This chicken bacon ranch pasta salad is fresh and delicious! It has bowtie pasta, diced chicken, crispy lettuce, fresh tomatoes, bright green onions, smoky bacon bits, cheese and creamy semi-homemade ranch dressing that coats all of the ingredients.
I love a good pasta salad and this one is perfect for spring or summer! It’s a full meal on it’s own or you can serve it as a side dish. It’s perfect for a picnic or potluck dinner and is sure to be a hit.
It can be made ahead of time, however, if making this a day or more than 2 hours ahead, for ultimate freshness, hold off on adding the lettuce until you are about to serve. that way you can guarantee the ultimate crispness from the lettuce.
The dressing for this pasta salad is super easy to make, all you will need is a ranch dressing packet, (they are .50 cents at Walmart), mayonnaise and milk. I make the dressing slightly more concentrated so the flavor meets the intensity it needs to when combined with the pasta salad ingredients.
For the chicken, if cooking it yourself, simply season with salt and pepper. If using precooked chicken, any flavor will work just fine.
What you need to make this Chicken Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad:
Serves 6
- 16 ounces bowtie pasta
- 2 cups cooked chicken – diced, cooled
- 4 cups iceberg lettuce – chopped
- 1 cup tomatoes – chopped
- 2 green onions – sliced
- 1/2 cup bacon bits
- 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 1 ranch dressing packet
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 1/2 cup milk
Instructions
- Boil pasta in salted water then drain and rinse in cold water to cool.
- In a large bowl, add pasta, chicken breast, lettuce, tomato, green onions, bacon bits and cheddar.
- In a small bowl, mix together the ranch powder, mayo and milk then mix together well.
- Add to the pasta mix and combine until ranch dressing coats everything well.
- Serve chilled and enjoy.
Here are a few salad’s you may also like:
Strawberry Goat Cheese Kale Salad
Smoked Salmon Southwest Salad
Summer Orzo Pasta Salad
Easy Italian Pasta Salad
Chicken Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad
Ingredients
- 16 ounces bowtie pasta
- 2 cups cooked chicken diced, cooled
- 4 cups iceberg lettuce chopped
- 1 cup tomatoes chopped
- 2 green onions sliced
- 1/2 cup bacon bits
- 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 1 ranch dressing packet
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 1/2 cup milk
Instructions
- Boil pasta in salted water then drain and rinse in cold water to cool.
- In a large bowl, add pasta, chicken breast, lettuce, tomato, green onions, bacon bits and cheddar.
- In a small bowl, mix together the ranch powder, mayo and milk then mix together well.
- Add to the pasta mix and combine until ranch dressing coats everything well.
- Serve chilled and enjoy.