Chicken Caesar Pasta Salad
This Chicken Caesar Pasta Salad is perfect for weeknight eating or a side dish for your next party. It’s easy to make and you can prep your ingredients ahead of time.
A Note from Teri on Chicken Caesar Pasta Salad
If you can’t tell, I’m a gal who absolutely loves a caesar dressing and a caesar salad. It’s a classic dish, but you can elevate it and create so many variations of it. This pasta salad is a perfect example, or this caesar potato salad from my Substack. And of course, our viral caesar salad lettuce wrap.
This Chicken Caesar Pasta Salad recipe is the kind of recipe I love to make. It’s a simple but delicious combination of some of my favorite ingredients and shortcuts to deliciousness. It starts with my homemade Caesar dressing, which is absolutely a must do. You can make it ahead of time, and I highly recommend making a double batch so you can use it again and again.
To get the classic Caesar crouton crunch without actual croutons, we added some toasted breadcrumbs. They are a simple thing to make but really elevate the whole dish. It adds the perfect crunch to every single bite. Then, to keep this recipe quick and easy, you can use leftover or rotisserie chicken for the protein in this recipe.
Ingredients and Variations
- Egg – the base of your caesar dressing
- Light olive oil – the oil combines with the egg to create a creamy mayo
- Garlic – the garlic adds a ton of flavor to your caesar dressing
- Anchovy fillets – even if you don’t love anchovies by themselves, they are a must for the classic caesar dressing flavor
- Dijon mustard – dijon adds a depth of flavor to the dressing
- Lemon juice – make sure to use fresh lemon juice in this recipe
- Celtic sea salt and ground black pepper
- Butter and Extra-Virgin olive oil – a combination of butter and oil perfectly toasts the breadcrumbs
- Panko – I like using panko for some additional crunch
- Parmesan – freshly grate your parmesan whenever possible
- Fusilli or rotini pasta – I used La Molisana anelli pasta for a fun shape, but you can opt for fusilli or rotini
- Leftover or rotisserie chicken – use chicken you have on hand or grab a rotisserie chicken
- Romaine – use romaine lettuce for a classic caesar salad
- Cherry tomatoes – the tomatoes add a pop of flavor and color to your pasta salad
- Marinated Red Onions – the onions are optional, but they are always a delicious addition
For your salt, I highly recommend Celtic Sea Salt. Most other salts are processed and refined, but Celtic Sea Salt has a vital mineral blend that adds an incredible flavor.
While I highly recommend making your own dressing and making it a day ahead, you could also buy a high quality caesar dressing and use that instead.
I love to add a tablespoon or two of parmesan directly to my homemade caesar dressing as well. It makes it next level delicious.
How to Make Chicken Caesar Pasta Salad
Step One: Make Dressing and Toast Breadcrumbs
Crack the egg into a Mason jar. Slowly add the oil to the egg and blend with an immersion blender, pausing occasionally to let it incorporate. The mayo will thicken and emulsify. Add the garlic and anchovies, and blend. Then add the dijon, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Blend, cover and refrigerate to thicken.
Bring a large pot of generously salted water to a boil. While the water is coming to a boil, in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat, melt the butter with the olive oil. Add the breadcrumbs and cook, stirring constantly until golden brown.
Remove from the heat and stir in the salt. Continue stirring off the heat for another minute, as the residual heat from the pan will keep cooking the breadcrumbs. Transfer the breadcrumbs to the baking sheet and spread them out in an even layer to cool. Once cool, add the Parmesan and lemon zest, then toss to combine.
Step Two: Assemble the Salad
When the water is boiling, add pasta and cook to al dente according to package directions. Drain. While the pasta is still warm, in a large bowl, toss the pasta with half of the dressing and some parm to coat. Add chicken and more dressing, and toss. Add some breadcrumbs, the lettuce, cherry tomatoes, and the remaining dressing. Toss everything to coat evenly, taste and adjust seasoning to taste.
Serve pasta in bowls topped with some marinated onions, if using, and additional breadcrumbs.
Recipe FAQs
Rotini is a great choice for pasta salad because the shape holds a lot of the flavor from the dressing. You can also use fusilli, or opt for a fun shape of your choosing!
Yes, you can make some elements in advance. Make the dressing a day ahead, toast your breadcrumbs, and prep your romaine lettuce so it’s all ready to go when you want to assemble and serve.
Leftover chicken or rotisserie chicken are great options to keep this recipe quick and easy. If you are making your own, you can do a grilled chicken or a roasted chicken breast.
Try These Other Caesar Salad Inspired Recipes
If you make your own Chicken Caesar Salad recipe, be sure to review it below and let me know what you think! If you’re looking for more inspiration, subscribe to my Substack, and follow along on Pinterest, Instagram, and TikTok to join in all the fun!
Chicken Caesar Pasta Salad
Ingredients
Caesar Dressing
- 1 large egg
- 3/4 cup light olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic peeled and pressed or grated
- 2-3 anchovy fillets
- 1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1/4 cup lemon juice freshly squeezed
- 1 teaspoon Celtic sea salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
Toasted Breadcrumbs
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons Extra-Virgin olive oil
- 1 cup panko
- ½ teaspoon Celtic sea salt
- 1/3 cup freshly grated parmesan
- Zest of a lemon about 1 teaspoon
Pasta Salad
- 1 16-ounce fusilli or rotini pasta
- 3 cups shredded leftover or rotisserie chicken
- 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 2 cups shredded romaine 1-2 heads
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes halved
- Marinated Red Onions chopped, optional
- Salt and pepper
Instructions
- Crack the egg into a Mason jar. Slowly add the oil to the egg and blend with an immersion blender, pausing occasionally to let it incorporate. The mayo will thicken and emulsify. Add the garlic and anchovies, and blend to combine. Then add the dijon, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Blend until smooth. Cover and refrigerate to thicken.
- Bring a large pot of generously salted water to a boil.
- While the water is coming to a boil, in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat, melt the butter with the olive oil. Add the breadcrumbs and cook, stirring constantly, for 2–3 minutes, or until golden brown.
- Remove from the heat and stir in the salt. Continue stirring off the heat for another minute, as the residual heat from the pan will keep cooking the breadcrumbs.
- Transfer the breadcrumbs to the baking sheet and spread them out in an even layer to cool. Once cool, add the Parmesan and lemon zest, then toss to combine. Set aside while the pasta cooks.
- When the water is boiling, add pasta and cook to al dente according to package directions. Drain.
- While the pasta is still warm, in a large bowl, toss the pasta with half of the dressing and ¼ cup of parm to coat. Add chicken and another ¼ cup of dressing, and toss. Add ½ cup of the breadcrumbs, the lettuce, cherry tomatoes, and the remaining dressing. Toss everything to coat evenly, taste and adjust seasoning to taste.
- Serve pasta in bowls topped with some marinated onions, if using, and additional breadcrumbs.
Notes
- Make the dressing a day ahead to make prep easier and get more flavor.
- If you don’t have leftover or rotisserie chicken, opt for grilled chicken or roasted chicken breast.
Found you on Instagram by accident. I’m glad I did! Question on the Chicken Caesar Pasta Salad. Can I prep the items you suggested the day before and put the rest together in the morning and take on a 2 hr road trip, in a cooler of course and serve around dinner time or something to munch on the next day? Not sure if it will last that long. Thanks, and I can’t wait to explore what else you have!!
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