Buffalo Chicken Pasta Salad {Hello Summer}
By Kristin of Yellow Bliss Road for I Heart Nap Time.
Two of my favorite foods in the whole world are buffalo wings, and pasta salad. I thought why not put those two thing together in a delicious salad that’s a perfect way to add a little heat and beat it at the same time! The spicy sauce with the crisp coolness of this Buffalo Chicken Pasta Salad are a winning combination any day of the year.
Anytime I can create a fabulous meal without turning on my oven, especially in the middle of summer, I’m all for it. It’s been so blazin’ hot that my family has enjoyed quite a few lettuce wraps and pasta salads, like my mom’s famous Classic Macaroni Salad, and my latest creation, Bacon Ranch Chicken Pasta Salad.
This salad is so easy to make. You’ll just need some cooked pasta and shredded chicken, as well as celery and carrots for that cool crunch. The dressing is so easy because you use bottle Ranch dressing – no need to complicate things, right? Add in crumbled Blue Cheese and Buffalo Sauce and you’re good to go!
The best part is that you can spice it up or down, depending on your family’s tastes. I know how important it is to satisfy picky eaters – I’ve got two of them! For my daughter, I reserved some of the pasta salad without the sauce and just added ranch. For my son, I mixed up the dressing and poured a little on his salad, then added more hot sauce for me. I love dishes that are easy to customize for each member of my family.
Ingredients
- 2 cups dry Rotini Pasta, cooked to al dente, and chilled
- 1 chicken breast, cooked and shredded (about 1 cup)
- 4 stalks of celery, chopped (about 1 cup)
- 1 cup shredded carrot
- 1/2 cup bottled Ranch Dressing
- 2 Tbsp or more Buffalo sauce, like Frank's Red Hot
- 2 Tbsp crumbled blue cheese
Instructions
- Mix together the ranch, blue cheese and buffalo sauce in a small bowl and set aside. Test the spiciness of the dressing and add more hot sauce to taste.
- Toss the cooked and cooled pasta, shredded chicken, celery and carrot together in a large bowl.
- Pour dressing over the pasta and stir until evenly coated.
- Divide into bowl and serve.
Thanks for joining me today; I’d love to see you over at Yellow Bliss Road!
THANKS Kristin for sharing this yummy recipe during our Hello Summer Event! Click HERE to see more ideas from the event.
This looks incredible! I LOVE buffalo chicken pizza… will have to give this a try!! :)
The MSG in ranch sauce doesn’t sit well with me. I’m guessing it would be just as good with Blue Cheese dressing? Or, maybe try it with Greek yogurt?
Hi Brenda! I’m sure it would work great with either of those, it will just have a slightly different taste! :)
Everything in this sounds amazing! Perfect recipe to try for summer!
What a great dish to bring to a BBQ! Can’t wait to try it out!
Pop what would you use instead of blue cheese?? I love blue cheese but my hubby n kids don’t! Crumbled mozzarella??
I think feta or crumbled mozzarella would be delicious! :)