A fresh and flavour-packed Mediterranean-style pasta salad featuring Cedar Food Group chicken thighs, juicy and grilled until beautifully charred. Loaded with grilled vegetables, creamy feta, Parmesan, olives and sun-dried tomatoes, everything is tossed through a lemony Barilla vegan pesto dressing.
Serve the pasta salad warm, at room temperature or chilled, with the grilled Cedar Food Group chicken layered over the top. Perfect for a family lunch, dinner, entertaining or a generous weekend spread.
Prep Time
30 minutes | Marinating Time: 1 hour minimum
Cook Time
25–30 minutes
Serving Size
6–8 Servings
Difficulty
Easy
What you'll need
Marinate the chicken: Finely dice the garlic and place it in a bowl with the olive oil, salt, white pepper, black pepper and mixed herbs. Add the diced Cedar Food Group chicken thighs and mix well. Cover with cling wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
Prepare the vegetables: While the chicken marinates, thinly slice the red onions and olives and set aside.
Char the vegetables: Using a hot char-grill pan, grill the eggplant, capsicum and cherry tomatoes until nicely charred. Remove from the pan and set aside.
Grill the chicken: Using the same grill pan, cook the marinated chicken in batches of 4. Grill for approximately 5–6 minutes, then turn and continue cooking until golden, charred and cooked through.
Cook the pasta: While the chicken is cooking, boil your pasta according to the packet instructions. Before draining, reserve at least 2 tablespoons of the pasta cooking water. Drain the pasta and allow it to cool slightly.
Finish the chicken: Once cooked, allow the chicken to rest briefly before slicing. Squeeze the juice from half of the lemon over the warm chicken.
Build the pasta salad: Add the cooked pasta, grilled vegetables, olives and sun-dried tomatoes to a large bowl. Add the feta and freshly grated Parmesan and gently mix together.
Make the dressing: In a small bowl, combine the vegan pesto with 1–2 tablespoons of reserved pasta cooking water, the juice of half a lemon, salt and black pepper. Mix until smooth.
Bring it together: Pour the pesto dressing over the pasta salad and mix well, making sure everything is coated.
Serve: Place the pasta salad onto a large serving plate and arrange the sliced grilled Cedar Food Group chicken thighs over the top. Garnish with fresh basil and an extra squeeze of lemon.
