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White bowl filled with chicken bacon ranch pasta salad recipe.
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Chicken Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad

Creamy Chicken Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad loaded with juicy chicken, crispy bacon, fresh veggies, and cheddar cheese. Perfect for potlucks, meal prep, or easy weeknight dinners! We serve this as a side dish, but it'd make a great main dish as well thanks to all that chicken.
Course Side Dish
Cuisine American
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 8 minutes
Cooling Time 1 hour
Total Time 18 minutes
Servings 10
Calories 466kcal
Author Karly Campbell

Ingredients

  • 1 pound small shaped pasta such as rotini or farfelle
  • 3/4 cup mayonnaise
  • ¼ cup buttermilk
  • 3 tablespoons ranch seasoning 1 packet
  • 2 cups shredded cooked chicken
  • 1 1/2 cups shredded sharp cheddar
  • 8 slices bacon cooked and crumbled
  • 4 chopped green onions
  • 1 teaspoon seasoned salt

Instructions

  • Boil the pasta according to package directions until al dente. Drain and run under cold water to cool.
  • Add the mayonnaise, buttermilk, and ranch seasoning to a small bowl and whisk well to combine.
  • Pour the dressing over the bowl of drained pasta. Add the chicken, cheddar, bacon, green onions, and seasoned salt to the bowl and stir to combine.
  • Refrigerate for at least 1 hour before serving.

Video

Notes

Pasta: Any small shape of pasta will work fine here. Macaroni, ziti, fusilli, rotini, or farfalle are all shapes we keep on hand for pasta salad. I do like the way rotini holds the dressing.
Ranch Dressing: We make a quick homemade dressing using the mayo, buttermilk, and ranch seasoning but you can use a bottle of store bought dressing (1 cup) or make your own dressing from scratch. The buttermilk can be swapped for 2% or whole milk with a splash of vinegar added to sour it. We use the 'seasoning' packet. If you use the 'dip' packet, it will be quite a bit saltier.
Cheddar: I almost always prefer to shred my own cheese, but I do like the texture of bagged shredded cheese in this recipe better. It's more firm and thick than when you shred your own, which adds a little more oomph. If you do shred your own, use the thick side of the grater.
Storage: Store tightly covered in the refrigerator for 3-5 days.

Nutrition

Calories: 466kcal | Carbohydrates: 37g | Protein: 15g | Fat: 27g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Cholesterol: 48mg | Sodium: 655mg | Potassium: 197mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 215IU | Vitamin C: 0.9mg | Calcium: 102mg | Iron: 1mg