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Home Pasta and Rice Salads

Chicken Pasta Salad

By:Nagi
Published:8 Feb '21Updated:5 Feb '23
50 Comments
Recipe v Video v Dozer v

This is a big batch Chicken Pasta Salad with plenty of creamy dressing, lightened up using a combination of sour cream and mayonnaise so it’s not excessively oil. Make it today, enjoy it for days!

After a no-mayo version? Use a creamy Yogurt Dressing instead.

3 bowls of Chicken Pasta Salad with Creamy Dressing
Big bowl of Chicken Pasta Salad with Creamy Dressing

About this Chicken Pasta Salad

This is an old-school Chicken Pasta Salad that comes with a creamy mayonnaise-based dressing, and lots of add-ins. Carrot, celery, capsicum (bell peppers), green onion, BACON, cheese and even avocado, if you so choose.

What I really like is that it’s nice and “moist”. That is, plenty of dressing, but you won’t feel weighed down after scoffing down a big bowl of this because the dressing is made with a 50/50 combination of both mayonnaise and sour cream.

It makes such a difference – all the creaminess, far less oil!

Creamy Dressing being poured over Chicken Pasta Salad

What goes in the Chicken Pasta Salad Creamy Dressing

Here’s what you need for the lightened-up-but-still-creamy dressing:

Ingredients in Chicken Pasta Salad with Creamy Dressing
  • Mayonnaise – Use whole egg mayonnaise, for the best flavour. It’s smoother and richer-tasting than non whole-egg mayonnaise. My favourite brands are Hellman’s and S&W. If you don’t have whole-egg mayonnaise, cut down on the cider vinegar slightly, otherwise the dressing is a bit vinegary (in my opinion);

  • Sour cream – As noted above, it’s used to cut down on the mayonnaise but still leave you with a lovely creamy dressing;

  • Dijon mustard and garlic powder – Flavourings. Everybody knows I’m a Dijon mustard tragic!;

  • Cider vinegar – For the tang; and

  • Sugar – Just a touch, for balance and because that’s the old-school way!


What goes in my Chicken Pasta Salad

And here’s what I put in this pasta salad:

Ingredients in Chicken Pasta Salad with Creamy Dressing
  • Chicken – Buy it cooked or poach your own. Then shred or finely chop into sort of baton shapes – see below for photo. It melds better with the pasta and eats more easily than having chunky cubes;

  • Macaroni (also called elbow pasta) – The original pasta salad shape. But really, you can use any short pasta you want: penne, ziti, bow ties, spirals etc;

  • Green onion – For freshness and nice bits of green colour;

  • Carrot and celery – Standard creamy pasta salad vegetable add-ins;

  • Capsicum/bell pepper – For lovely, crunchy little specks of red throughout;

  • Avocado – Optional. I chose “yes”, but they were sadly far too firm to use. So they aren’t in the finished dish photos, or recipe video for that matter;

  • Shredded cheese – Because I always have and always will; and

  • Bacon – For great little pops of salty goodness. Ham also works really well (bonus: no need to cook it).

Pile of finely chopped Chicken for Creamy Chicken Pasta

How to make Creamy Chicken Pasta Salad

It’s really nice and simple:

How to make Creamy Chicken Pasta Salad
  1. Pasta – Cook pasta in salted water. Do not skip the salt in the water, it really makes a difference with pasta salads;

  2. Dressing – Mix it up, and set aside for 10 minutes or so, to let the flavours come together;

  3. Cook bacon until golden and crisp, then drain on paper towels;

  4. Toss – Toss everything together really well. Devour!

Close up of a big bowl of Chicken Pasta Salad with Creamy Dressing
Close up of Chicken Pasta Salad with Creamy Dressing

No-mayonnaise creamy dressing option

Also, I would be remiss not to mention some terrific no-mayo creamy dressing options! Whether you’ve got mayo-haters in your life (I seem to have a bizarre number of these) or simply as a lower fat alternative, try a Creamy Yogurt Dressing instead. Use either the Yogurt Ranch or Yogurt Potato Salad Dressing, both are terrific for pasta salad.

Photo of 5 Healthier Yogurt Salad Dressings

Serve at room temperature

This is a really great summer staple. It can do duty as a big batch picnic dish that is at home at every BBQ spread, as a handy quick meal, a dinner side or work lunch.

My one big tip is to serve it at room temperature. There are few things in life that are better fridge cold (perhaps beer), and cold pasta salad is not one of them. The pasta is firm, the dressing is a bit pasty and you just can’t taste the flavours as well.

So take it out of the fridge at least 30 minutes before you plan to serve it to take the fridge chill out of it.

Enjoy! – Nagi x


Watch how to make it

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Close up photo of Chicken Pasta Salad with Creamy Dressing

Chicken Pasta Salad with Creamy Dressing

Author: Nagi
Prep: 20 minutes mins
Cook: 10 minutes mins
Lunch, Pasta, Salad meal
Western
4.96 from 22 votes
Servings10 – 12
Tap or hover to scale
Print
Recipe video above. This is a big batch Chicken Pasta Salad with plenty of creamy dressing, lightened up using a combination of sour cream and mayonnaise so it's not excessively oil. Make it today, enjoy it for days!
After a no mayo version? Use a Creamy Yogurt Dressing instead.

