Chicken Pasta Salad

This super savory pasta salad is a certified hit at barbecues and potlucks, and hearty enough to qualify as a meal. (In fact, it's kind of meal prep gold!) Swapping in a tangy mustard vinaigrette for the usual mayo-based dressing lightens things up a bit, and a healthy serving of seared chicken and crispy bacon make it satisfying enough to be a meal all on its own. There's nothing worse than a pasta salad with mushy noodles. Learn how to cook pasta (it's trickier than you think!) and get your fusilli perfectly al dente. Looking for more tips? Keep reading on down below for all of my top tips on how to make this pasta salad to perfection.

What People Are Saying:
"This was a huge winner in my house. Ages 75 to age 9. Delicious!" - GreenWheel

"I'm not a fan of pasta salads at all. However, our family hosted a large gathering for Christmas and I decided to try this one as a side dish. I have to admit, it was pure deliciousness! Everyone loved it! I've made it 4 or 5 times since then and it's my definition of pasta salad. So easy to make. I followed the recipe, just added more chicken. Give it a try, you'll love it." - ekj7163

How To Make Chicken Pasta Salad

INGREDIENTS

• Pasta: Fusilli provides not only a fun shape, but captures the dressing beautifully in every swirl. That being said, you can use any short pasta shape you prefer in your pasta salad (penne would also be great here).
• Chicken: Boneless, skinless chicken breasts are my preferred choice here, but you can also use leftover rotisserie chicken if you prefer.
• Bacon: Bacon adds that perfect crispy, smoky flavor to this pasta salad. After cooking it, crumble it so it doesn’t overpower your salad.
• Veggies: Grape tomatoes, spinach, and red onion are my veggies of choice. That being said, you can experiment with your favorite pasta salad veggies.
• Feta: Feta is always a welcome addition for me, but if you’d rather keep this dairy free, you can leave it out.
• Dressing: The simple dressing is made up of olive oil, red wine vinegar, Italian seasoning, minced garlic, Dijon mustard, and salt and pepper to taste. Experiment with the seasonings to your liking, and if you’re looking for olive oil recs, checkout our list of the best olive oil brands.

STEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTIONS

After cooking your pasta, you'll first prep your cooked mix-ins. Cook your chicken breasts, seasoning with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. After cooking, let your chicken breasts rest for 10 minutes (trust me—it's worth it) before chopping into pieces. Next, cook your bacon until perfectly crispy, then crumble to add into your salad.

Next, prep your dressing! You can make this ahead of time if you'd like to get ahead of prep. Whisk everything together until combined, then season with salt and pepper to taste. If you'd like any extra seasonings, now is the time to add them.

Now, all that's left is to assemble. Add your mix-ins, pasta, and dressing, then toss everything until very well combined. Once it's combined, get ready to serve!

The full list of ingredients and instructions can be found in the recipe below.

Storage

Any pasta salad leftovers will stay good in the fridge in for around 3-4 days, just keep in mind that the spinach tossed with the dressing will get a little bit soggy, so enjoy it while it's fresh.