Caesar Pasta Salad with Grilled Chicken

A Light and Tasty Lunch

This recipe is always a favorite in my house for summer and spring. Caesar Pasta Salad with Grilled Chicken is easily created with ready made ingredients that come together perfectly.

The grilled chicken is simple to cook and has great flavors. The chicken is marinated overnight with a can of Sprite and some Zesty Italian Dressing.

Wait… Sprite?!

Yes! Stay tuned!

The Caesar Pasta Salad

I am always surprised when people tell me they have never had a lettuce salad with pasta. I worked in a deli in the 1990’s and these types of salads were always our best sellers.

In fact, the inspiration for this recipe came from the deli I worked at, as a salad like this was one of our most popular salads.

I always get comments about rinsing pasta when it is done cooking. People watched the Food Network at some point, learned this tidbit and CANNOT let it go.

While it is true that you shouldn’t rinse the pasta when it comes to HOT dishes, you do in fact rinse it when you are using it for cold pasta salads.

This stops the pasta from cooking and ensures it is al dente. Using salad dressing on pasta will also make it softer so you want to make SURE it is al dente.

This also rinses off the excess flour that will gum up your pasta salad. I learned that people were really upset about this rinsing pasta when my recipe for BLT PASTA SALAD went viral.

The Salad

I use these Fresh Express Salad kits for this recipe for Caesar Pasta Salad. These kits are about 7 ounces each, so when I am making this recipe I use two.

If you buy a bigger one like the one from Sam’s Club, you can use one. I also list in the recipe to buy an extra bottle of prepared Caesar dressing and extra cheese as well as extra croutons.

This is because I use the croutons and cheese from the kit to top the cooked chicken. You will also need more dressing and croutons since you are adding pasta to the salad.

The Pasta

You can use any rotini that you like, but I prefer to use this Veggie one from Barilla. I like the flavor it adds to the salad.

Additionally, it also has a slightly different texture to it than regular pasta. I find that this texture holds up much better to being tossed in the salad dressing over regular pasta.

You are welcome to use any pasta you like,however. This includes pasta shape.

Sprite For Chicken?!

Everyone loses their mind when I say to marinate the chicken in Sprite or lemon lime soda. That is, until they try it.

I learned this trick from a lady I worked with in the 90’s and I have never looked back. The actual science behind it, I don’t know, but it tenderizes the chicken in a way I cannot explain.

Paired with the zesty Italian dressing, it also adds a salty, sweet flavor that creates a perfectly caramelized chicken breast when you are grilling it.

I also want to make sure you take note of the thickness of your chicken when marinating this or any recipe. Very thin chicken will marinate more quickly.

If the chicken is sitting in salt too long when it is too thin, it will start to “cure” and get rubbery and tough. I

n the full recipe below, also take note that all grills are different. I grill on a small gas Weber grill so my cook times are different. If you are new to cooking, please consider using a meat thermometer until you become familiar with how meat cooks and what it looks like when it is done.

Have some leftover chicken? Use it for my Tangy Glazed Chicken!