Ingredients

  • 500g / 1 lb macaroni / elbow pasta (or other pasta of choice)
  • 1 tbsp salt (to cook pasta)

Pasta Salad:

  • 3 cups cooked chicken , shredded or finely chopped (Note 1)
  • 150g / 5 oz bacon , chopped
  • 2 celery stalks , finely sliced
  • 1 red capsicum / bell pepper , finely diced
  • 2 green onions , finely sliced
  • 2 carrots (medium), shredded using standard box grater
  • 2 cups shredded cheese (cheddar, tasty, Colby)
  • 2 avocados (small/medium), cut into bite size pieces (optional)

DRESSING:

  • 1 cup mayonnaise , whole egg best (Hellmann’s, Best Foods, S&W or other whole egg mayonnaise)
  • 1 cup sour cream , full fat (low fat ok too)
  • 3 tbsp cider vinegar
  • 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
  • 4 tsp sugar
  • 1 1/2 tsp garlic powder
  • 2 tsp salt
  • 1 tsp pepper

Instructions

  • Cook pasta: Bring a large pot of water to the boil. Add salt, then cook pasta per packet directions. Drain well, let cool.
  • Dressing: Mix Dressing ingredients in a bowl. Set aside 10 minutes+.
  • Cook bacon: Place bacon in a cold non-stick skillet (Note X). Turn stove on to medium high, then cook bacon until golden. Drain on paper towels.
  • Toss! Place cooked pasta in a large bowl along with all the Pasta Salad ingredients, reserving some bacon for garnish. Pour over Dressing, then toss well.
  • Set aside for 20 minutes. Transfer to serving bowl, sprinkle with remaining bacon. Serve!
  • Storage: Keeps for 3 – 4 days in the fridge. Best to bring to room temp before serving!

Recipe Notes:

1. Cooked chicken – I just use store bought rotisserie chicken. You can also poach your own – use this foolproof poaching method.
2. Bacon cooking – starting with a cold skillet makes the bacon fat melt as it heat up, so you don’t need any oil to cook the bacon.
3. No mayo dressing – use a Creamy Yogurt Dressing instead. My favourites for pasta salad are the Yogurt Ranch and Yogurt Potato Salad dressing.
4. Storage – Keeps for 5 days in the fridge. Not suitable for freezing.
5. Nutrition per serving.

Nutrition Information:

Calories: 548cal (27%)Carbohydrates: 37g (12%)Protein: 24g (48%)Fat: 33g (51%)Saturated Fat: 11g (69%)Trans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 76mg (25%)Sodium: 1355mg (59%)Potassium: 410mg (12%)Fiber: 3g (13%)Sugar: 5g (6%)Vitamin A: 2390IU (48%)Vitamin C: 16mg (19%)Calcium: 183mg (18%)Iron: 1mg (6%)
Keywords: chicken pasta salad, creamy pasta salad
Did you make this recipe?I love hearing how you went with my recipes! Tag me on Instagram at @recipe_tin.

Life of Dozer

Hi food catching chest hair back in action – chicken from today’s shoot.

Dozer food catching chest hair

Look at him, licking his licks in anticipation of a treat, completely oblivious to the snack tangled up in his chest hairs! 😂

Dozer food catching chest hair
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Hi, I'm Nagi!

I believe you can make great food with everyday ingredients even if you’re short on time and cost conscious. You just need to cook clever and get creative!

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50 Comments

  1. Katie says

    November 23, 2023 at 5:01 pm

    5 stars
    Absolutely delicious. It’s a great make ahead dish – we ate if for 3 days – with sausages and steak at dinner and by itself for lunches. I added a bit of Vegeta chicken seasoning but didn’t change anything else, delightful! Thank you Nagi.

    Reply
  2. Phay Hoy says

    September 1, 2023 at 11:24 am

    5 stars
    Awesome! I made it exactly as written and served it alongside fresh sliced tomatoes for an easy , stress-free dinner. The dressing to ingredient ratio was great because I hate dry pasta salad. Well done, everyone loved it!!

    Reply
  3. Linda Torson says

    August 20, 2023 at 10:04 am

    This recipe is to die for! Made it yesterday and tasted it and then had a small bowl this evening (saving for lunches this week). Made it per the recipe poaching the chicken per Nagi’s recipe and it’s simply amazing! Thanks again.

    Reply
  4. Lana says

    August 15, 2023 at 10:47 pm

    5 stars
    I used shell noodles because I didn’t have any elbow and this turned out so delicious. The dressing is so good! It definitely makes a lot but that isn’t a bad thing. It’s great for pot-lucks!

