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A colorful pasta salad with a zesty Italian twist! This pasta salad is perfect as a side dish at a summer BBQ.
I love love love summertime! There’s nothing better than eating outside as a family or getting together with friends for a summer party. The fried chicken at the Walmart deli is one of our favorite entrees for a summer evening outside. When I think of the 4th of July, I think of fried chicken and family! You can’t go wrong there.
We’ve been taking advantage of the beautiful weather lately and doing a lot of outdoor eating as a family. The kids got a new picnic table that’s just their size that they love to eat their dinner on. Last week my hubby stopped at the Walmart deli for some hot and crispy fried chicken. He brought home a variety of our favorite pieces. Drumsticks are the favorite in this household!
I thought pasta salad with be so yummy with our fried chicken. I made a really easy Italian pasta salad that I already can’t wait to make again!
I love all the colors and the fresh veggies. This is one yummy salad! Make this for your next potluck and you’ll be all kinds of popular. (Especially if you bring some fried chicken along with it!)
Easy Italian Pasta Salad
Ingredients
- 1 package garden rotini pasta 12-16oz
- 1 c. Colby Jack cheese cubed
- 1 c. cucumber diced or chopped
- 1 can black olives sliced
- 1 c. tomato diced
- 1/2 bag mini pepperoni
- 1 bottle Italian salad dressing
- 1/2 - 1 c. parmesan cheese grated
Instructions
- Cook pasta according to package direction; drain, rinse, and pour in a large bowl.
- Place cheese cubes, cucumber, olives, tomato, and pepperoni directly over pasta; stir carefully to combine.
- Pour half the bottle of dressing into the bowl; mix well with other ingredients. Cover and place in the fridge for at least two hours before serving.
- Add more Italian dressing before serving. Top with parmesan cheese, stir, and serve.
Kitchen tools and gadgets needed for this recipe:
Such a yummy meal! Summertime wouldn’t be the same without this fried chicken. My kids love it and it makes dinnertime so much easier.
What delicious side dish do you have in mind for crispy Walmart deli fried chicken?
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Sarah B says
That chicken looks SO GOOD! And your pasta salad is just the way I make it, too! Perfect summer meal! YUM! #client
Kym cheney says
This was a great idea! I was searching for something for something new to make with our BBQ chicken and came across your recipe and already have everything but pepperoni so ran to store and glad I did this was so good. I will be making this again soon my family loves it. Thank you for helping me get a star from the in-laws.
Alli says
Kym, thanks so much for your comment! I’m so glad your family loved it.
Kate says
Superb post, Alli. I made this today for lunch and it was simple and very tasty! I just decided to add some spicy grilled chicken in there.
Alli says
Kate, that is awesome! Thanks so much for the comment. I’m so glad you liked it!
Stacy says
How many servings is this for?
Alli says
I would say it makes about 12 servings.
Alli says
10-12 servings if sserved as a side dish.
Marilyn says
Can I make this the night before? If yes, do I need to add more dressing?
Alli says
Yes, you can definitely make this the night before! I actually just did that a few weeks ago for an event. You can just give it a good stir, taste it, and then add a little more dressing if it tastes like it needs it.
Kelly says
What size bottle of Italian dressing are you supposed to use?
Alli says
Hi Kelly! You will need a 16 oz bottle of dressing for this recipe. Great question! I will edit the recipe card to say the bottle size.
Melissa says
How many oz of pasta? I just grabbed 1 box which is 12oz
Alli says
You can use anywhere from 12-16 oz of pasta. Thank you for asking! I will be sure to adjust the recipe to say the size of box.
Rochelle D Coble says
Thank you so much for this recipe I made it and added diced bell peppers for my fourth of July BBQ and it was a hit I actually ran out of it lol!!! Definitely a hit!
Alli says
I’m so glad! Thank you for the comment, Rochelle! I love the idea to add diced bell peppers.