Barbecue Chicken Layered Pasta Salad
Barbecue Chicken Layered Pasta Salad, with layers of pasta, beans, chicken, fresh vegetables, and a delicious dressing!
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!
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!]
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.
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!
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.
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!
- Cook the pasta; drain and set aside.
- 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.
It’s optional to serve this salad already mixed together, or served in layers!
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.
Happy spring and summer entertaining, Friends!
Get the Recipe:
Barbecue Chicken Layered Pasta Salad
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
Hello and welcome to my home and table!
I’m Sandy—lover of food, family, cooking, THE BIG BOARD, travel, and bringing people together. Through great recipes and connection around the table, we become better, stronger, and more courageous people. Feasting on Life is real, and every time we do it, we grow a little more. Read more...
YUM! This is definitely going on my list to make this summer!
Never tried a layered plate before, but this seems like a good one to be a first. I’ll sure try it for my next family gathering!
Beautiful dishes! And yummy looking salad. My first thought was, “if I tried mixing that it would end up all over the table…lol.” I’m just a klutz.
I know, right? It’s so pretty. As mentioned in the post, you can always mix it all together and serve! Delicious either way! :)