If this isn't "heaven on a plate", I don't know what is?!? My sister, Sarah, made this a few years ago and as soon as I took that first bite, I wanted to eat the entire bowl! This is my absolute favorite pasta salad EVER! It can be kind of an expensive pasta salad to make, but this time of year, it seems as if you find vidalia onions and avocados on sale. The recipe calls for cherry tomatoes, but it somewhat sickened me to spend $3.99 for a tiny little 10 oz package, so I opted to use roma tomatoes. It definitely is better with the cherry tomatoes, but certainly wasn't bad with the Roma. I also used (2) 16 oz packages of pasta---more for leftovers :) Keep in mind...you can imagine how much I love this pasta salad, because no one else in my house will eat it and I STILL used two packages of pasta!
Chicken Pasta Salad
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
1 1/2 cups steak sauce
1 1/2 packages (18 oz) fusilli pasta
4 cubes chicken bouillon
2 Vidalia onions, diced
3-4 avocados - peeled, pitted and diced
2 cups halved cherry tomatoes
2 cups Ranch-style salad dressing (you may need a little more, depending on how "moist" you like your pasta salad)
Directions:
Preheat an outdoor grill for high heat. Place breasts into a glass baking dish and marinate in steak sauce for 15 to 60 minutes. Grill chicken until no longer pink and the juices run clear. Remove from grill, and chop into bite-size pieces.
To a large pot of boiling water, add bouillon cubes and pasta. Cook pasta until al dente. Drain, and rinse under cold water.
In a large bowl, combine chicken, pasta, onion, avocados and tomatoes. Mix in salad dressing, cover, and refrigerate until chilled.
Source: Sarah O'Brien
Yummy! I'm hungry now. Welcome to the SITS group, it's great to have you as a SITSta!
ReplyDeletethat looks and sounds wonderful!!
ReplyDeletewelcome to SITS
that is an new twist on pasta salad, i am intrigued by all the flavors!
ReplyDelete{i am stopping by from SITS to say hi}
Oh my gosh - this looks WONDERFUL. Definitely different than your average run-of-the-mill pasta salad!
ReplyDeleteDropping by to welcome you to SITS - glad to have you join us!
This looks fantastic. Nice change up to the everyday pasta salad. Sounds delicious!
ReplyDeleteI love the addition of steak sauce and ranch dressing instead of just plain mayo!
ReplyDeleteI'm with Cathy about the steak sauce and ranch dressing. What a great combo! I can't wait to try this salad. It sounds amazing. I love pasta salads and this is much different than the typical one.
ReplyDeleteUm, ok, I'm sold. This sounds delicious! Thanks for sharing the recipe!
ReplyDeleteI'm here with the SITS Welcome Wagon! I've been a member from the beginning, and it's such a wonderful community of women. I've met so many amazing bloggers and read so many fun blogs. Welcome aboard, SITSta!
This is still my favorite, too! The flavor combination is always a hit!
ReplyDeleteI can't wait to try this! What brand of steak sauce do you use?
ReplyDeleteThank you, everyone, for your comments!
ReplyDeleteKathy--I'll be honest...I'm not much of a steak sauce connoisseur--the first time I ever used it was when I made this pasta salad! I'm not sure what grocery stores are located in your area, but I used the Kroger brand steak sauce. There were quite a few varieties, but I've been trying hard to watch what I spend at the grocery store and the other varieties were close to double the amount. I honestly think it tastes great, although I don't really have anything else to compare it to. I'll have to ask my sister what she uses and get back with you :)
Okay, Kathy--I asked my sister and she said she swears by A1 and will not use any other sauce when making this dish. Oops! I honestly think it tastes good, but as I mentioned, I don't use steak sauce often enough to know what a "good one" is.
ReplyDeleteOh, good - I already have A1!!! Can't wait to try this!!!! Thanks for getting back to me, I really appreciate it! :o)
ReplyDelete