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Chicken Caesar Pasta Salad

[heart_this] · Aug 22, 2022 · 2 Comments

Chicken Caesar Pasta Salad

A pasta salad with grilled chicken and crispy parmesan croutons in a tasty caesar dressing!

Caesar salad is a classic! It’s normally the combination of romaine lettuce in a creamy caesar dressing with crispy croutons along with some parmesan cheese! If you wish, you can turn it into a light meal by adding a meat like grilled chicken! This version takes all of that and adds cooked and cooled pasta to make a tasty chicken caesar pasta salad! If you have the dressing, croutons and chicken all made ahead of time this recipe simply consists of cooking the pasta, slicing the lettuce and combining everything! You can make this salad ahead of time and it’s great at room temperature so you can easily pack it to bring on a picnic or some other summer outdoors meal!

Chicken Caesar Pasta Salad

Add bacon!

Chicken Caesar Pasta Salad

Chicken Caesar Pasta Salad
Chicken Caesar Pasta Salad

Chicken Caesar Pasta Salad

Prep Time: 15 minutes Cook Time: 45 minutes Total Time: 1 hour Servings: 8

A pasta salad with grilled chicken and crispy parmesan croutons in a tasty caesar dressing!

ingredients
    For the parmesan croutons:
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 small clove garlic, grated
  • 2 cups bread, cut into 1/2 inch cubes (gluten-free for gluten-free)
  • 2 tablespoons parmigiano reggiano (parmesan), grated
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • For the grilled chicken:
  • 1 pound boneless and skinless chicken breasts or thighs, pounded thin
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • For the caesar dressing:
  • 1/4 cup mayonnaise (or sour cream or plain yogurt)
  • 2 tablespoons buttermilk (or milk)
  • 1 clove garlic, grated
  • 1 anchovy fillet, chopped (or 1/2 teaspoon anchovy paste)
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice (or white wine vinegar)
  • 1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
  • 1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
  • 2 tablespoons parmigiano reggiano (parmesan), grated
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • For the pasta salad:
  • 8 ounces pasta
  • 6 cups romaine lettuce, sliced
  • 1/4 cup parmigiano reggiano (parmesan), grated or shredded or shaved
directions
    For the parmesan croutons:
  1. Mix the oil and garlic and let sit for a while before straining the garlic from the oil.
  2. Toss the bread in the garlic oil, parmesan, salt and pepper, arrange in a single layer on a baking sheet and bake in a preheated 375F/190C oven until lightly golden brown, about 10-15 minutes, mixing half way through.
  3. For the grilled chicken:
  4. Season the chicken with salt and pepper to taste, and grill (or pan fry in oil) over medium-high heat until the chicken is cooked through, about 4-6 minutes per side, before setting aside to rest for 5 minutes and then slicing it into bite sized pieces.
  5. For the caesar dressing:
  6. Mix everything well.
  7. For the pasta salad:
  8. Cook the pasta as directed on the package, drain and rinse in cold water until it has cooled.
  9. Toss the pasta, lettuce, croutons, and chicken with the dressing and parmesan and enjoy!
Option: Add 1/4 cup cooked and crumbled bacon.
Option: Add 1 cup diced tomatoes.
Option: Add 1 diced avocado.
Option: Use salmon, shrimp, beef, pork, or tofu instead of chicken.
Option: You can cook the pasta and bake the croutons at the same time to save time.
Option: You can make the croutons and chicken a day ahead to save time.
Nutrition Facts: Calories 326, Fat 13g (Saturated 3g, Trans 0), Cholesterol 51mg, Sodium 283mg, Carbs 28g (Fiber 2g, Sugars 2g), Protein 21g

Nutrition by: Nutritional facts powered by Edamam
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Chicken, Food, French, Gluten-free, Recipe, Salad

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Brenda Talley says

    August 22, 2022 at 5:56 pm

    Sounds delicious!

    Reply
  2. Liette says

    August 25, 2022 at 10:40 pm

    Hi Kevin! I made this recipe today for a family get together and it was a hit. I actually increased the garlic to 3 cloves and it was amazing. Comments were flying left and right. So thank you for this very tasty recipe that I will repeat many times.

    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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