Refreshing, creamy, and herby Green Goddess pasta salad that’s a perfect side dish for a summer BBQ or picnic! This tangy dish is hearty, has a gorgeous vibrant green color from the creamy avocado and fresh herbs, and is packed with tender pasta, fresh veggies, and chicken.
What Makes This Recipe Great
I love pasta salads during the Spring and Summer (like this Ham and Pea Pasta Salad) as the main dish or a side dish and this one is no exception. This delicious, cold Green Goddess Pasta Salad is tossed in an epic homemade Green Goddess dressing recipe and has been permanently added to our warm weather rotation. The light, refreshing flavor of the dressing coats the pasta, chicken, and loads of vegetables beautifully, and it’s also stunning to look at!
This dish is the perfect thing to make if you have leftover rotisserie chicken. While a good pasta salad is delicious and hearty on its own, I just love the addition of chicken to help me feel full longer and it gives a great texture to the salad. The main star of this chicken pasta salad is the homemade Green Goddess dressing. With fresh herbs, lemon, avocado, and garlic, it tastes way better than any store-bought brand!
Perfect for hot summer days, summer picnics, BBQs, and more! This green goddess version is seriously the BEST pasta salad.
Watch a Short Video of This Recipe
Ingredient Notes
There are two components to this recipe, the dressing and the pasta salad.
Green Goddess Dressing Ingredients
- avocado: Some people worry that the dressing might brown because of the avocado, but there’s plenty of lemon juice in the dressing and the acid will keep the color bright green for a long time!
- mayonnaise: If you don’t want to use mayo or don’t have it on hand, you can use yogurt instead.
- basil
- fresh parsley
- green onions
- lemon
- garlic
- anchovy fillet: You can get canned or jarred anchovies in olive oil. Just drain before adding. I love this brand.
- sea salt
- ground black pepper
Pasta Salad
- al dente pasta: I recommend using short pasta with fusilli, rotini, rigatoni, or macaroni. To make gluten-free pasta salad, just use gluten-free pasta like this one. You can even make this paleo with grain-free pasta! Use whatever type of pasta you prefer.
- cooked chicken: I love using leftover rotisserie chicken to make this cold chicken pasta salad. To make it meatless and vegetarian, you can use chickpeas instead!
- cucumbers: English or Persian cucumbers work best because they are seedless and mild.
- cherry tomatoes
- artichoke hearts: Either canned or marinated artichokes will work.
- kalamata olives: Make sure the olives are pitted.
- arugula
Step-by-Step Instructions
- Combine all ingredients except water for the Green Goddess dressing in a blender or food processor. Blend until smooth. If the mixture is too thick, add a little bit of water at a time to thin it to your liking. Set aside.
- In a large pot of boiling water over medium-high heat, cook the pasta al dente according to package directions. Drain, and do not rinse.
- Chop up the rest of the ingredients for the pasta salad and add to a large mixing bowl. Add the cooked pasta.
- Pour 1/2 cup of the dressing into the large bowl (store the rest in the fridge for up to a week), and toss gently to combine. Add more salt or dressing to the top of the pasta, if needed.
- Serve right away at room temperature, or chill before serving.
Expert Tips
- Vegan pasta salad: To make this vegan, omit the anchovies, and use vegan mayo. You can also replace the chicken with chickpeas or white beans for an alternative protein.
- Variations: This chicken pasta salad is so versatile with how you can change up the ingredients. You can use almost any veggies you have on hand like asparagus, spinach, baby arugula, cabbage, bell peppers, green beans, broccoli florets, chives, sugar snap peas, or radishes.
Storage Tips
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2-3 days. Give it a good stir before serving.
Recipe FAQs
It’s a simple blend of creamy avocado, mayo, different herbs like parsley and basil, green onion, lemon, garlic, anchovies, and sea salt.
In this recipe, you don’t need to! You can serve this warm or chill it in the fridge before serving.
More Summer/Pasta Salad Recipes:
- Ham and Pea Pasta Salad (Paleo Option)
- Broccoli Cauliflower Salad (Easy & Healthy)
- Bacon Tomato Salad Recipe (Paleo, Whole30)
- Whole30 Mediterranean Chicken Salad
- Whole30 Chinese Chicken Salad with Dates (Paleo, Gluten Free)
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Green Goddess Pasta Salad with Chicken
Ingredients
Green Goddess Dressing
- 1/2 avocado ripe
- 1/4 cup mayonnaise
- 1/2 cup fresh basil packed
- 1/4 cup parsley
- 2 green onions cut into 2 inch pieces
- Juice from 1 lemon
- 1 garlic clove
- 1 anchovy fillet
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
- 1/8 tsp ground black pepper
- Water as needed
Pasta Salad
- 8 oz short pasta like fusilli, rotini, rigatoni, or macaroni (use gluten free or paleo pasta if you want)
- 1½ cup cooked chicken chopped, or 1 cup chickpeas
- 1/2 cup chopped cucumbers
- 1/2 cup cherry tomatoes halved
- 1/2 cup artichoke hearts canned or marinated, roughly chopped
- 1/2 cup kalamata olives pitted and chopped
- 1 cup arugula
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients except water for the Green Goddess dressing in a blender. Blend until smooth. If the mixture is too thick, add a little bit of water at a time to thin it to your liking. Set aside.
- Cook pasta al dente according to package instructions. Drain, and do not rinse.
- Chop up the rest of the ingredients for the pasta salad and add to a large mixing bowl. Add the warm pasta.
- Pour 1/2 cup of the dressing to the salad (store the rest in the fridge for up to a week), and toss gently to combine. Add more salt or dressing, if needed.
- Serve right away at room temperature, or chill before serving.
Video
Notes
Expert Tips
-
- Vegan pasta salad: To make this vegan, omit the anchovies, and use vegan mayo. You can also replace the chicken with chickpeas or white beans for an alternative protein.
-
- Variations: This chicken pasta salad is so versatile with how you can change up the ingredients. You can use almost any veggies you have on hand like asparagus, spinach, baby arugula, cabbage, bell peppers, green beans, broccoli florets, chives, sugar snap peas, or radishes.
Storage Tips
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2-3 days. Give it a good stir before serving.Regarding other affiliate links and affiliate relationships: In order for me to support my blogging activities, I may receive monetary compensation or other types of remuneration for my endorsement, recommendation, testimonial and/or link to any products or services from this blog. Thank you for your support and understanding.
Green goddess dressing is sooo good! This is a great recipe for meal prepping lunches. Just keep the dressing separate until it is time to serve and eat.
Yummy salad… great way to use up some rotisserie chicken. I added some chick peas since I didn’t have enough chicken. It works. I am not a fan of arugula but I know it is good for me. This was a good way to hide it. Thanks Jean
So glad you enjoyed it!!