Marry Me Chicken Pasta Salad
Marry Me Chicken Pasta salad is an easy and delicious summer meal or side dish that has all of the flavors of the viral Marry Me Chicken dish. As soon as the weather warms up, pasta salad stays on our dinner rotation and this one never disappoints.
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This dish is perfect for a pool day, get together with friends, or just a quick weeknight dinner.
It’s super simple to throw together and made with flavorful ingredients like bacon, sun dried tomatoes, grilled chicken, Parmesan cheese, fresh spinach, seasonings, and fresh cherry tomatoes.
If you are looking for other delicious pasta salad recipes, check out my viral Grinder Salad Tortellini Pasta Salad or my Creamy Italian Pasta Salad! Both of these recipes are easy and perfect for all of the summer BBQs and get-togethers.
Ingredients
- Chicken breast, cooked and chopped
- Rotini
- Mayo
- Red wine vinegar
- Salt, pepper, oregano, thyme, onion powder, garlic powder, red pepper flakes
- Sun-dried tomatoes, chopped
- Oil from the sun dried tomatoes
- Parmesan cheese
- Red onion, chopped
- Cherry tomatoes, sliced
- Fresh spinach, chopped
- Bacon, cooked and chopped
Make Marry Me Chicken Pasta Salad
You need 1 lb of cooked and chopped chicken for this recipe as well as 8 pieces of bacon cooked and chopped.
I grilled the chicken with some salt, pepper, and garlic powder and cooked my bacon in the oven at 400 degrees F for about 25 minutes.
Boil the rotini on the stove following the directions on the package. Drain and rinse with cold water and set aside.
In a large bowl, mix together mayo, red wine vinegar, salt, pepper, oregano, thyme, onion powder, garlic powder, and red pepper flakes.
Add 1/3 cup chopped sun dried tomatoes and 1 tbsp of the oil from the jar.
Next, add Parmesan cheese and stir well.
Add the cooked pasta, chopped red onions, chopped spinach, tomatoes, and the bacon.
Stir everything together well and top the pasta salad with a little bit more Parmesan cheese.
Serve Marry Me Chicken Pasta Salad
Once the pasta salad is mixed together it’s time to eat! Serve immediately or chill in the refrigerator for an hour.
This pasta salad is perfect for lunch, dinner, or as a side dish for any summer get-together.
You will love this recipe because it’s delicious, hearty enough for a meal, easy to prep/make ahead, and perfect for summer potlucks and BBQs.
Tips and Frequently Asked Questions
- Serve the pasta salad immediately or let it chill in the refrigerator for 1-2 hours. After refrigerating, be sure to give the pasta salad a good stir before serving.
- Any cooked chicken should work in this recipe. I grilled chicken and seasoned it lightly with some salt, pepper, and garlic powder. This pasta salad would also be good without the chicken.
- This recipe calls for 8 pieces of cooked bacon. My favorite way to make bacon for recipes like this is by baking on a sheet pan lined with parchment at 400 degrees for 25 minutes!
- I like making this pasta salad with Rotini, but you could really use any pasta you have in the pantry. The corkscrew shape just helps hold onto the dressing pretty well.
- I used Parmesan cheese in this recipe, but you could also add some shredded mozzarella cheese.
- This is one of those recipes that you can customize to your liking!
- If you don’t keep red wine vinegar stocked you could use a little bit of white vinegar instead, but I’d start with a little less because it seems to have a stronger flavor.
Similar Recipes
- Creamy Italian Pasta Salad
- Grinder Salad Tortellini Pasta Salad
- Marry Me Chicken Pasta Bake
- Crockpot Marry Me Chicken Sandwiches
- Marry Me Chicken Tortellini
- Grinder Salad Sandwiches
- Asian Coleslaw
- Cheesy Funeral Potatoes
- Broccoli Salad
- Smoked Baked Beans
If you make this Marry Me Chicken Pasta Salad I hope you love it! If you do, please leave me a comment or save this recipe to your Pinterest account for later.
Ingredients
- 1 lb chicken breast cooked and chopped
- 12 oz Rotini
- 1 cup of mayo
- 2 tbsp red wine vinegar
- 1/2 tsp each salt, pepper, oregano, thyme
- 1 tsp each onion powder and garlic powder
- 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
- 1/3 cup sun-dried tomatoes chopped
- 1 tbsp oil from the sun dried tomatoes
- 1/3 cup Parmesan cheese (plus more for topping)
- 1/2 a red onion chopped
- 1 heaping cup cherry tomatoes sliced
- 1 cup fresh spinach chopped
- 8 pieces of bacon cooked and chopped
Instructions
- You need 1 lb of cooked and chopped chicken for this recipe as well as 8 pieces of bacon cooked and chopped. I grilled the chicken with some salt, pepper, and garlic powder and cooked my bacon in the oven at 400 degrees F for about 25 minutes.
- Boil the rotini on the stove following the directions on the package. Drain and rinse with cold water and set aside.
- In a large bowl, mix together mayo, red wine vinegar, salt, pepper, oregano, thyme, onion powder, garlic powder, and red pepper flakes. Add 1/3 cup chopped sun dried tomatoes and 1 tbsp of the oil from the jar. Add Parmesan cheese and stir well.
- Add the cooked pasta, chopped red onions, chopped spinach, tomatoes, and the bacon. Stir everything together well and top the pasta salad with a little bit more Parmesan cheese. Serve immediately or chill in the refrigerator for an hour. Enjoy!
Notes
- Serve the pasta salad immediately or let it chill in the refrigerator for 1-2 hours. After refrigerating, be sure to give the pasta salad a good stir before serving.
- Any cooked chicken should work in this recipe. I grilled chicken and seasoned it lightly with some salt, pepper, and garlic powder. This pasta salad would also be good without the chicken.
- This recipe calls for 8 pieces of cooked bacon. My favorite way to make bacon for recipes like this is by baking on a sheet pan lined with parchment at 400 degrees for 25 minutes!
- I like making this pasta salad with Rotini, but you could really use any pasta you have in the pantry. The corkscrew shape just helps hold onto the dressing pretty well.
- I used Parmesan cheese in this recipe, but you could also add some shredded mozzarella cheese.
- This is one of those recipes that you can customize to your liking!
- If you don’t keep red wine vinegar stocked you could use a little bit of white vinegar instead, but I’d start with a little less because it seems to have a stronger flavor.