Teriyaki Chicken Pasta Salad
Teriyaki Chicken Pasta Salad is a fun twist to traditional pasta salad. Chunks of chicken, bell peppers, spinach, broccoli, snap peas, mandarin oranges, and pineapple tidbits covered in an easy and homemade teriyaki dressing.
Ingredients
Pasta Salad
- 1 box (16 oz) bowtie pasta
- 1 bag (6 oz) baby spinach, chopped small
- 2 cups cooked, chopped chicken
- 1 cup chopped broccoli
- 1 cup chopped sugar snap peas (ends cut off)
- 1 red bell pepper, finely chopped
- 1 yellow bell pepper, finely chopped
- 1/2 cup pine nuts
- 1 can (11 oz) madarin oranges, drained well
- 1 can (8 oz) pineapple tidbits, drained but RESERVE the juice
Pineapple Teriyaki Dressing
- 1/2 cup canola oil
- 1/3 cup thick teriyaki sauce
- 1/3 cup rice wine vinegar
- reserved pineapple juice (about 1/4 cup)
- 1-2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon reduced sodium soy sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- Combine all dressing ingredients in a jar or a bowl, and shake to mix well (or whisk together to mix if using a bowl). Put it in the fridge while you prepare the salad.
- Cook pasta according to package directions. Rinse in cold water and drain well (I like to even take a paper towel and blot the pasta to make sure it's really dry).
- Add cooled, drained pasta to a large mixing bowl along with all the other salad ingredients. Mix together. Pour dressing over the salad and mix well.
- Salad can be served right away or let it refrigerate for several hours before serving. I prefer to refrigerate because it softens up the spinach a bit and the flavors get infused to the pasta.
- ** TIP - I love to add some of the Kraft salad dressing 'Asian Toasted Sesame' to the salad for an added boost of flavor. Pasta salad tends to dry out a bit once refrigerated, I always add a little of that salad dressing to moisten it back up and bring it back to life. You don't need to do this, it's just a fun tip that I wanted to share **
Notes
You can find teriyaki sauce by the soy sauce and other Asian sauces & ingredients in the grocery store. You want to make sure you buy a thick sauce NOT the thinner sauce (like soy sauce consistencey). Get a thick teriyaki sauce.