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4.38 from 137 votes
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By: Julie Evink78 Comments
Posted: 05/06/20
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Looking for a new pasta salad recipe? ThisCashew Chicken Rotini Salad is loaded with cashews, grapes, chicken, pasta and dried cranberries. It’s covered in a ranch dressing and is packed with flavor. It’s perfect for your summer potlucks, BBQs and parties!
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The BEST Pasta Salad Recipe
This easy pasta salad would be the perfect 4th of July side dish! Really, it’s perfect any time, all year round. Trust me, I make it all the time. Any gathering and I’ll volunteer to bring the side dish and this is my go to winner!
I made this last weekend for Kinzee’s baptism. I needed two different salads to make and this was one of them and the other was my Strawberry Tapioca Salad. I love the juicy grapes in it and crunchy cashews.
We served this Cashew Chicken Rotini Salad with my famous Sweet ‘n’ Sour Meatballs and they were a hitlike usual. If you haven’t checked out this recipe you must!
If you are looking for a delicious pasta salad recipe that’s a little different than the norm you guys have to try this! This recipe for chicken pasta salad with grapes is loaded with so many amazing flavors from the chicken, grapes, cranberries and cashews. It is going to become your new favorite pasta salad recipe!
What do I need to make Cashew Chicken Rotini Salad?
While this is just a snippet of what the ingredients are, it shows you that there aren’t that many that you’ll need. The entire recipe can be viewed below!
- Rotini
- Cooked chicken
- Green Grapes
- Red Grapes
- Dried Cranberries
- Ranch Salad Dressing
- Mayonnaise
- Salted Cashews
Steps to Prepare
- Cook Pasta – Prepare the rotini according the package directions, drain and rinse pasta in cold water
- Mix Pasta Salad – In a large bowl combine chicken, grapes and cranberries. Add in pasta.
- Prepare dressing – In a mixing bowl whisk together ranch dressing and mayonnaise. Pour over pasta salad
- Refrigerate – Chill for at least one hour before serving.
- Add Cashews – Right before serving stir in cashews
Why do I need to rinse my cooked pasta?
You will want to rinse the rotini after you prepare it for this Cashew Chicken Rotini Pasta salad to cool the temperature of the pasta down. It also helps keep the pasta loose for the pasta salad.
Can you make pasta salad the night before?
You can make this pasta salad the night before but some of the dressing will get soaked up into it. If you make it the night before you might need to add a little bit more dressing the next day if you want too! Another quick tip is to toss your pasta in a little olive oil after you rinse it to help it from sticking and prevent it from soaking as much of the dressing up if you prepare it a day ahead.
How to store leftover pasta salad
Store your leftover pasta salad in an air tight container in the fridge or freezer.
How long does pasta salad last?
If you store your pasta salad properly in the fridge it will last 3-5 days.
More Pasta Salad Recipes!
- Pepperoni Cold Pasta Salad
- Pesto Pasta Salad
- Looking for a traditional pasta salad. This Macaroni Salad is just like Mom made!
Pair it with….
- Grilling out? BBQ Chicken Marinade is the BEST out there!
- Barbecue Baked Chicken Drumsticks perfect for an easy dinner they are finger licking good!
- Barbecue Ribs are packed with flavor and the perfect dinner.
- Instant Pot French Onion Meatloaf is like no other meatloaf. Tons of flavor and a fun twist!
WATCH THE STEP BY STEP VIDEO FOR THIS RECIPE BELOW:
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Try it and love it? Rate it, please!!!?Seriously though a five-star rating below will make my day! If you snap a photo, please be sure tag me on Instagram at@julieseatsandtreatsor #julieseatsandtreats so I can see your delicious Garlic Butter Noodles!!
Did you make this? If you snap a photo, please be sure tag me on Instagram at @julieseatsandtreats or #julieseatsandtreats so I can see your yummy treat!
Cashew Chicken Rotini Salad
Loaded with Cashews, Grapes, Chicken, Pasta and Dried Cranberries! Perfect Pasta Salad Recipe for the Summer!
Prep:15 minutes mins
Cook:15 minutes mins
Total:30 minutes mins
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16
Ingredients
- 16 oz rotini
- 4 c. cubed cooked chicken
- 1 c. seedless green grapes halved
- 1 c. seedless red grapes halved
- 5 oz dried cranberries
- 1 c. ranch salad dressing
- 3/4 c. mayonnaise
- 2 c. salted cashews
Instructions
Cook the pasta according to packaged directions. Drain pasta and rinse in cold water.
