Barbecue Chicken Pasta Salad
Summer In A Bowl
Barbecue Chicken Pasta Salad has all the tastes of summer with its crisp vegetables, tender BBQ chicken, and a creamy barbecue ranch dressing. Little bites of sharp cheddar cheese throughout add great texture and flavor.
I have to post a warning about this recipe because people will GO CRAZY over the Barbecue Chicken Pasta Salad. I am embarrassed to tell you that when I served this to my Mister Tipsy he loved it so much he was shoveling it into his mouth so fast it was falling onto the floor.
I had to shout at him to slow down. Secretly, I was flattered although I do wish I had that on film to share with you on my Facebook page.
There is a full recipe card at the end of this post. You can save this recipe, print it, use the hands free mode or pin this recipe to your Pinterest page.
Before the recipe card, I have shared a few pictures and links for anyone who may need some clarification on the recipe.
Curly Pasta
The recipe card calls for a spiral shaped pasta. You can use a fusilli, gemelli, or cavatappi.
I used the brand and shape pictured above. I think the curly shape helps hold the delicious barbecue ranch dressing.
It is also a nice texture that is slightly different from the vegetables, chicken, and cheese. You can certainly use any pasta shape you wish, as I think this salad will be good with any pasta.
The Best Ranch
Some will call me a hack for using this packet of ranch dressing. I will accept the judgement.
This to me, is the best tasting ranch there is. I absolutely love it.
I find this Hidden Valley Ranch Restaurant Style Ranch at almost every grocery store I have been to. It makes a great dressing that is not too thick and not too thin.
You do add the barbecue sauce to this ranch after it is made, so texture is important. You can make the ranch packet the day before and let it sit in the fridge overnight.
The Best Barbecue
Open Pit Barbecue Sauce is a classic Chicago ingredient. I know they sell this brand elsewhere but I did learn it is pretty specific to Chicago.
My Uncle Joey lives in Napa Valley and when he comes home to Chicago, he brings a bunch of this back with him. You can use any barbecue sauce you like, but if you can try this Open Pit, make sure you do.
It also has to be the original variety. DO not get any of the specially flavored ones.
This also happens to be the sauce that I use to make my infamous Oven Baked Barbecue Ribs. These are the ribs that people make fun of when they read the recipe and then make, and then swear they will never make ribs any other way.
So stock up on the sauce so you can make these ribs too!
Rinsing The Pasta
I often get criticism when I say to rinse the pasta for pasta salads. I always have someone chiming in on the Facebook posts how you are never supposed to rinse pasta.
You ARE in fact, supposed to rinse pasta for pasta salads. This is so you rinse the starches off so that the pasta salad dressing is not cakey.
This also helps cool down the pasta faster.
Dress A Little At A Time
I made this salad and did not add the dressing to the large bowl of the salad. I kept the components separate and then only dressed the salad I was serving.
I think the salad was a lot fresher this way and then the pasta did not get too rubbery or soft. We were able to enjoy this all week and it tasted fresh.
Barbecue Chicken Pasta Salad Recipe
The new salad of your summer is Barbecue Chicken Pasta Salad. You have the crunch of crisp vegetables like cucumber, sweet corn, and red bell pepper plus the tender savory bites of barbecue chicken. Cheddar cheese and a barbecue ranch dressing finishes off this salad. Perfect as a main course or the side to all your Summer favorites.
Ingredients
- 2 large, boneless Chicken Breasts (approximately 1 1/2 lbs.)
- 2 teaspoons of Olive Oil
- 1 teaspoon of Garlic Salt
- 1 teaspoon of Black Pepper
- 1 can of whole kernel Corn
- 1 tablespoon of Butter
- pinch of Cayenne Pepper
- pinch of Black Pepper
- 1 seedless Cucumber
- 1 medium sized Red Bell Pepper
- 1 medium sized Red Onion
- 4 to 6 Green Onions
- 8 ounce brick of Cheddar Cheese
- 1 lb. of uncooked, spiral shaped Pasta
- 1 packet of Hidden Valley Ranch Restaurant Style Dressing (0.4 ounce) + the ingredients listed on the packet to make it (1 cup of Buttermilk, 1 cup of Mayonnaise)
- 1 cup of Barbecue Sauce (I use Open Pit Brand)
- 1/2 tablespoon of Soy Sauce
- 1/2 tablespoon of Garlic Powder
- 1/2 tablespoon of Onion Powder
- 2 teaspoons of Dried Oregano
- 1 tablespoon of Dried Parsley
Instructions
- Set a pot to boil for your pasta. Boil the pasta according to the package directions, drain, rinse with cold water, and set aside.
- Remove the chicken from the package and pat dry. Cut into small, bite sized pieces. Add the 2 teaspoons of olive oil, teaspoon of garlic salt, and teaspoon of black pepper and toss to coat. Set aside.
- In a skillet, add the tablespoon of butter. Drain the can of corn and add to the skillet with the butter. Season with pinch of cayenne pepper and the pinch of black pepper. Sauté for five minutes and remove from the pan into a bowl, set aside.
- In the same skillet, add the chicken and sauté on low until the chicken is fully cooked.
- While the chicken cooks, dice your cucumber, red bell pepper, purple onion, and green onions. Add to a large bowl.
- Dice your cheddar cheese into small pieces.
- In a bowl, make your packet of ranch according to package directions. Place in fridge. You can make this a day in advance.
- In another bowl, add the cup of barbecue sauce, add in the soy sauce, dried oregano, garlic, and onion powders, mix well to combine.
- When the chicken is nearly done cooking, add a few tablespoons of the barbecue sauce mixture to the chicken and sauté with the chicken. Remove chicken from heat and let cool.
- When the ranch dressing has set, add a few tablespoons of the barbecue sauce to the ranch dressing. You can add as much or as little as you want. I added about 3 tablespoons.
- When you are ready to serve, combine the diced vegetables, cold pasta, cooled chicken, corn, and cheddar cheese, toss well. Drizzle the ranch barbecue dressing and toss again to coat. Serve with a drizzle of the barbecue sauce on top, serve the extra ranch and barbecue on the side, and top the whole salad with the dried parsley.
*Pictures of some of the products and the ingredients are posted in the post before the recipe card for those who need more clarification.