    Reply
  5. Katherine KR says

    July 24, 2023 at 4:22 pm

    I fried a few chicken breasts with spices – salt and pepper, italian seasoning and garlic powder using cast iron frying pan. I don’t like red pepper so I skipping that. The pasta and the sliced chicken breast taste very good on its own or together. We love this recipe.

    Reply
  6. Pat P says

    July 11, 2023 at 9:20 am

    5 stars
    Oh Yum! I made mine with Duke’s Mayo (no added sugar). Just delicious! Also, I deleted 1 t. salt and 1 t. sugar in the dressing. It makes almost 5 qts. of salad but that’s a good problem.

    Reply
  7. Becky says

    May 30, 2023 at 1:19 am

    5 stars
    This is absolutely delicious. It makes a ton so plan on sharing with friends or neighbors. It’s also very adaptable – if you don’t have one of two of the ingredients, substitute with something else. I used halved grape tomatoes instead of celery and carrots and it was a total success.

    Reply
  8. Desiree' Hare says

    March 17, 2023 at 5:51 pm

    5 stars
    It was 33 deg here in Cape Town, South Africa, last night and I prepared this amazing dish for supper! Quick, tasty, and just right on a hot summer’s evening! Thanks, Nagi for another hit!

    Reply
  9. Mark says

    February 20, 2023 at 7:39 pm

    Hi Nagi,
    Question for you. With your macaroni salad you state that you can freeze it okay but not with this chicken version. Why is that? For the life of me I cannot see why it wouldn’t freeze well.

    Reply
  10. Janine says

    January 8, 2023 at 2:18 pm

    5 stars
    Yummy. Still lovely the next day. So easy.

    Reply
  11. Clara says

    December 24, 2022 at 10:56 am

    Thank you for the 1: 1 mayo and sour cream ratio. I used your poached chicken recipe. However I was making a Filipino macaroni salad today. My bug bear all these years was the amount of mayo used in the salad and its so unhealthy.

    I will make your macaroni chicken salad another day. I am sure hubby will love it. Its just that I was craving the Filipino salad. And made a Korean potato salad with Fuji apples, sweetcorn, carrots and hard boiled eggs with Kewpie mayo.

    Reply
  12. Crystal says

    August 6, 2022 at 7:30 pm

    5 stars
    Made this for dinner tonight and it was a winner (no surprise there, all your recipes are!). Unfortunately my avo wasn’t ripe enough. I used chargrilled marinated capsicums which were delicious. I think it will add some chopped rocket next time. Delicious and easy meal!

    Reply
  13. Michelle says

    June 21, 2022 at 3:18 am

    5 stars
    This recipe makes a very rich-tasting pasta salad – almost like a BLT! The dressing, on its own, with the pasta is particularly tasty! I could dip cooked pasta in that dressing and snack on that all day! The cider vinegar gives it just the right amount of tang.

    If I were to make this again, I’d probably go heavier on the veggies, lighter on the bacon, and not add cheese, to keep the salad a little less rich to make it easier on the stomach. I think the onions are a must.

    Can’t wait to try the no-mayo option!

    Reply
  14. Lez says

    May 6, 2022 at 8:21 pm

    5 stars
    Love this recipe. I always add gherkin relish and it makes this salad really, really good.

    Reply
  15. miranda says

    March 17, 2022 at 8:50 am

    5 stars
    love this recipe & have made it a few time, but am now at a time in my life that i have to count carbs, calories, etc. – there is no serving size suggestion, so hard to tell what the nutrition facts amount to. any thoughts?

    Reply
  16. Sym says

    February 20, 2022 at 8:47 am

    5 stars
    Great salad to have at a BBQ!

    Reply
  17. Vic says

    February 15, 2022 at 2:28 am

    Hi Nagi ! I love all the recipes I have tried from this site. The meatloaf is my favorite. With this recipe , is the cider vinegar apple or some other kind? I want to make sure before I try this.

    Reply
    • Nagi says

      February 15, 2022 at 1:04 pm

      Yes Vic, it’s apple cider vinegar! N x

      Reply
  18. Otis mum Jenny says

    January 8, 2022 at 9:01 am

    5 stars
    Made this a few days ago and it was super easy to make and just so tasty. Didn’t think it was possible but the salad tasted even better the next day after being in the fridge overnight. This has instantly become my go to chicken pasta salad recipe!

    Reply
  19. Jane says

    January 3, 2022 at 8:47 am

    5 stars
    Left out red pepper and carrots and added chopped grape tomatoes. Served on a bed a lettuce to lower the carb count. Loved it! As always, thank you!!!!

    Reply
  20. Shani says

    December 24, 2021 at 8:20 am

    5 stars
    Hi Nagi, this looks delicious! Can you make this a day ahead?

    Many thanks!

    Reply
    • Vernis says

      January 19, 2022 at 3:26 pm

      i wondered too, but then i realised instruction stap #6 says “Keeps for 3 – 4 days in the fridge.” 🙂

      Reply
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Hi, I'm Nagi!

I believe you can make great food with everyday ingredients even if you’re short on time and cost conscious. You just need to cook clever and get creative! Read More

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