This Thai peanut pasta salad with chicken is the kind of dish that spells healthy without leaving you hungry two hours later. It's satisfying, packed with protein, and tons of Thai flavor.
Thai Chicken Pasta Salad
The savory and sweet flavors of this Thai pasta salad, with those crispy vegetables and crushed peanuts, are a flavor explosion you want to experience. It's divine. Out of this world. And the best thing since slow cooker Thai chicken tacos.
Ingredients
Make this salad with grilled chicken or rotisserie chicken. The veggies that add nutrition and color are shredded red cabbage, red bell pepper, matchstick carrots, and chopped cilantro. I find the penne pasta shape holds onto every bit of the Thai peanut dressing, but you can use any other regular pasta or Pad Thai-style noodles like soba and rice noodles. Finally, unsalted peanuts on top for extra crunch.
Thai Pasta Salad Dressing
The sauce is the boss, and this tangy-sweet peanut dressing is to die for. Double the batch and store it for up to a week. Use it as a dip for grilled chicken or vegetables, drizzled into a lunch wrap over these Thai chicken bowls.
How to Make Thai Pasta Salad with Chicken
Once your pasta is cooked, transfer it to a large bowl and add the veggies, shredded chicken, peanuts, and cilantro, making separate rows of each. Drizzle with the peanut dressing, toss to coat everything, and enjoy!
Laura’s Tip for Making this Salad
Some great vegetables and toppings you can add to the mix while still staying true to the flavor profile include steamed shelled edamame, sliced cucumber, coleslaw mix, fresh bean sprouts, and broccoli slaw.
Start by grilling the chicken and boiling the noodles. Meanwhile, slice the bell peppers and red cabbage and prepare the Dressing. From here, you can assemble the salad or keep the ingredients separate and refrigerate them for another day.
The bell peppers, carrots, and cabbage stay crunchy for several days, and the sauce prevents the pasta and chicken from drying out. Once made, it will last for up to 3 days refrigerated in an airtight container.
This is a great meal-prep lunch since it can be split up into individual servings and refrigerated for a couple of days. You can store it in a large airtight container and serve as needed, or divide it into individual meal prep containers.
More Epic Salad Recipes
Other fresh, healthy, and delicious salads you can prep ahead for the office are these BLT bowls, these chicken farro bowls, this classic Caprese salad, and this Buffalo chicken salad
Thai Pasta Salad with Peanut Dressing
Ingredients
- 12 ounces penne pasta, or your choice of pasta
- 1 cup shredded red cabbage
- 1 cup matchstick carrots
- ½ bell pepper, thinly sliced
- 2 grilled chicken breast fillets, sliced*
- ⅓ cup unsalted peanuts
- ½ cup chopped cilantro
- Thai peanut dressing
Instructions
Cook the pasta:
- Cook the pasta according to package directions. Rinse and transfer into a large bowl.
Assemble the salad:
- To the pasta, add the cabbage, carrots, bell pepper, grilled chicken, peanuts, and cilantro, making separate rows of each.
- Drizzle with peanut sauce and toss to combine.
Notes
- Rotisserie chicken from the grocery or leftover baked chicken will work perfectly. Just shred the meat, you'll need about 2 cups worth.
- Nutritional information is calculated without the dressing.
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Holley says
What a great twist! This salad is something different and full of all the flavors! I will make this again for sure!
Charah says
I have been looking for this recipe, thanks for sharing I can now make this at home.
TAYLER ROSS says
This is my new favorite pasta salad recipe! So colorful , flavorful and full of crunch!
kushi says
This thai chicken salad looks so colorful and refreshing. Thanks for the recipe.