Pesto Chicken Pasta Salad
This Pesto Chicken Pasta Salad checks all the boxes for my ideal summer meal! It starts with juicy chicken breast marinated in herby pesto, grilled to perfection, and then tossed with protein-packed chickpea pasta, creamy mozzarella pearls, and fresh zucchini. It's rounded out with some tangy sun-dried tomatoes, basil and more pesto, for a meal that's incredibly flavorful and only gets better with time!
Equipment
- medium bowl
- spoon or whisk
- grill pan or normal pan
- large salad bowl + tongs
Ingredients
For the Pesto Chicken:
- 12-14 oz boneless, skinless chicken breast butterflied and/or beat down to ¼-½" thick
- 3 tbsp fresh pesto *
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- kosher salt & black pepper to taste
- olive oil or avocado oil
For the Pasta Salad:
- 8 oz dry rotini pasta (I used Banza chickpea pasta)
- 1 medium-large zucchini (12oz), ends trimmed & then cut into 4 planks lengthwise
- ½ cup fresh pesto
- 4 oz mozzarella pearls
- ⅓ cup finely chopped red onion
- ⅓ cup chopped sun-dried tomatoes **
- ½ oz basil leaves (about ½ packed cup), chiffonaded
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- kosher salt & black pepper to taste
- olive oil or avocado oil
Instructions
- First, add pesto, lemon juice, salt & pepper to a medium bowl and stir or whisk until combined. Then, add chicken breast and toss to coat. Set aside to marinate briefly while you chop the remaining ingredients and cook the zucchini.3 tbsp fresh pesto, 1 tbsp lemon juice, kosher salt & black pepper, 12-14 oz boneless, skinless chicken breast
- Bring a grill pan (or normal pan) to medium-high heat. Brush both sides of each zucchini plank with some oil, then season with salt & pepper. Once the pan is hot, add zucchini planks and let cook for 3-4 minutes. Flip and continue cooking for 2 more minutes. The zucchini should have some nice grill marks and be tender but not soggy. Transfer to a cutting board and cut into chunks.olive oil, 1 medium-large zucchini, kosher salt & black pepper
- Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil. Once boiling, heavily salt the water and then add your pasta. Cook according to package instructions. Then, drain and rinse to stop the cooking & cool it down.8 oz dry rotini pasta
- Return grill pan to the heat and turn it down to medium. Then, lightly grease the pan with oil. Add pesto chicken and cook for ~4 minutes. Flip, and continue cooking for 2 more minutes, or until the internal temperatures reaches 165F. Allow it to rest for a few minutes before cutting into cubes.olive oil
- Once chicken, zucchini and pasta have all cooled down you can assemble the pasta salad. Add pasta, grilled zucchini, pesto chicken, mozzarella pearls, red onion, sun-dried tomatoes and basil to a large salad bowl. Pour pesto and lemon juice over top, then season with more salt & pepper to taste. Toss until combined and evenly coated. Enjoy as is, or let sit in the fridge to allow the flavors to meld even more!½ cup fresh pesto, 4 oz mozzarella pearls, ⅓ cup finely chopped red onion, ⅓ cup chopped sun-dried tomatoes, ½ oz basil leaves, 1 tbsp lemon juice, kosher salt & black pepper
Video
Notes
*NOTE: For this pesto chicken pasta salad it's best to use fresh pesto (the kind that comes in the refrigerated section) instead of jarred pesto. Feel free to substitute homemade pesto if you'd like! **NOTE: I recommend that you use the sun-dried tomatoes that come packed in a jar of oil. Remove them from the oil, then chop and measure. NUTRITION INFO: The nutrition information listed below is an estimate per serving, assuming that you use chickpea pasta.
Nutrition
Calories: 375kcal | Carbohydrates: 28g | Protein: 27g | Fat: 19g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 0.01g | Cholesterol: 45mg | Sodium: 404mg | Potassium: 479mg | Fiber: 7g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 902IU | Vitamin C: 20mg | Calcium: 161mg | Iron: 4mg