Chicken Caesar Pasta Salad

Course: Main Course, Salad

Cuisine: American

Prep Time: 10

Cook Time: 45

Total Time: 55

Servings: servings

Calories: 520cal

Author: Ashley Fehr

This Chicken Caesar Pasta Salad is made with seasoned chicken breast, rotini pasta, Caesar dressing, Parmesan and garlic bread croutons. It's a light but still hearty summer meal, perfect for picnics!

Print Recipe

US Customary - Metric

Ingredients

6 slices Furlani garlic Texas toast
2 boneless chicken breasts
1 teaspoon dried parsley
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon garlic powder
¼ teaspoon black pepper
⅛ teaspoon paprika
1 box box rotini pasta (400 grams or 6 cups)
1 head romaine lettuce (roughly chopped)
1 bottle good Caesar dressing (1 ¼ cup)
½ cup large shredded parmesan or flakes

Instructions

Heat oven to 425 and chop Texas toast into ½” inch cubes. Place on a parchment lined baking sheet and bake for 15-20 minutes, turning once, until golden brown. Cool.
Meanwhile, put chicken on a cutting board and cover with plastic wrap. Pound the thick end so that it is all the same thickness.
Combine salt, garlic powder, paprika and pepper and sprinkle evenly over chicken.
Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat and add a drizzle of oil. Cook chicken for 5-8 minutes per side, until the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees F. Remove and allow to cool before cubing.
In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook the pasta just until al dente. Drain and rinse with cold water to cool immediately.
In a large bowl, combine cooked pasta, cubed chicken, romaine, Parmesan and Caesar dressing. Add croutons on top or plate and add croutons to each serving.

Notes

Ingredients and Substitutions:

Garlic bread: sure you can use store bought croutons, but nothing compares to these freshly baked garlic bread croutons!
Pasta: any short variety of pasta will work, but I love rotini because the dressing adheres to it so well!
Chicken: you can swap the chicken breasts for Shredded Chicken or boneless skinless chicken thighs. You can also omit if you prefer this to be a meatless meal or a side dish.
Romaine lettuce: Any kind of lettuce will work here! I chose romaine because it is traditionally used in Caesar salad.

Nutrition