One-Pot Pasta Salad with Chicken
By Cecelia JenkinsPublished on June 17, 2019
Time
1½ hours
Yield
Serves 4 to 6
Ingredients
Before You Begin
Poaching the chicken in a very small amount of water reduces the cooking time and yields better chicken flavor. The pasta firms as it cools; overcooking it ensures the proper texture. If the salad is not being eaten right away, don't add the arugula until right before serving.
Instructions
- Bring 2 cups water to boil in Dutch oven. Stir in 2 tablespoons salt. Add chicken, reduce heat to medium, cover, and simmer until chicken registers 160 degrees, 12 to 15 minutes, flipping chicken halfway through cooking. Transfer chicken to platter and tent with aluminum foil. Discard cooking water. Bring 4 quarts water to boil in now-empty pot.
- Meanwhile, whisk oil, vinegar, anchovies, garlic, and pepper flakes together in large bowl. Add tomatoes, olives, and pepperoncini to dressing and toss to combine; set aside.
- Add pasta and 1 tablespoon salt to boiling water and cook, stirring occasionally, until pasta is tender, about 12 minutes (do not drain). Add green beans to boiling pasta and continue to cook until pasta is very soft and green beans are bright green and just tender, about 5 minutes longer. Drain pasta and green beans in colander and rinse under cold water until chilled. Drain well and transfer to bowl with dressing mixture.
- Cut chicken into 1-inch cubes. Add chicken, arugula, and feta to pasta mixture and toss to combine. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve.
- To make ahead: Salad can be made without arugula and refrigerated for up to 2 days. Add arugula and toss just before serving.
Time
1½ hoursYield
Serves 4 to 6Ingredients
Test Kitchen Techniques
Ingredients
Test Kitchen Techniques
Ingredients
Test Kitchen Techniques
Why This Recipe Works
A shallow-poaching method for cooking boneless, skinless chicken breasts helped us save time in this one-pot recipe. We poached the chicken in just 2 cups of water in our Dutch oven. The small amount of water came to a simmer in no time, meaning the poaching step took much less time. Because cooked pasta firms as it cools, we deliberately overcooked the pasta to achieve a texture that was just right. For a nice variety of vegetables, we added fresh green beans to the pot with the pasta for the last 5 minutes of cooking; then, once the pasta-bean mixture had cooled, we added peppery arugula, tomatoes, olives, feta, the diced chicken, and a punchy dressing with red wine vinegar and pickled hot Italian peppers to bring liveliness and interest to this one-pot pasta salad.
Before You Begin
Poaching the chicken in a very small amount of water reduces the cooking time and yields better chicken flavor. The pasta firms as it cools; overcooking it ensures the proper texture. If the salad is not being eaten right away, don't add the arugula until right before serving.
Instructions
- Bring 2 cups water to boil in Dutch oven. Stir in 2 tablespoons salt. Add chicken, reduce heat to medium, cover, and simmer until chicken registers 160 degrees, 12 to 15 minutes, flipping chicken halfway through cooking. Transfer chicken to platter and tent with aluminum foil. Discard cooking water. Bring 4 quarts water to boil in now-empty pot.
- Meanwhile, whisk oil, vinegar, anchovies, garlic, and pepper flakes together in large bowl. Add tomatoes, olives, and pepperoncini to dressing and toss to combine; set aside.
- Add pasta and 1 tablespoon salt to boiling water and cook, stirring occasionally, until pasta is tender, about 12 minutes (do not drain). Add green beans to boiling pasta and continue to cook until pasta is very soft and green beans are bright green and just tender, about 5 minutes longer. Drain pasta and green beans in colander and rinse under cold water until chilled. Drain well and transfer to bowl with dressing mixture.
- Cut chicken into 1-inch cubes. Add chicken, arugula, and feta to pasta mixture and toss to combine. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve.
- To make ahead: Salad can be made without arugula and refrigerated for up to 2 days. Add arugula and toss just before serving.
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