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Cooking adventures in a small, closet sized, kitchen. - I came to realize that my meals were boring and that I had been eating the same few dishes over and over again for years. It was time for a change! I now spend my free time searching for, creating and trying tasty new recipes in my closet sized kitchen.

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BBQ Chicken Pasta Salad

[heart_this] · Jul 20, 2020 · 3 Comments

BBQ Chicken Pasta Salad

A quick and easy pasta salad with BBQ chicken and bacon in a creamy BBQ sauce dressing!

With all of the hot weather recently I have really been enjoying cold pasta salads, especially ones that eat like a meal, like this BBQ chicken pasta salad! The idea behind pasta salads is that it’s a salad with a base of pasta that’s been cooked and then cooled before adding the rest of the salads ingredients. This pasta salad stars grilled BBQ chicken followed by bacon, bell pepper, corn, beans, and onions. The dressing for pasta salads is often creamy, with a base of mayonnaise, and in this case it’s a combination of mayonnaise and BBQ sauce. This BBQ chicken pasta salad is great either as a side dish or as meal by itself and it’s just as amazing when served with the chicken still warm from the grill or after the salad has been chilled in the fridge. I like to make a large batch to have leftovers for several days and I usually eat it while it’s still cool from the fridge!
I sometimes like to change this recipe up a bit and some amazing ideas are: adding tomato, adding avocado, adding ranch seasoning to the dressing, adding cheese, topping with corn chips!

BBQ Chicken Pasta Salad
BBQ Chicken Pasta Salad
BBQ Chicken Pasta Salad
BBQ Chicken Pasta Salad

BBQ Chicken Pasta Salad
BBQ Chicken Pasta Salad

BBQ Chicken Pasta Salad

Prep Time: 15 minutes Cook Time: 20 minutes Total Time: 35 minutes Servings: 12

A quick and easy pasta salad with BBQ chicken and bacon in a creamy BBQ sauce dressing!

ingredients
  • 1 pound pasta (gluten-free for gluten-free)
  • 1 teaspoon olive oil
  • 4 ounces bacon, cut into 1 inch pieces (optional)
  • 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts (or thighs)
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 1 cup red bell pepper, diced
  • 1 cup corn
  • 1 cup black beans
  • 1/2 cup red onion, diced
  • 1/3 cup BBQ sauce
  • 1/3 cup mayonnaise
  • 2 tablespoons cilantro, chopped (optional)
  • 1/4 cup green onions, thinly sliced
directions
  1. Cook the pasta as directed on the package, drain, mix with olive oil and let cool, mixing every 5 minutes. (The oil and mixing helps prevent it from sticking together while it cools.)
  2. Meanwhile cook the bacon until crispy and set aside on paper towels to drain.
  3. Season the chicken with salt and pepper to taste, and grill (or pan fry), over medium-high heat until cooked through, about 3-5 minutes per side, before setting aside to cool, and slicing into bite sized pieces.
  4. Assemble salad with the pasta, bacon, chicken, bell pepper, corn, beans, and onion.
  5. Mix the BBQ sauce and mayo to make the dressing.
  6. Toss the salad and dressing along with the cilantro and green onions and enjoy!
Option: Season the chicken with your favourite chicken seasoning instead of the salt and pepper.
Tip: Cook the chicken and bacon the day before.
Option: Add diced avocado!
Option: Add diced tomatoes!
Option: Add 1 packet ranch seasoning to the dressing! (Or add: 1/2 teaspoon parsley, 1/2 teaspoon chives, 1/2 teaspoon dill, 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder, 1/4 teaspoon onion powder)
Option: Add shredded cheddar cheese!
Option: Top with crunchy corn chips!
Nutrition Facts: Calories 313, Fat 11g (Saturated 2g, Trans 0), Cholesterol 36mg, Sodium 233mg, Carbs 46g (Fiber 4g, Sugars 6g), Protein 18g

Nutrition by: Nutritional facts powered by Edamam
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American, Appetizer, Bacon, Chicken, Food, Gluten-free, Grill, Main Course, Pasta, Recipe, Salad, Side Dish

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Ann Yawornitsky says

    July 20, 2020 at 9:34 am

    Looks delicious….will have to try this !

    Reply
  2. Peg says

    May 25, 2022 at 10:53 am

    Do you think this would be good without adding chicken? I am looking for a pasta salad to accompany pork bbq sandwiches.

    Reply
    • kevin says

      May 30, 2022 at 8:14 am

      This would be good without the chicken!

      Reply

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Kevin: I came to realize that my meals were boring and that I had been eating the same few dishes over and over again for years. It was time for a change! I now spend my free time searching for, creating and trying tasty new recipes in my closet sized kitchen.
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