Chicken Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad -

Chicken Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad

Casey Rooney

This chicken bacon ranch pasta salad is excellent for an easy family dinner or a crowd-pleaser side dish. Tender chicken, crispy bacon, cooked pasta, and fresh vegetables tossed in a creamy ranch dressing for the most delicious and hearty summer pasta salad!

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Prep Time 30

Total Time 30

Course Salad

Cuisine American

Servings 6

Ingredients

1 lb. rotini pasta (or similar)
12 oz. bacon, chopped into small pieces
2 cups cooked chicken breast, diced See Notes
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2 medium red onion, diced about 1/2 cup
2-3 celery stalks, diced
1 cup ranch dressing Highly recommended: Homemade ranch dressing (see recipe in the notes) but you can also your use favorite store-bought ranch.

Instructions

Prep: Prepare ranch dressing (if using). Whisk together all ingredients for the dressing, and refrigerate until ready to use.
Cook bacon pieces until crisp (about 8-10 minutes). Set aside to cool. Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and cool.
Assemble: In a large bowl, add pasta. Top with cooled bacon, tomatoes, red onion, celery, and chicken. Toss with dressing until everything is well-coated. Refrigerate at least an hour to allow flavors to marry. I like to reserve a little of the dressing and toss it in right before I am ready to serve.

Notes

Homemade Ranch Dressing Recipe

Chicken: Any cooked chicken will work great in this recipe if you shred or dice up the meat. Try this Easy Blackened Chicken, Oven-Baked Chicken Breast, Pan-Cooked Chicken, or shredded chicken in the air fryer to make your chicken. Additionally, you can use store-bought rotisserie chicken for a hassle-free protein source and pull off all the meat.