In a large bowl combine chicken, grapes and cranberries. Add pasta.
In a small bowl, whisk ranch dressing and mayonnaise. Pour over salad and toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate at least 1 hour.
Just before serving stir in cashews.
Tips
Why do I need to rinse my cooked pasta?
You will want to rinse the rotini after you prepare it for this Cashew Chicken Rotini Pasta salad to cool the temperature of the pasta down. It also helps keep the pasta loose for the pasta salad.
Can you make pasta salad the night before?
You can make this pasta salad the night before but some of the dressing will get soaked up into it. If you make it the night before you might need to add a little bit more dressing the next day if you want too!
Another quick tip is to toss your pasta in a little olive oil after you rinse it to help it from sticking and prevent it from soaking as much of the dressing up if you prepare it a day ahead.
How to store leftover pasta salad
Store your leftover pasta salad in an air tight container in the fridge or freezer.
How long does pasta salad last?
If you store your pasta salad properly in the fridge it will last 3-5 days.
Video
Nutrition Information
Calories: 537kcal (27%), Carbohydrates: 45g (15%), Protein: 21g (42%), Fat: 32g (49%), Saturated Fat: 6g (38%), Cholesterol: 47mg (16%), Sodium: 493mg (21%), Potassium: 521mg (15%), Fiber: 3g (13%), Sugar: 13g (14%), Vitamin A: 50IU (1%), Vitamin C: 2.1mg (3%), Calcium: 32mg (3%), Iron: 2.6mg (14%)
© Julie's Eats & Treats ®
We are not dietitians and recommend you seek a nutritionist for exact nutritional information. The information in the nutrition box is calculated through a program and there is room for error. If you need an accurate count, I recommend running the ingredients through your favorite nutrition calculator.
Meet Julie Evink
I'm here to help you win in the kitchen again! Life is Busy, Life is Crazy, but that doesn't mean you can't make your family dinner! Julie's goal is to provide you with easy, family, friendly recipes that use pantry staples. Dinnertime will be stress free again!
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Reader Interactions
4.38 from 137 votes (122 ratings without comment)
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Nikki L says
Both my husband & I love this recipe & have been making it for a couple of years now especially in the summer, once or twice a month. Just made it again tonight & can’t wait for dinner! ThanksReply
Julie Evink says
Wonderful to hear Nikki!
Reply
Jackie G says
This salad was SO good. I made it for a potluck and has my hubby try it to see if it needed any salt/pepper. He kept saying it was really good!
I could not find the dried cranberries by themselves so I had to substitute in a couple bags of cranberries already mixed with salted pecan bits. I didn’t add any cashews since I had the pecans. It was still very yummy! I made a little extra dressing as suggested and had to add it the next morning because the pasta soaked in a lot of it the night before.
Great fresh tasting side dish to bring to the church potluck.Reply
Sarah Hill says
I’m so happy all enjoyed this recipe and it turned out so well for you! Thank you so much for sharing and rating this recipe!
Reply
Lori says
Love this recipe! I’m making it for a potluck but my husband keeps eating it! He keeps saying, “this is good!” Hope I have enough for the potluck…I made enough for 16 servings.Reply
Sarah Hill says
Love it! I’m glad your husband enjoys it so much! Might have to make another batch for the potluck 😉
Reply
Jane says
Recipe sounds great until I saw the dressing. I might try it and use Greek yogurt, cream cheese, and/or coconut or cashew cream. Has anyone else tried substituting the dressings?Reply
Courtney says
Please let us know what you decided to switch the dressing with!
Reply
Cris says
I, too, hesitated when I saw the ranch dressing. I plan to try poppyseed.
Reply
Deborah says
I’ve been making a recipe similar to this for 12+ years. The only difference is 1C less chicken, a can of pineapple tidbits, 1-1/2C chopped celery and 1/2C thinly sliced green onions. Like another commenter, I’m not a fan of ranch, but the mayonnaise mixed in helps and we enjoy it immensely.
Reply
Debb says
This sounds delicious—until I get to the ranch dressing. It is mild to say I’m not a ranch fan at all. Do you have a suggestion for a substitute?
Reply
Julie Evink says
You could try a mayo based salad dressing on it.
Reply
Ruth says
I’ve been looking for this recipe for a long time, I think you have nailed it!Reply
Julie Evink says
So glad you enjoyed it!
Reply
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