Chicken Caesar Pasta Salad
This Chicken Caesar Pasta Salad comes together in just 25 minutes using budget-friendly ingredients that are easy to find. It's a great recipe choice for meal prepping for work lunches, a quick dinner, or bringing along as a dish to pass at potluck events.
Servings: 6 servings
Calories: 329kcal
Ingredients
- 8 ounces pasta rotini, penne, or fusilli noodles
- 2 cups cooked chicken (chicken thighs, chicken breasts, or rotisserie chicken, shredded or chopped)
- 2-3 cups romaine lettuce chopped (~chopped lettuce from 1 romaine head)
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes or grape tomatoes halved
- ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- ¼ cup Caesar dressing plus more based on preferences
- ¾ cup croutons
Optional Garnish:
- Freshly cracked pepper
Instructions
- Cook Pasta: Cook pasta according to package instructions. Once cooked, transfer to colander to drain, then rinse under cold water to cool it down quickly and stop the cooking process.
- Prep Ingredients: While pasta is cooking, shred or chop cooked chicken. Then, chop romaine lettuce, halve cherry tomatoes, and grate Parmesan cheese.
- Mix Salad: In a large bowl, combine cooled pasta, shredded chicken, chopped romaine, halved cherry tomatoes, grated Parmesan cheese, salt, and pepper. Toss everything together to mix.
- Dress Salad: Pour Caesar dressing over salad mixture and toss until everything is evenly coated. Add more dressing, as desired.
- Finish and Serve: Add croutons just before serving to maintain their crunch, then give salad a final toss. Garnish salad with freshly-cracked pepper, then serve.
Video
Notes
To Make In Advance: Combine the cooked pasta, cooked chicken, cherry tomatoes, and grated Parmesan cheese in a large mixing bowl. Store this mixture in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Keep the Caesar dressing in a separate container to avoid the salad getting soggy. For the romaine lettuce, chop it and store it in another container lined with paper towels to keep it crisp. Add the lettuce and croutons to the salad just before serving.
Refrigerator Storage: Store the salad an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days.
Nutrition
Serving: 6ounces | Calories: 329kcal | Carbohydrates: 34g | Protein: 20g | Fat: 12g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 46mg | Sodium: 526mg | Potassium: 308mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 1581IU | Vitamin C: 6mg | Calcium: 103mg | Iron: 2mg