This flavorful Grilled Chicken and Vegetable Pasta Salad is filled with tender chicken and seasonal vegetables, grilled to perfection and tossed in a Greek vinaigrette with crumbled feta cheese. This simple recipe is ideal as a main or side dish, served warm, at room temperature or chilled.
With spring here and summer just around the corner, I’m so excited to be cooking outside on the BBQ again! And when I shop at my local D&W Fresh Market, I have an amazing selection of the finest seasonal produce to use in some of my favorite summer dishes. With my family being so busy when school is out and the boys are home more, I love that I can easily place a grocery order online and then collect it or better yet have it delivered! With my most recent order, I put together this delicious Grilled Chicken and Vegetable Pasta Salad that I just had to share!
Ingredients
- Rotini pasta: I love using D&W’s Our Family brand as it’s budget friendly but still high quality!
- Olive oil: Helps grill chicken and veggies to perfection and flavor pasta salad.
- Oregano: Oregano is earthy and peppery and aromatic, adding flavor to both the chicken and veggies.
- Chicken breast: A lean, accessible, affordable protein that can be either frozen or bought at the meat counter!
- Zucchini: A delicious summer squash that’s grilled soft and slightly sweet.
- Aubergine: Colorful, tender and slightly sweet, the aubergine gets a little creamy when cooked.
- Red onion: Well cooked or raw, but grilling it along with eggplant and zucchini gives the whole dish a pungent flavor.
- Garlic: Fresh garlic adds a strong, aromatic, slightly nutty flavor that sweetens when cooked.
- red wine vinegar: A staple in many Mediterranean dishes, its tangy flavor helps flavor pasta salads.
- Feta cheese: Continuing the Greek or Mediterranean flair of this dish, this soft, white cheese adds a rich and salty flavor to the salad.
How to make Pasta Salad with Grilled Chicken and Vegetables
Start your Grilled Chicken and Vegetable Pasta Salad by preparing Our Family Rotini according to package directions. Then drain and set aside.
Next, take your chicken breasts and brush them with some olive oil.
Then season your chicken with salt, pepper and oregano. If you want it a little spicier, you can also add some chilli flakes!
Then cut the aubergine, zucchini and red onion into cubes. D&W’s weekly ad highlights seasonal produce and all the items they have on sale, so use this to tailor the dish to your family!
Then place the diced vegetables in a bowl along with some whole garlic cloves and drizzle with olive oil.
Season with more oregano, salt, and pepper and toss until evenly coated.
Then grill your chicken on a preheated grill on high heat until fully cooked, about 5 minutes per side. Once it has reached an internal temperature of 165, remove from the grill and let rest for a few minutes before dicing.
Next, add your veggies to the grill and also cook them over high heat for about 8 minutes, tossing them regularly. If you don’t have a grill basket, you can make a disposable grill basket out of aluminum foil.
Once the chicken and veggies are cooked, place the sliced ​​chicken in a large bowl with the cooked noodles.
Next add the grilled vegetables.
Crumble the feta cheese and any fresh herbs you have. D&W always has a large selection of fresh parsley, basil and chives.
Rub in some garlic with a microplane.
Then dress with the red wine vinegar and a little olive oil. Toss well to evenly coat the entire salad. Check for spices and season with additional salt and pepper.
Serve cold or at room temperature and enjoy your Pasta Salad with Grilled Chicken and Vegetables!
Simple Substitutions
- Swap the vegetables. Knowing that my local market is in season makes this dish accessible and affordable all year round! Use vegetables that are in season and available at the supermarket!
- make it vegetarian You could make this pasta salad with just grilled veggies and omit the chicken to make it vegetarian. Take out the feta and it goes vegan.
Frequently asked Questions:
Can you eat cold noodles and chicken?
While it’s usually served hot, they can be served cold too!
How long does chicken pasta salad keep in the fridge?
You can make this dish a few days in advance, if stored in an airtight container in the fridge your pasta salad will last up to 4 days.
Do you rinse the noodles when making pasta salad?
You don’t have to, but rinsing the pasta in cold water can help cool it more quickly if you plan to serve the pasta salad cold.
More grill recipes
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Delicious for the day or the next, this easy grilled chicken and vegetable pasta salad dish makes the most of staples and seasonal produce from your local D&W Fresh Market. Try it yourself!
Your fork is waiting.
Greek pasta salad with grilled chicken and vegetables
This flavorful pasta salad is filled with tender chicken and veggies that are grilled to perfection and tossed in a Greek vinaigrette with crumbled feta cheese. This simple recipe is ideal as a main or side dish, served warm, at room temperature or chilled.
Servings:
Greek vinaigrette with feta
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Preheat grill over high heat.
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Prepare noodles according to package instructions and set aside.
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While the pasta is cooking, combine the olive oil, oregano, half the salt (1 teaspoon), half the pepper (1/4 teaspoon), and the chili flakes in a small bowl. Place the diced vegetables in a large bowl and drizzle with half the oil mixture, tossing well to coat; put aside. Place the chicken breasts on a large plate and rub both sides with the remaining half of the oil mixture using a pastry brush.
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Grill the chicken breasts for 5-6 minutes per side, turning once. Remove from heat once they have reached an internal cooking temperature of 165 degrees or higher. Let rest for 5 minutes before dicing.
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While the chicken is cooking, place a grill basket on the grill and grill the vegetables until caramelized and tender, about 8-9 minutes, tossing with grill tongs about every minute.
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For the pasta salad, place the cooked pasta, grilled diced chicken, and grilled diced vegetables in a large bowl. Whisk together the Greek vinaigrette (without feta) and then drizzle over the pasta salad. Scatter over the feta and toss again. Check the seasonings and adjust accordingly before serving. Enjoy warm, room temperature or chilled.
Portion: 2cupsCalories: 415kcalCarbohydrates: 51GProtein: 19GFat: 15GSaturated Fatty Acids: 5GPolyunsaturated fat: 1GMonounsaturated fatty acids: 7GTrans fats: 0.004GCholesterol: 43mgSodium: 1239mgPotassium: 505mgFiber: 5GSugar: 5GVitamin A: 255ieVitamin C: 8thmgCalcium: 198mgIron: 2mg
disclosure: This recipe was developed in collaboration with Spartan Nash. Thank you for supporting the brands that make The Lemon Bowl possible. All thoughts are my own.