This Chicken Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad is one of my favorite chicken bacon ranch recipes. It’s easy to prepare and make fantastic leftovers. I love making this recipe for meal prep so I can enjoy a fresh meal throughout the week with minimal effort.
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The dressing has a tasty ranch flavor with a lovely creamy consistency. It coats all the ingredients perfectly without overpowering their natural flavor. I cook the chicken fresh as well so it remains tender and moist before serving.
If you like easy pasta salad recipes, you will love this Best Greek Pasta Salad and Classic Pasta Salad.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- There’s no need to reheat it: This is a cold pasta salad recipe, so there’s no need to worry about heating leftovers. It’s ready to go straight from the refrigerator!
- It’s great for summer: I love salads in the summer, especially pasta salads. They are delicious and refreshing. This chicken ranch pasta salad has several flavors and textures that create a great bite without using the oven.
- It’s easy to make: This recipe is so simple. Once the chicken and pasta are cooked and cooled, assemble and serve!
Ingredients
Below is everything you’ll need to make this ranch pasta salad with chicken—including the tasty ranch dressing! They are divided into separate categories to make life even easier for you.
- Rotini pasta: I like rotini pasta for this because of how the dressing sticks to the spirals. Feel free to use another variety like penne or farfalle if you want.
- Chicken breasts: I grill the chicken breasts for extra flavor and then cut them into cubes. You may try chicken thighs, but they must be boneless and skinless.
- Cheddar cheese: Cubes of cheese are great for this pasta salad. I love the texture and flavor! I prefer any kind of sharp cheddar for best results.
- Cherry tomatoes: Juicy cherry tomatoes add nutrients, sweetness, and a pop of color to this chicken bacon ranch salad.
- Bacon: Salty pieces of bacon add flavor and a crispy texture that complements the other ingredients.
- Green onions: I like the freshness of chopped green onions, and they go perfectly with chicken bacon ranch.
- Parsley: This is an optional garnish, but it adds even more freshness and color! Some fresh dill would be amazing, too.
- Ranch dressing mix: This adds a classic, bold ranch flavor to the dressing that ties all of the components together.
- Creamy Base: This combination makes the perfect rich base! The mayonnaise adds a little fat and flavor to the recipe while sour cream cuts through the rich flavors and adds some tanginess. A bit of milk thins it out to make the dressing easier to drizzle.
See the recipe card below for exact ingredient amounts, nutritional information, and detailed instructions.
Variations
- Buffalo bleu: Add some buffalo sauce in place of the milk in the dressing and swap the cheddar cubes for bleu cheese crumbles for a kick.
- Greek: Use Greek yogurt instead of sour cream and add chopped cucumber and kalamata olives. Even feta would be great in places of cheddar!
- Southwest: Incorporate black beans and corn as well as pepper jack instead of cheddar. Feel free to add chili powder and cumin to the dressing, too!
How to Make Chickne & Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad
Here are the directions needed to make this ranch pasta salad recipe. To get started, ensure your chicken and pasta are both cooked and cooled so they are ready to add to the other ingredients.
Step 1: Make the dressing. Whisk together the ranch mix with the mayonnaise, sour cream, and milk in a mixing bowl. When it's ready, pop it in the refrigerator.
Step 2: Combine the salad ingredients. While the dressing chills, add all of the pasta salad ingredients to a separate large bowl.
Step 3: Add the dressing. Pour the dressing on top and lightly toss the pasta salad to mix the ingredients and coat them in the ranch dressing.
Step 4: Chill and serve. Cover the pasta salad and stick it in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes before you enjoy it.
Recipe Tips
- Storage directions: Store your leftovers tightly covered or in an airtight container for up to 3 days in the refrigerator.
- Make extra dressing for leftovers: I like to make a little extra ranch dressing and keep it in a separate container in the refrigerator. The ingredients will soak up a lot of the dressing, so the reserved batch can be drizzled on top of the leftovers.
- Cook the pasta in salted water: I like to season every layer of a recipe. When you cook the rotini pasta, generously salt the water. This will ensure the pasta has plenty of flavor, too.
If you love the combination of chicken and bacon with pasta, you may also enjoy this Chicken Bacon Ranch Mac and Cheese.
Serving Suggestions
This easy pasta salad works great to carry to a potluck, serve up for all your summer entertaining, or even for your weekly meals. Here are some serving ideas for inspiration.
- Make a tasty and nutritious vegetable to serve on the side like maple bacon Brussel sprouts and sweet green beans. If you have leftover veggies, you can throw them in the salad, too!
- I love enjoying soup and salad. Corn and potato chowder and red cabbage soup are some amazing options.
- Try a crispy cod sandwich with a serving of pasta salad on the side.
Recipe FAQs
Sure! Use leftover chicken from another recipe or shredded chicken from a rotisserie chicken instead. Any cooked chicken would be delish.
The dairy dressing doesn’t freeze well. So, I don’t recommend freezing any of the chicken bacon pasta salad.
Of course. It can chill in the refrigerator for a couple of hours before you serve it. So, it’s great to make in the morning to have it ready to eat for dinner the same day.
More Delicious Chicken Dishes
Do you like chicken recipes? Here are some recipes you may also like to try.
If you try this recipe and love it please leave a star rating in the recipe card below or even better, drop a review in the comment section, I always appreciate your feedback. Be sure to follow along with me on Facebook, Pinterest, and YouTube for more easy recipes!
Chicken Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad
Ingredients
- 12 ounces rotini pasta cooked and cooled
- 2 grilled chicken breasts cut into cubes (Roughly 2 cups)
- 1 cup cubed cheddar cheese
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes halved
- 6 slices cooked bacon chopped
- 3 stalks green onions sliced
- 2 tablespoons fresh parsley chopped
Dressing
- 1 pkg (1 oz) ranch dressing mix
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- ½ cup sour cream
- ¼ cup milk
Instructions
- In a small bowl, whisk together the ranch dressing mix, mayonnaise, sour cream, and milk until smooth, then refrigerate while preparing the salad.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the cooked rotini pasta, cubed grilled chicken, cubed cheddar cheese, halved cherry tomatoes, chopped bacon, sliced green onions, and chopped parsley.
- Pour the prepared dressing over the pasta mixture and stir until everything is evenly coated.
- Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes to allow the flavors to meld before serving.
- Stir the salad before serving and garnish with additional parsley or green onions if desired.
Notes
- Store any leftover chicken bacon ranch pasta salad in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
- Do not freeze this pasta salad as it doesn’t thaw well. The dressing will separate and some of the produce will become mushy.
- Take an extra shortcut and use any precooked chicken that you have on hand instead of cooking it yourself.
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