Mediterranean Chicken Pasta Salad
This Mediterranean Chicken Pasta Salad is made up of chicken breasts, pasta, vegetables and mixed with a Mediterranean inspired dressing for flavor. It is meant to be eaten cold making it a perfect meal prep for those who don't have the ability to reheat their meals.
Servings: 5 servings
Calories: 605kcal
Ingredients
For the Chicken
- 1.5 lbs boneless skinless chicken breast
- 2 tsp oil
- 1⅓ tbsp lemon juice
- ½ tsp onion powder
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- ½ tsp cumin
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 tsp dried oregano
For the Pasta
- 8 oz chickpea pasta dry weight, any pasta works if you don't want to use chickpea
For the Dressing
- 6 tbsp olive oil
- ¼ cup red wine vinegar
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 2 cloves garlic
- 2 tsp dried oregano
- ⅓ tsp salt
- ½ tsp pepper
- 1 cup crumbled feta cheese
Instructions
For the Pasta
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook until it's al dente, according to the package instructions. Once it's cooked, drain the pasta and rinse under cold water to cool it down and stop the cooking process.
For the Chicken
- Preheat your oven to 400°F (204℃).
- In a bowl mix together the oil, lemon juice, onion powder, garlic powder, cumin, oregano, and salt. Add the chicken and toss to coat the surface.
- Place the chicken into a casserole dish and cover with foil.
- Roast at 400°F (204℃) for 20-30 minutes. The size of your chicken will impact cooking time. Larger pieces will likely take closer to 30 minutes while smaller ones less.
- Once the chicken is done cooking, allow it to cool and cut it into thin, bite sized slices. I find that cold chicken breasts tastes best when it is sliced thin.
For the Vegetables
- Wash and cut the tomatoes and cucumber. Cut the tomatoes into halves or quarters depending on their size. Cut the cucumber into a medium dice. Remove the seeds from the cucumber with a spoon before dicing.
- Cut the red onion into a thin slices and rinse them under cold water to take the bite out of the raw onion. Pat dry with paper towel.
- Combine all of the vegetables and spinach into a large bowl
For the Dressing
- In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, red wine vinegar, minced garlic, lemon juice, dried oregano, and salt to create the dressing.
- NOTE: The spinach will stay fresher if you add it to your meals right before eating. If you don't mind the extra step this is a good choice. I personally don't mind so I add it all when I am prepping the meals.
Construction
- In the large bowl with the vegetables, add in the drained noodles and spinach and pour the dressing over the top. Toss everything together to ensure it's well coated. Add the sliced chicken and feta cheese and give everything another good toss.
Plating
- This recipe makes 5 servings. Divide the pasta salad evenly among 5 meal prep containers. They will last up to 5 days in the fridge.
- It's likely it will be undersalted when you plate. I prefer to salt just before eating each dish as salt will encourage water to be released from your vegetables.
Nutrition
Calories: 605kcal | Carbohydrates: 35g | Protein: 45g | Fat: 32g | Fiber: 8.5g