Fiesta Chicken Pasta Salad

"I came up with this a few years back when pasta salad was requested for a potluck. It is very flexible. You can use your favorite pasta, alter the amount of veggies, substitute red pepper for green, add black olives, or whatever. Use your imaginaton and enjoy! Prep time does not include refrigeration time. NOTE: If you have trouble finding Fiesta Ranch Dip Mix, use Recipe #134253. It makes a large batch, you just need 2 or 3 tablespoons."
 
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Ready In:
45mins
Ingredients:
11
Serves:
8-10
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ingredients

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directions

  • Lightly brown chicken in pan sprayed with cooking spray. Add chicken broth and 1 teaspoon of Fiesta Dip mix. Bring to boil, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes.
  • Remove chicken and set aside to cool, reserving broth in pan.
  • Add broth to water for cooking pasta, and cook according to package directions. Drain and cool slightly.
  • Cut chicken into small chunks and mix with pasta and vegetables in large bowl.
  • Mix remaining Fiesta Dip mix with mayonnaise and sour cream and add to the pasta bowl, mixing to coat well.
  • Gently stir in shredded cheese, and refrigerate at least 4 hours before serving for flavors to blend.

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Reviews

  1. Loved, loved and loved this pasta salad. Easy and versatile! I followed recipe as written but added red pepper instead of green as ElaineAnn advised. Just lovely...made for Football Pool, 2010.
     
  2. I just made this to take a friend whose wife just passed way. I am not sure it will make it there. I did have to make what I consider one minor change....my store did not carry the fiesta ranch and I REALLY thought I had a package of the regular at home....when I got home I was wrong. This is what I did. I browned my chicken in butter and olive oil....then simmered it in 2 cups of broth that I added several cloves of smashed garlic to. When it was ready to put together I mixed 1 cup of sour cream with about a 1/2 cup of Hellman's and 1/2 cup of bottled ranch dressing (Kraft) then added about 1 teaspoon or so of Tony's Creole Seasoning....the veggies I used were Santa Sweet Tomatoes, the green part of 5 green onions and 1/2 of a purple onion diced. Used a combo of 4 cheese mexican and cheddar cheese....added a touch of garlic powder, kosher salt and fresh ground pepper.....very, very good.....have already decided to make it again maybe adding some bacon!!! Thanks for a great recipe.
     
  3. This is a great pasta salad! I love the idea of simmering the chicken in stock with some of the dip mix, it gives the chicken great flavor. I used a whole green pepper, 3 stalks of celery, added 6 oz. of sliced black olives and one can of drained diced tomatoes. This salad was a huge hit at the birthday party I took it to. (I even caught a friend going back for his THIRD bowl!) :) Thanks for sharing this wonderful recipe, ElaineAnn!
     
  4. Very good and super easy to make too. I made a few changes however by skiping the vegetables listed but used 1/2 red onion and one zucchini instead. I also used a mixture of cheeses (equaling about the 8 ounces specified) that I had in the fridge and wanted to use up. Very good and an easy salad for hot days. Thanks for sharing.
     
  5. Oh my ~ this is wonderful!! I made exactly as posted except I left out the celery. It's very easy to make and the flavor is very good. I did have some trouble finding the fiesta ranch mix. This makes a huge amount and would be a great choice for a potluck. Thanks for posting a keeper!
     
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Tweaks

  1. Very good and super easy to make too. I made a few changes however by skiping the vegetables listed but used 1/2 red onion and one zucchini instead. I also used a mixture of cheeses (equaling about the 8 ounces specified) that I had in the fridge and wanted to use up. Very good and an easy salad for hot days. Thanks for sharing.
     

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