Hen Caesar Pasta Salad – Lauren’s Newest

September 29, 2024

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This Hen Caesar Pasta combines tender grilled rooster, crisp romaine lettuce, savory parmesan, and crispy bacon, all tossed in a creamy Caesar dressing. It’s like your traditional Caesar salad and comforting pasta dish had a child—and it’s scrumptious. Good for a scorching summer season day while you’re craving one thing hearty however don’t need to activate the oven. Whether or not you’re feeding a crowd at a summer season BBQ or whipping it up for a fast weeknight dinner, this recipe is a big hit.

Why You’ll Love This Hen Caesar Pasta Salad

This Hen Caesar Pasta is the proper steadiness of recent, creamy, and savory. The juicy grilled rooster provides protein, whereas the romaine lettuce brings a pleasant crunch. The bacon and parmesan? Effectively, everyone knows cheese and bacon make every thing higher. Plus, it’s straightforward to make, with substances you possible have available. Skip the standard rooster pasta salad recipe and do that as a substitute. It’s the final word predominant dish that may additionally double as a chilly pasta salad for these summer season BBQs or a fast grab-and-go lunch.

Components Wanted For Hen Caesar Pasta Salad

This would possibly simply be my favourite pasta salad! Ensure you have these substances available:

Pasta – A shortcut pasta like farfalle or rotini pasta works nice. Cook dinner till al dente in keeping with the package deal instructions.
Hen breasts – Grilled to perfection after marinating in lemon zest, garlic, and olive oil.
Romaine lettuce – Chopped recent and crisp for that good Caesar salad vibe.
Bacon – Crispy, savory bacon brings all of it collectively. Oven baked bacon is really easy!
Parmesan cheese – Freshly shaved or grated for additional taste.
Croutons – Provides crunch to the salad.
For the rooster marinade – Further virgin olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, salt, and black pepper.
For the dressing – Mayo, Dijon mustard, lemon juice, anchovy paste (non-obligatory however really useful), parmesan, garlic, and black pepper.

A Word About Anchovies

If you’re allergic to anchovies, you possibly can depart these out of the recipe, however you’ll want to add salt (to style). Anchovies have a excessive salt content material, which is why I left salt out of the dressing substances. In case you assume you received’t just like the style, don’t fear – you possibly can’t even inform they’re in there. They only give this dressing the important umami, salty flavoring.

Hen Caesar Pasta Salad Variations

Swap grilled rooster with rotisserie rooster for an excellent faster choice.
Use rotini or penne as a substitute of bowtie pasta.
Use cheddar cheese for a special tacky twist.
Crush the croutons to provide the entire salad texture.
Skip the anchovies when you’re allergic or not a fan, and regulate the salt within the dressing.
Add cherry tomatoes, pink onion, pink peppers or feta cheese for additional veggies and taste.
Attempt a creamy ranch dressing as a substitute of Caesar for a special twist.

How To Make Hen Caesar Pasta Salad

You’ll be able to skip the marinating and grilling of the rooster when you have precooked rooster available, both from leftovers, meal prep, or a store-bought rotisserie rooster. For full recipe particulars, together with ingredient measurements, see the printable recipe card on the backside of the submit. Listed here are my step-by-step directions for making this pasta salad:

1. Cook dinner the Pasta

Boil water in a big pot of salted water. Cook dinner pasta till al dente following the package deal instructions. Drain, rinse with chilly water (to stop sticking because the pasta cools to room temperature), and put aside.

A black colander filled with cooked farfalle pasta, surrounded by lemon halves, sun-dried tomatoes, garlic cloves, and romaine lettuce on a light-colored surface.

2. Marinate the Hen

In a small bowl, mix olive oil, lemon zest, garlic, salt, and black pepper. Add rooster breasts and coat nicely. Let marinate whereas prepping different substances.

Professional Tip: Marinate the rooster for not less than half-hour for max taste.

3. Grill the Hen

Preheat your out of doors or indoor grill to medium-high warmth and cook dinner the rooster till it reaches an inner temperature of 165° F. Minimize into bite-sized items.

Grilled chicken strips in a black pan surrounded by garlic, romaine lettuce halves, Caesar dressing, lemon slices, sundried tomatoes, and cheese on a light countertop.

4. Make the Dressing

Mix all dressing substances in a blender till clean. (You may as well whisk all substances in a small bowl when you don’t have a blender.)

Food processor containing ingredients including mayonnaise, garlic, mustard, Parmesan cheese, anchovies, lemon juice, and black pepper, surrounded by garlic bulbs, lemon halves, and lettuce.

5. Assemble the Salad

In a big serving bowl, mix pasta, romaine, rooster, bacon, parmesan, and croutons. Drizzle with dressing and toss to mix. Season with extra freshly cracked black pepper, if desired and serve.

A bowl filled with chopped lettuce, grilled chicken, bow-tie pasta, bacon bits, croutons, and Parmesan cheese, with garlic, lemon halves, a sauce jug, and lettuce heads placed around it.

Storage + Make Forward Instructions

Retailer leftovers in an hermetic container within the fridge. It’ll keep recent for as much as 3 days. I don’t suggest freezing this recipe. The romaine and pasta don’t maintain up nicely after thawing.

To Make Forward: You may make this rooster pasta salad recipe a few hours forward. Simply hold the dressing and croutons separate till you’re able to serve.

Love Caesar Pasta Salad? Attempt These Different Caesar Recipes

This recipe is ideal for household dinners, potlucks, and at the same time as a chilly rooster pasta salad on a scorching summer season day. It’s straightforward, versatile, and assured to be a crowd-pleaser!

In case you make this recipe, I might actually admire it when you would give it a star ranking and depart your assessment within the feedback! When you have an image of your completed dish, submit it on Instagram utilizing the hashtag #laurenslatest and tagging me @laurens_latest.

A bowl of pasta salad topped with croutons, sliced vegetables, and grated cheese, with lemon halves, garlic, lettuce, and a small bowl of dressing on the side.

Hen Caesar Pasta Salad

In case you love Caesar salad and pasta then you will love my Hen Caesar Pasta Salad Recipe! Good for a pot luck, BBQ or dinner.

Components

*for the rooster marinade-

Directions

to assemble-

Place cooked pasta, romaine, grilled rooster, bacon, parmesan cheese shavings, and croutons in a big salad bowl. Drizzle with the caesar dressing and toss to mix nicely. Season with extra freshly cracked black pepper, if desired and serve.

Notes

*You’ll be able to skip the marinating and grilling of the rooster when you have precooked rooster available, both from leftovers, meal prep, or a store-bought rotisserie rooster.
**If you’re allergic to anchovies, you possibly can depart these out of the recipe, however you’ll want to add salt (to style). Anchovies have a excessive salt content material, which is why I left salt out of the dressing substances. In case you assume you received’t just like the style, don’t fear – you possibly can’t even inform they’re in there. They only give this dressing the important umami, salty flavoring.

Diet

Key phrase: Caesar Salad, rooster caesar pasta salad, grilled caesar salad, Grilled Hen Caesar Salad

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