Southwest Pasta Salad with Chicken

Posted by koolaidmoms on May 28, 2018May 26, 2018

Slowly, slowly, slowly, the weather is turning. It has been almost Spring like the last couple days so my mind is turning to picnics, parties, and fun days at the beach. As we were driving home yesterday I remembered the chicken I had taken out for dinner and I really didn’t want to make what I had planned. It just didn’t fit with my mood or what I wanted.

I knew I wanted a hearty salad type dish that would travel well and feed quite a few people. I was thinking eating outdoors on the patio with friends.

Verdict:

This got a good solid thumbs up for being filling and tasty. The kids liked that it had chicken in it and I liked that there was enough for lunch leftovers the next day. This is a great use for leftover chicken or even rotisserie chicken. I used leftover chicken breasts that we had pan-fried with a little olive oil, salt and pepper. So, simple!

Servings: ”6-8″
Difficulty: ”easy”
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Ingredients:

16 oz. rotini pasta, cooked according to package directions and rinsed in cold water
1 Packet Dry Ranch Dressing Mix
1 (16 oz) container sour cream
1 – 1 1/2 lbs. chicken breast, cooked, cooled, and cubed
1 (15 oz) can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 (15 oz) can whole kernel corn, drained
2 red peppers, chopped
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1 1/2 Tbsp ground cumin
1/2 Tbsp chili powder
1 tsp onion powder
1/4 tsp dried red pepper flakes
black pepper, to taste

Directions:

In small bowl combine the ranch dressing mix and sour cream until well mixed. Cover and set in refrigerator until ready to use.
In a large bowl mix pasta, chicken, black beans, corn red peppers, cheddar cheese. Add ranch mix, cumin, chili powder, onion powder, red pepper flakes and black pepper to pasta. Stir well.
Taste and adjust spices to your liking.