This chicken grape pasta salad is incredibly flavourful and refreshing. Tender rotisserie chicken is combined with sweet and juicy grapes, crunchy walnuts, and a delicious, creamy poppy seed dressing that clings to the pasta. You can make it ahead for easy meal prep, or as an excellent dish to bring to get-togethers.
This dish makes summertime meals easy. The flavours are so exceptional together; so delightfully fresh and tasty - the best. A glass of thirst quenching cucumber lemonade and this pasta salad and you are set.
Ingredients
- Farfalle pasta - These bowtie-shaped pastas are perfect for scooping up the delectable sauce.
- Rotisserie chicken - You can use baked or grilled chicken in this recipe instead, but I like to make it with tender rotisserie chicken. Buying it pre-cooked saves on time, too.
- Seedless, red grapes - These add bursts of juicy sweetness. Look for smaller, seedless grapes. Red grapes taste the best in this salad and add another colour besides green.
- Celery - Add crunch and vibrancy to the pasta salad. Make sure to dice the celery small; it's not the star of this salad.
- Walnuts - These add crunch as well as a nutty flavour.
- Green onions - Brings a nice colour to the dish.
- Full-fat mayonnaise - Make sure to use real mayonnaise.
- Nonfat Greek yogurt
- Honey
- White wine vinegar
- Poppy seeds
- Salt
See the recipe card below for quantities.
Substitutions
Farfalle pasta - Substitute with your favourite kind of short pasta. Rotini or penne work well in pasta salads.
Rotisserie chicken - Substitute with shredded baked or grilled chicken breast.
Walnuts - Substitute with sliced almonds, cashews, toasted pine nuts or pecans. Toasting nuts enhances their flavour even more. If you use cashews or pine nuts, I recommend sprinkling them into the pasta salad when you serve it so that they don't soften in the dressing.
Celery - Substitute with green bell peppers or water chestnuts, diced small.
White wine vinegar - Substitute 1:1 with champagne vinegar or red wine vinegar.
Variations
Nut free - Exclude the walnuts from this recipe to make it nut allergy-safe.
Other possible additions - Dried cranberries, dried cherries, diced apple, cheddar cheese cubes, etc.
Instructions
Boil the pasta in salted water according to package directions.
Meanwhile, chop and prepare the salad ingredients.
Drain the pasta, then rinse with cold water to cool.
Put the drained, cooled pasta in a large bowl. Add in other salad ingredients.
In a medium bowl, add all of the dressing ingredients and whisk them together until smooth.
Pour the dressing into the large bowl with the pasta salad ingredients and mix well to thoroughly coat.
Chill the pasta salad in the fridge for at least 40 minutes before serving for the dressing flavours to soak in. Stir before serving to mix in any sauce that settled to the bottom.
How to serve it
This salad is hearty enough to make a meal for lunch or dinner. It makes a great side addition to a picnic or barbecue spread.
You can serve it on its own, on a bed of lettuce, or inside of lettuce wraps, tortillas, dinner rolls, or croissants. So versatile!
Equipment
You will need a large mixing bowl and a whisk to make this recipe.
Storage
Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3-4 days.
I do not recommend freezing this as pasta salads that contain mayonnaise do not freeze well.
FAQ
Yes, any pasta salad that contains mayonnaise or dairy ingredients, such as Greek yogurt or sour cream, should be served cold. By doing this you prevent spoiling. Pasta salads are designed to taste better chilled, too.
Both chicken and mayonnaise-based pasta salads have a refrigerated keep time of 3-4 days. Make sure to store it in an airtight container.
📖 Recipe
Chicken Grape Pasta Salad with Poppy Seed Dressing
- Prep Time: 15
- Cook Time: 10
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 3-4 servings 1x
- Category: Pasta Salads
- Cuisine: American
Description
A delicious, refreshing pasta salad featuring bursts of sweet grapes, tender rotisserie chicken, and a creamy poppy seed dressing.
Ingredients
Salad:
170 g farfalle (bowtie) pasta, uncooked
1 cup rotisserie chicken, cut into small pieces*
¾ cup seedless red grapes, halved
½ cup celery, diced small
½ cup walnut pieces
¼ cup green onions, sliced
Dressing:
¼ cup nonfat Greek yogurt
¼ cup full-fat mayonnaise
2 tablespoons honey
1 ½ tablespoons white wine vinegar
2 teaspoons poppy seeds
¼ teaspoon salt (or more, to taste)
Instructions
Boil the pasta in salted water according to package directions.
Meanwhile, chop and prepare the salad ingredients.
Drain the pasta, then rinse with cold water to cool.
Put the drained, cooled pasta in a large bowl. Add in other salad ingredients.
In a medium bowl, add all of the dressing ingredients and whisk them together until smooth.
Pour the dressing into the large bowl with the pasta salad ingredients and mix well to thoroughly coat.
Chill the pasta salad in the fridge for at least 40 minutes before serving for the dressing flavours to soak in. Stir before serving to mix in any sauce that has settled to the bottom.
Notes
* You can use regular cooked chicken if you prefer.
Nutrition
- Serving Size:
- Calories: 450
- Sugar: 16.2 g
- Sodium: 273.7 mg
- Fat: 22.2 g
- Carbohydrates: 50.2 g
- Protein: 16.5 g
- Cholesterol: 28.8 mg
Karen says
Tasty!
Asha says
Thanks Karen
Christine says
Love this.
Asha says
Thank you 🙂
Beth says
This is so good! I brought it to a pot luck and brought home an empty bowl.
Asha says
That's great, thank you
Cody P says
Bursting with flavour.
Asha says
Thank you 🙂
Faith says
Mmmmm soooo good. My taste buds thank you.
Asha says
Thanks! 😀
Teresa says
Delicious and easy to make after a day's work. Thank you.
Asha says
Thanks so much for the review!
Julia says
I am in love with this salad.
Asha says
Thanks! And thank you for the review
Amara says
Thanks you so much. Made this for my new in-laws. This dish was given their approval.
Asha says
That's great, thanks for the review 🙂
Paisley says
Oh My! This is now my all-time favourite salad.
Asha says
Thank you! 🙂
Alana says
So good. Makes a perfect and delicious work lunch.
Asha says
Thank you ☺️
Dorae says
Could I make without pasta?
Asha says
Yes, this would still be very tasty without the pasta! However, I would reduce the amount of sauce by at least half, since you won't have the pasta to soak a lot of that up.
Bernice says
This is my favourite way to use up leftover roast chicken! I sometimes use raisins or dried cranberries but I love it with grapes too. The poppy seed dressing really takes it to a whole new level.
Asha says
Thank you 🙂 It's such a great way to put leftovers to use.
Marie-Pierre Breton says
This is an out-of-the-ordinary pasta! It's interesting! I'm intrigued by it, and I will try it out soon!
Asha says
Thank you! 🙂
Vanessa says
This pasta salad has such a nice combination of flavors and textures. It was so good for lunch!
Asha says
Thank you! 🥰