Easy Chicken Caesar Pasta Salad Recipe

Looking for a crowd-pleasing tailgate dish? Try this Chicken Caesar Pasta Salad. It’s easy to prepare and packed with delicious flavors.

 

I love the Game Day tailgate and all the mouthwatering food involved. If you love Caesar salad and pasta, why not combine the two for a delicious and hearty meal? Chicken Caesar Pasta Salad is perfect for a quick lunch, meal prep, or even a tailgate! Packed with juicy chicken, crunchy romaine, al dente pasta, and a creamy Caesar dressing, this dish is a crowd-pleaser. This easy side dish will be a hit with both teams!

Why We Love this Chicken Caesar Pasta Salad with Creamy Dressing

This easy recipe can be the ultimate girl dinner, meal prep option, or summer bbq side or picnic dish! We love it because it’s:

Savory & Creamy: The Caesar dressing is rich, garlicky, and tangy, coating everything in a delicious, creamy layer.

Protein-Packed: Juicy, seasoned chicken makes it satisfying and hearty enough for a main dish but light enough as a side.

Crunch & Freshness: Crisp romaine lettuce and crunchy croutons contrast beautifully with the soft pasta.

Cheesy Goodness: Parmesan cheese adds a salty, umami kick.

Carbs + Greens Balance: You get the best of both worlds—comforting pasta with refreshing greens.

Key Ingredients for this Chicken Caesar Pasta Salad Recipe

Pasta

The pasta provides a hearty base that absorbs the dressing well and maintains its texture. My favorite type of pasta is farfalle (or bow-tie pasta) for this chicken caesar pasta salad recipe, but rotini pasta or penne work well.  Best choices are short pasta shapes with plenty of nooks and crannies.  Their size makes them easy to serve and eat, and their grooves and nooks provide plenty of spaces to hold dressing, cheeses, and other scrumptious ingredients.

Chicken

Grilled chicken is a great way to add lean protein to make the salad more filling. Feel free to use leftover store-bought rotisserie chicken or cook up some chicken breasts! Chop into bite-sized pieces before adding to this perfect side dish.

Lettuce

Crisp romaine lettuce brings a fresh, crisp texture that contrasts nicely with the pasta. Alternatively, mixed greens, kale or iceberg would work. If you’re looking for a hack to make prep easier, pick up a pre-packaged Caesar salad mix from the grocery store and use the chopped romaine and other ingredients in this tasty chicken caesar pasta salad.

Grape tomatoes

You can use grape tomatoes, fresh cherry tomatoes or chopped roma tomatoes to add a juicy, slightly sweet burst of flavor.

I’m using Farfalle for this chicken Caesar pasta salad because the shape is adorable, but some alternative options are penne pasta noodles, cavatappi, and Rotini, which are all great pasta shapes for this dish. You want to choose a dried pasta (not fresh), and make sure it can hold up when it’s tossed with the caesar dressing and other ingredients in the dish. 

Garlic Croutons

Crunchy croutons provide depth of texture and an extra layer of garlicky flavor that complements the Caesar dressing. Homemade croutons are my favorite, but you can use store bought.

Parmesan Cheese

I use both grated and shredded parmesan cheese in this recipe. They both enhance the classic traditional caesar salad taste with a rich, savory note.

Caesar Dressing

You can do store bought or homemade caesar dressing. Either will work for this pasta salad recipe

Additional Ingredients

Black pepper
Salt

Step by Step Instructions to make Chicken Caesar Pasta Salad

This tailgate side dish couldn’t be easier to make! I’m using a leftover rotisserie chicken, a pre-packaged Caesar salad from my local grocery store and some of my favorite bottled Caesar dressing, so this should be a snap!

Boil the pasta. When testing the pasta for doneness, make sure that it’s truly al dente.  This will ensure that it will hold up when all of the other ingredients are added.  The last thing your guests want is mushy noodles!  After the pasta is drained, run it under cold water to make sure all carry over cooking has stopped.  Once completely cooled, you’ll move on to the next step.

Combine the ingredients

Put the cooled cooked pasta in a large mixing bowl and add the rest of the ingredients! Couldn’t be easier.  Cut up a leftover rotisserie chicken and a handful of sliced grape tomatoes and add it all to a big bowl.  Toss with your favorite Caesar dressing.

How much pasta salad will I need to feed my guests?

My rule of thumb is to first take the number of guests and round up.  For pasta salad, you should estimate that each guest will eat 5 ounces of pasta salad.  If you’re having 20 people over, multiple 20 by 5 oz to get 100 oz, then divide by 16 (for 16 oz per pound).  That equals 6.25. I would round this up to either 6.5 or 7 pounds of pasta salad. 

Entertaining Tips

If you’re anything like me, and most tailgates I like to walk around, mingle with other football fans, (and let’s be honest), check out what dishes they brought!   That means my food has to come with me!  Keeping that in mind, the serving vessel for my chicken Caesar pasta salad has to be portable and easy. Since most guests won’t be seated, put some of this delicious cold pasta salad in 9 oz plastic cups Stick a fork in each individual cup and your guests on the go!

Additional Recipes to Try

Looking for more recipes for game day? Check out these great ideas:

Spicy Turkey Chili – packed with lean protein and flavorful spices, this spicy turkey chili is the perfect way to satisfy your comfort food cravings! 

The Best Smoked Queso Dip – No charcoal grill or wood pellets needed for this cheesy dip! It’s easy, delicious, and a total crowd pleaser!

Football Tailgate Charcuterie Board – this cheese board will be a hit no matter which team you’re cheering for!

Print

Want to pin this for later? Click on the image below!