Chicken Wing Pasta Salad tosses spicy buffalo chicken with pasta, blue cheese, and crunchy celery. It’s ready in about 20 minutes, no actual chicken wings required. If you love pasta salad in the summer, try these other varieties: Dill Pasta Salad with Feta Cheese or Chicken Orzo Pasta Salad.
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Why this Recipe is a Keeper
This salad packs all the flavor of buffalo wings into an easy pasta dish. Here’s why it’s worth keeping for potlucks and weeknight dinners alike.
- 20-Minute Meal: Boil the pasta, mix the dressing, and toss it all together.
- Easy Ingredients: Rotisserie chicken and your favorite buffalo sauce do most of the work.
- Adaptable: Adjust the heat level by using more or less buffalo sauce.
- Crowd-Pleasing: A guaranteed hit at potlucks, cookouts, or game day spreads.
What Pasta Is Best for Pasta Salads?
Fusilli, rotini, and cavatappi all work especially well, since their curved or ridged shapes hold onto dressing and small bits of vegetables. Macaroni is another good option if that’s what you have on hand. Really, almost any short pasta shape works in this recipe. Just avoid long noodles like spaghetti, since they’re harder to toss evenly with the dressing.
What Reader’s Are Saying…
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“If it’s buffalo chicken anything, my kids will devour it! This pasta looks scrumptious. Can’t wait to put it on the table in front of them and see their reaction!” — Glenda
Ingredient Notes
A couple of ingredient choices make this salad come together easily.
This is an overview of key ingredients. Get the full printable recipe with specific measurements and directions in the recipe card below.
- Chicken: Leftover rotisserie chicken works perfectly here, whether you dice or shred it.
- Buffalo Wing Sauce: Use your favorite bottled brand, and adjust the amount based on how spicy you like it.
Variations and Substitutions
This salad is easy to adjust to your taste.
➡️ Swap the Dressing: Use ranch dressing instead of blue cheese if you prefer a milder flavor.
➡️ Use a Different Protein: Try turkey, or even buffalo chicken meatballs, in place of chicken.
➡️ Make it Lighter: Substitute Greek yogurt for the mayonnaise.
➡️ Add Extra Heat: Stir in chili powder or cayenne pepper for more spice.
How to Make the Recipe
These are just highlights. Get the full printable recipe with specific measurements and directions in the recipe card below.
- Boil the pasta until al dente, then cool completely.
- Mix the chicken with the creamy dressing and buffalo sauce.
- Toss in the cooled pasta.
- Fold In the blue cheese, green onions, and celery.
Prep Ahead and Short Cut Tips
This salad is easy to get ahead of for a busy day.
➡️ Use Rotisserie Chicken: This skips the step of cooking chicken from scratch entirely.
➡️ Make it a Day Ahead: This salad holds up well overnight in the fridge.
➡️ Boil the Pasta Early: Cook and cool the pasta a day ahead, then assemble the rest closer to serving time.
How Far in Advance Can I Make This Pasta Salad?
You can make this salad up to a day ahead of time, since it contains mayonnaise and needs to stay chilled anyway. Store it in an airtight container or a covered bowl in the fridge.
Making it ahead actually helps the flavors meld together. Just give it a quick stir before serving if the dressing has settled.
How to Store, Reheat, and Use Leftovers
- Storing: Keep this salad in an airtight container in the fridge for up to three days.
- Reheating: This salad is served cold, so no reheating is needed.
- Using Leftovers: Serve leftovers alongside Tri Color Rotini Pasta Salad for a pasta salad spread. Or use extra buffalo sauce to make Buffalo Ranch Sauce for dipping.
Expert Tips for Making This Recipe
➡️ Keep Pieces Bite-Sized: Uniform, small pieces make this salad easier to eat and toss evenly.
➡️ Top with Wing Dust: A sprinkle of wing seasoning on top adds an extra kick of flavor.
➡️ Use Boneless Wings: Restaurant takeout boneless wings work great here if you’re short on time.
➡️ Add Mozzarella: A handful on top brings a milder, melty contrast to the spicy buffalo flavor.
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Chicken Wing Pasta Salad Recipe
Equipment
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Ingredients
- 16 ounces Rotini, or other pasta
- 3 cups Cooked, cubed chicken
- ½ cup Sliced green onions
- ½ cup Diced celery
- ½ cup Crumbled blue cheese
- ¼ to ½ cup Buffalo wing sauce, to taste
- ⅓ cup Mayonnaise
- ⅓ cup Sour cream
- ½ teaspoon Garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon Onion powder
Instructions
- Bring a pot of lightly salted water to a boil and cook the pasta according to the package directions, until al dente.
- Drain the pasta and rinse it with cold water until completely cool.
- Chop the chicken into bite-sized pieces and place it in a large mixing bowl.
- Whisk together the mayonnaise, sour cream, onion powder, and garlic powder with the chicken.
- Stir in the buffalo wing sauce, starting with ¼ cup for a milder flavor or using the full ½ cup for more heat.
- Add the cooled pasta and stir to coat thoroughly.
- Fold in the blue cheese, green onions, and celery until well incorporated.
- Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving.
Christina’s Notes
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- Cool the Pasta Completely: Warm pasta can make the creamy dressing separate, so let it cool fully before mixing.
- Adjust Sauce to Taste: Start with less buffalo sauce and add more, since it’s easier to add heat than take it away.
- Refrigerate Before Serving: At least 30 minutes lets the flavors come together and keeps the salad food-safe.
- Store Properly: This salad contains mayo and dairy, so keep it refrigerated for up to 3 days.
- Scale the recipe: Simply adjust the serving size in the recipe card and the ingredients will update automatically.
- Make your own All Purpose Seasoning: When a recipe calls for All Purpose Seasoning, you can use my homemade All Purpose Seasoning recipe or substitute salt and pepper to taste.
- Meat doneness: I always use a meat thermometer to test for doneness when cooking meat.
- Use unsalted butter: I use unsalted butter so I can control the salt level in the recipe.
- Preheat the oven: Unless otherwise noted, always preheat your oven before baking.
For more helpful information about this recipe, such as variations, substitutions and other pro-tips, check out the blog post.
Ohhh yeah this is an AMAZING pasta salad!! It’s so tasty!
Oooh what a great idea this is. Huge hit with the fam!
If it’s buffalo chicken anything, my kids will devour it! This pasta looks scrumptious. Can’t wait to put it on the table in front of them and see their reaction! Thanks for sharing the recipe.
Thank you so much for sharing this amazing buffalo chicken pasta salad recipe! Will surely have this again! It’s really easy to make and it tasted so delicious! Highly recommended!