Roasted Capsicum Pesto Pasta and Chicken Salad

Roasted Capsicum Pesto and Chicken Pasta Salad

Something Truly Delicious

We eat pesto pasta, green pasta, A LOT. This is because A) it is my youngest’s favourite meal and B) it is quick and easy to prepare. It is also great to make the pesto in advance to have on a night when you are short on time. But have you tried red pesto pasta? Yes, when I say red I am referring to roasted capsicum pesto, here it is in Roasted Capsicum Pesto Pasta and Chicken Salad. This, incidently, is a salad but it is versatile enough to serve hot as well. I have been serving it as a salad because even though it is November we have had some very hot days when the last thing you would want for dinner is a hot meal. There is something about capsicums that when they are roasted and combined with garlic, some nuts, a few sun dried tomatoes, oil and cheese they are simply delicious and a refreshing change from other pasta sauces including green pesto sauce.

How Is This  Salad Versitile?

Roasted capsicum pesto sauce is easily made in advance and kept in the fridge, ready to stir through pasta. Here I combined it with chicken but you don’t have to do that. If you have time to include chicken it is a very satisfying meal, hot or cold. For the salad pictured I used roast chicken. The day I served this salad it was fiery hot and Sydney was deemed to experience a catastrophic fire risk. So we used roast chicken which I cooked myself the night before. This was because I did not want to turn on the oven on a very hot day. You have the choice of doing that or you could poach 2 or 3 chicken breasts and shred the meat. Or you could even buy a BBQ chicken instead. If you would prefer a vegetarian meal just leave the chicken out and you still get the wonderful flavours of the roasted capsicum pesto. Do try Roasted Capsicum Pesto Pasta and Chicken Salad. It takes the ho hum out of everyday cooking and is a very achievable meal with limited effort.
Roasted Capsicum Pesto Pasta and Chicken Salad Pin
Simple. Refreshing. Flavoursome – you may choose red pesto over green from now on!

Roasted Capsicum Pesto Pasta and Chicken Salad

A great alternative to traditional pesto sauce this roasted capsicum pesto sauce is perfect in this salad. Could be served as a hot meal.

Course Main Course
Keyword Roasted Capsicum Pesto Pasta and Chicken Salad
Prep Time 20 minutes
Total Time 20 minutes
Servings 6
Author Jane Georgiades

Ingredients

  • 2 red capsicums quartered and deseeded
  • 4 tbsp walnuts
  • 1 clove garlic
  • 3 tbsp sun dried tomatoes
  • 100 g finely grated grana padano cheese or more to taste
  • 1/2 cup olive oil mild
  • 1 roasted chicken or BBQ chicken shredded, or alternatively
  • 2-3 poached chicken breasts shredded
  • 500 g cooked pasta

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 200°C. Lay quartered capsicums on a baking sheet lined with baking paper and drizzle oil over them. Roast until the skins are blackened and blistered (about 20 minutes). Allow to cool. Peel off the skins.

  2. In a bowl place capsicums, sun dried tomatoes, nuts, garlic, oil and cheese. With a stick blender, blend ingredients until smooth.

  3. To the cooked and cooled pasta add the shredded chicken and pesto sauce. Stir well and then chill if serving cold or leave pasta hot and serve hot.

No Comments

Leave a Comment

Recipe Rating