Barbecue Chicken Layered Pasta Salad, with layers of pasta, beans, chicken, fresh vegetables, and a delicious dressing!

a parfait bowl of chicken pasta salad

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During the spring and summer months, we want to enjoy all the season has to offer, by entertaining friends and family on our lovely patio. You, too? Summer entertaining is the best time to connect with family, friends, and neighbors! We love layered salads, so we think you will enjoy this Barbecue Chicken Layered Pasta Salad recipe today!

Barbecue Chicken Layered Pasta Salad

And of course, the more salads, the better, like this Farmer’s Red Potato Salad Recipe or Summer Italian Spaghetti Salad Recipe. But for this salad? Grab some leftover rotisserie chicken, black beans, favorite pasta, and fresh veggies. Oh, and a little crunch on top!

Barbecue Chicken Layered Pasta Salad

Ingredients for BBQ Layered Pasta Salad

Grab your trifle dish and make a pretty layered salad! All you need are these ingredients:

  • Ranch dressing
  • BBQ sauce
  • Pasta, elbow or fusilli bucati or spiral – we buy DeLallo brand
  • Rotisserie or leftover chicken
  • Cherry tomatoes
  • Lettuce
  • Orange or yellow bell pepper
  • Red onion
  • Black Beans
  • Cilantro
  • Crushed tortilla chips
  • Cheese & avocado

Layered Pasta Salad

Q Squared has made entertaining so beautiful and easy, with their beautiful, elegant dishes. Today I’m sharing a past dinner party with you, and a lovely layered pasta salad recipe! Here’s our mountain home a few years back. It was a fun “fixer upper,” and we had some great dinner parties on this front deck. [I spy the chicken layered salad on the left!]

Barbecue Chicken Layered Pasta Salad

We enjoy hosting dinner parties on decks here in central Oregon, surrounded by firs and quaking aspen trees. Since our mountain home was on the smaller side, you can only imagine how much we used our front deck (an outdoor family room!) for summer parties.

Barbecue Chicken Layered Pasta Salad

Summer perfect tableware

Effortless dinner party preparation starts with an easy menu, and a simple table setting, right?

And summer is the prefect season to set the time, and make that invite!

Barbecue Chicken Layered Pasta Salad

Q Squared dishes for summer entertaining

Just look at these fun dishes for summer entertaining!

I love blues in the summertime! (While Pandora is also playing the blues, and also match our central Oregon blue skies!)

Q Squared is the perfect unbreakable dinnerware for summer barbecues and outdoor entertaining! 

What is melamine, exactly? they asked me. Melamine is an organic-based, nitrogen-rich compound used to manufacture Q Squared’s unbreakable products. It’s different than other melamine tableware because it’s stronger and more durable.

You can buy them, here.

Barbecue Chicken Layered Pasta Salad

How to make a layered salad

Creating extra spaces for inviting people over in the summer is exactly how we envisioned using our home. Hospitality is important to us, and we feel blessed that we get to share it with others.

For this salad, it’s easy prep!

Make and layer the salad ahead of time; pull out of the fridge to serve with a fresh summer menu!

  1. Cook the pasta; drain and set aside.
  2. Whisk together the ranch dressing and BBQ sauce until smooth, set aside.
  3. In a large glass bowl, pour 1/2 of the dressing on the bottom of the dish.
  4. Layer the remaining ingredients on top of the dressing: Pasta, black beans, lettuce, chicken, tomatoes, pepper, red onion, the remaining sauce.
  5. Sprinkle on top the cilantro and chips. (Add cheese to one of the layers and avocado, if desired).
  6. Serve immediately, or toss together in a large bowl. You can cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to serve.

It’s optional to serve this salad already mixed together, or served in layers!

Barbecue Chicken Layered Pasta Salad

Fabulous summer menu:

Appetizer: Chips and Salsa, or make an elegant Summer Fruit Baked Brie Recipe or Baked Brie with Sundried Tomatoes [Taste & Tell.

Salads: Barbecue Chicken Layered Pasta Salad, Spinach Raspberry Salad, Classic Wedge Salad (board), or Asian Chicken Cranberry Salad (super popular).

Main dish: Apricot Greek Yogurt Chicken Thighs (baked or barbecued), or Grilled BBQ Marinated Chicken Recipe.

Desserts: Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream and Classic Raspberry Cobbler or Best Strawberry Cobbler.

Barbecue Chicken Layered Pasta Salad

Happy spring and summer entertaining, Friends!

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Barbecue Chicken Layered Pasta Salad

You can also choose to mix all ingredients together in a large bowl, and opt out of layering the ingredients.
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
Yield: 10
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Ingredients
 

  • 1 cup ranch dressing
  • ¾ cup favorite BBQ sauce
  • 3 cups cooked pasta, elbow or fusilli bucati or spiral – we buy DeLallo brand
  • 3 cups chopped rotisserie or leftover chicken
  • 3 cups cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
  • 4 cups lettuce, finely sliced
  • 1 large orange or yellow bell pepper, diced
  • 1 cup red onion, diced
  • 1 15 oz. Black Beans, rinsed and drained
  • 1 cup cilantro, chopped
  • 2 cups crushed tortilla chips
  • Cheese & avocado, optional

Instructions
 

  • Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and set aside.
  • In a small bowl, whisk together the ranch dressing and BBQ sauce until smooth, set aside.
  • In a large glass bowl, pour 1/2 of the dressing on the bottom of the dish.
  • Layer the remaining ingredients on top of the dressing: Pasta, black beans, lettuce, chicken, tomatoes, pepper, red onion, the remaining sauce.
  • Sprinkle on top the cilantro and chips. (Add cheese to one of the layers and avocado, if desired).
  • Serve immediately, or toss together in a large bowl. You can cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Notes

Post updated from May 2018.
Cuisine: American
Course: Salad
Did you make this recipe?Tag @reluctantentertainer on Instagram and hashtag it #reluctantentertainer!

clear glass bowl Barbecue Chicken Layered Pasta Salad