Grilled Chicken Caprese Pasta Salad
User Reviews
5
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Prep Time
45 mins
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Cook Time
15 mins
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Total Time
1 hr
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Servings
6 to 8 people (or 4 as a full dinner)
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Course
Side Dish, Main Course
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Cuisine
American
Grilled Chicken Caprese Pasta Salad
Description
The recipe starts by marinating boneless, skinless chicken breasts in a dressing made from extra virgin olive oil, balsamic vinegar, minced garlic, dried basil, salt, and pepper. The marinade enhances the chicken's flavor and keeps it moist during grilling. After at least 30 minutes of marinating, the chicken is grilled over high heat until cooked through, then rested and cut into chunks.
While the chicken cooks, pasta is boiled (spiral pasta is suggested but any favorite type works). Fresh grape or cherry tomatoes are halved, and fresh mozzarella (such as ciliegine balls) is cut if needed. Fresh basil is chopped into chiffonade. The reserved marinade is used as a dressing to toss all the ingredients together, combining the grilled chicken, pasta, tomatoes, mozzarella, and basil into a cohesive salad with balanced acidity and herbaceous notes.
This salad is hearty and flavorful enough to serve as a main dish for warm-weather meals or to take for packed lunches. It can be made ahead by preparing the chicken and dressing in advance. The combination of grilled chicken, fresh mozzarella, and basil echoes classic Caprese flavors, adapted into a pasta salad format.
Ingredients
- 1 pound chicken breast boneless, skinless
- 3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
- 4 garlic minced, cloves
- 1 teaspoon basil dried
- salt kosher salt
- black pepper kosher salt
- 1 pound spiral pasta cooked (or your favorite cut, like penne, etc
- 12 to 16 ounces grape tomatoes cut in half, or cherry tomatoes
- 8 ounces mozzarella cheese I like ciliegine, balls cut in half if you wish, fresh
- 1 basil about ⅔ cup basil leaves, chopped or chiffonade, fresh, large handful
Instructions
- Prep the chicken first! You can make this a day or two before - even just marinating it or marinating it and grilling it. Place the chicken into a baking dish or resealable bag. Whisk together the olive oil, vinegar, garlic, dried basil and a big pinch of salt and pepper. Measure out about ¼ cup of the dressing and pour it over the chicken. Reserve the rest and store it in a sealed container in the fridge. This is your pasta salad dressing!
- Marinate the chicken for at least 30 minutes, or even overnight. When ready to grill, preheat your grill to the highest setting. Once the grill is hot, add the chicken (let the marinade run off into the dish) and grill for about 5 to 6 minutes per side, or until the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees F. Once the chicken is done, let it rest for 5 to 10 minutes. Then cut it into chunks.
- While the chicken is cooking, you can cook your pasta! You can also cook it the day before and store it in the fridge. You can also chop the tomatoes and the basil!
- Now it’s time to layer or assemble the pasta salad. I like to do layers of the pasta, chunked chicken, tomatoes, mozzarella and basil, then repeat. But of course, you can also just toss everything together!
- Once it is layer or tossed, drizzle it with the remaining dressing. Toss to serve and serve immediately, or store in the fridge until ready to serve.
- Note: if you assemble the pasta ahead of time, I would wait to add the fresh basil until right before serving!
User Reviews
Overall Rating
5
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