author Kathleen

Ingredients

Dressing:

  • 1/2 cup mayonnaise
  • 1/3 cup water
  • juice of 2 lemons
  • zest of 1 Lemon
  • 3 teaspoons Italian Seasoning
  • 1 teaspoon dry mustard
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1/3 cup, plus more as needed olive oil

Salad:

  • 1 bunch asparagus, trimmed and cut into 2 inch pieces
  • 1/4 cup green onions, thinly sliced
  • 1 red bell pepper, julienned
  • 1/3 cup sun dried tomatoes in oil drained (not rinsed) and julienned
  • 1/2 cup parmesan cheese, shredded
  • 1 bunch basil, julienned
  • 1 bunch chives, finely chopped
  • 4 cups cooked chicken cut into 1/2 inch cubes
  • 16 ounces farfalle pasta cooked according to package instructions, and drained

Instructions

  • In a small bowl, whisk all ingredients together until dressing is well combined and smooth. 
  • In a large skillet bring I inch of water to a boil. Add asparagus (1 bunch) pieces and cook for about 3 minutes, or until still a little crunchy. Drain and rinse with cold water. Cool to room temperature.
  • In a large bowl combine all ingredients and add dressing and toss well. Chill for 4 hours. Toss salad. Add 2-4 tablespoons of olive oil, as needed, if the dressing has been absorbed into the pasta. Serve.

Notes

  1. Chicken: This chicken pasta salad calls for about 4 cups of cooked chicken which is equal to a whole young chicken or 4-5 breasts. Feel free to cook your own or use leftovers from last night’s grill.
    • Grilled chicken adds layers of succulent flavor to your pasta salad recipe. I actually love using rotisserie chicken for this recipe but if you’re short on time canned chicken works just fine. See… versatile!
  2. Pasta: It also calls for farfalle pasta, otherwise known as the fun and playful bowtie. Bowtie pasta works great for this chicken pasta salad because there is plenty of valuable real estate to soak up all that yummy dressing, but rigatoni, rotini, and penne work well, too.
  3. Veggies. You’ll want to julienne your herbs and veggies (except for asparagus) both for aesthetics and flavor. It adds an incredible visual appeal to your already beautiful chicken pasta salad. Chopping all the veggies and herbs approximately the same size also helps ensure that you get a myriad of textures in every tangy bite!
  4. Dressing: It also helps to make the dressing first in the largest mixing bowl you have. This recipe feeds 12 people, so it makes quite a bit. Set it aside while cooking the pasta and the asparagus.

Nutrition

Serving: 1/12 of the recipe | Calories: 298kcal | Carbohydrates: 31g | Protein: 7g | Fat: 15g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 6mg | Sodium: 429mg | Potassium: 244mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 750IU | Vitamin C: 18.6mg | Calcium: 78mg | Iron: 1.8mg