A whole cookout in one bowl.
Summertime is cookout season, and I love gathering the family and a bunch of friends for a big backyard BBQ. A meal of grilled chicken, corn on the cob, and a nice, cool pasta salad is just about the best that summer has to offer.
This BBQ Chicken Pasta Salad has all the ingredients of a great summer cookout in one bowl. Grilled chicken breasts, cut into cubes…grilled sweet corn, cut off the cob…plus pasta, bell pepper, celery, cheese, bacon, and a spicy dressing with a whole cup of BBQ sauce in the mix. Every mouthful of this salad gives you all the flavor of a backyard BBQ.
How to make BBQ Chicken Pasta Salad
- Season your chicken with salt and pepper. Then husk your corn and rub with butter and season with salt and pepper. Prepare your grill and grill chicken and corn on the cob till cooked through. Pull off and allow to rest.
- Cook pasta according to the box directions and cook bacon.
- Chop your bell pepper, celery, and cube your cheese. Shear the corn off of the cob into a small bowl.
- While your chicken and corn are cooling, combine the mayo and your favorite BBQ sauce (my favorite is Sweet Baby Rays), apple cider vinegar and salt and pepper to taste.
- In a large bowl, mix the pasta, cooled corn and chicken, bacon, bell pepper, celery, and cheddar cheese.
- Next pour in your dressing and combine. This is great room temp or chilled the next day. There is so much to this salad, that it serves as a full meal as well as a great side for your next BBQ. Enjoy!
Would you serve this pasta salad as a main course or a side dish?
- Either! With meat, cheese, pasta, and veggies in one bowl, it’s easily substantial enough to be a whole meal by itself. But it would also make a great side dish for your next BBQ – whenever that may be.
What kind of BBQ sauce do you recommend for the dressing?
- My favorite is Sweet Baby Ray’s Original BBQ Sauce. If your supermarket doesn’t carry it, you can do a search on the website to find one in your area that does.
Does this pasta salad need to be chilled before serving?
- Nope! It’s perfectly fine at room temperature. But if you have leftovers, you can stick them in the fridge and enjoy them chilled the next day.
Speaking of leftovers, how long will they keep in the fridge?
- Like any other pasta salad, this one should stay good for three to four days. But you’ll most likely eat it all up sooner than that. Better yet, pack up your leftovers for lunch! Here we have our leftovers packed up in our favorite Easy Lunchboxes.
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BBQ Chicken Pasta Salad
Ingredients
- 8 oz of Bow tie Pasta
- 2-3 ears of corn grilled and sheared off cob
- 3 boneless skinless chicken breasts, grilled and cubed
- 8 slices of bacon cooked and chopped
- 1 bell pepper color of choice, chopped
- 2 stalks of celery chopped
- 3/4 cup of cheddar cheese cubed
Dressing
- 1 cup of mayo
- 1 cup of BBQ Sauce
- 1.5 TBSP of apple cider vinegar
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Chopped Cilantro
Instructions
- Season your chicken with salt and pepper. Then husk your corn and rub with butter and season with salt and pepper. Prepare your grill and grill chicken and corn on the cob till cooked through. Pull off and allow to rest.
- Cook pasta according to the box directions and cook bacon.
- Chop your bell pepper, celery, and cube your cheese. Shear the corn off of the cob into a small bowl.
- While your chicken and corn are cooling, combine the mayo and your favorite BBQ sauce (my favorite is Sweet Baby Rays), apple cider vinegar and salt and pepper to taste.
- In a large bowl, mix the pasta, cooled corn and chicken, bacon, bell pepper, celery, and cheddar cheese. Next pour in your dressing and combine. This is great room temp or chilled the next day. There is so much to this salad, that it serves as a full meal as well as a great side for your next BBQ. Enjoy!
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Nutrition Information:
Nutrition Disclaimer
Family Fresh Meals is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is only an estimate. We recommend running the ingredients through an online nutritional calculator if you need to verify any information.
Samantha says
I made this for Memorial Day lunch and it was delicious! It was a unique twist on a pasta salad. Everyone was expecting to take a bite and taste an Italian/vinegar dressing and instead they were hit by your barbeque dressing. No complaints from anyone! Thanks for a creative new addition to our summer meals!
Corey says
This comment made me smile! Thank you so much for sharing. I always love to hear when a recipe is a hit!
Miss says
I had something similar to this years ago and have been searching every since for this recipe, THIS IS IT! What a great and yummy pasta salad, thank you for sharing this!