Oh yum, this blue cheese chicken pasta salad with chopped spinach is amazing! If you love all these flavors, then it’s the perfect bowl of pasta salad for you to enjoy.

Big platter of pasta salad recipe with chicken, spinach and blue cheese on plate

Chicken Spinach Pasta Salad Recipe

Based on our favorite popular salad, this recipe has added ditalini so the dish isn’t too overwhelming with starch. The yummy salty flavors of gorgonzola cheese combined with the chicken, pasta and spinach makes this a solid main meal. You can take it to work for lunch, share it at potlucks and parties. It’ll be a very popular dish that everyone will ask you where you got the recipe from. You can send them here and we appreciate the rec!

Video: Gorgonzola Chicken Spinach Pasta Salad 

Why we love this pasta salad

There’s so many flavors and textures to this salad, every bite is an explosion of flavors. The salty blue cheese is such an amazing addition to the salad. Adding the chunks of crunchy veggies and healthy greens really makes this outstanding. There’s never one boring bite and it’s definitely crowd please for parties and picnics.

How to Make Blue Cheese Chicken Spinach Pasta Salad

There’s so many adjustments you can make to this recipe and it’ll still be great! So don’t feel like you have to follow the recipe perfectly.

  • Add more cheese if you want because that’s the best part!
  • Using chopped lettuce or arugula if you want to replace the spinach.
  • Vegetarian version: leave out the chicken for a veggie friendly version! Add some small chunks of firm tofu, Seitan or tempeh.
  • Even without the chicken, this is a perfect vegetarian blue cheese pasta salad for all your friends who don’t eat meat.
  • Use less pasta. Sometimes you don’t need all the pasta and using less pasta will give you more chicken and cheese in every bite. Just add more vegetables for a lower carb version.
  • More recipe details and step by step photos are in the recipe box below.
Bowl of chicken blue cheese spinach pasta salad on plate
Big platter of pasta salad recipe with chicken, spinach and blue cheese by bestrecipebox.com

Chicken, Spinach & Blue Cheese Pasta Salad

Make sure to add enough salt/seasoning for maximum flavor. For this much pasta, you must add enough salt to bring out the tasty flavors. Best part about this salad is that you can totally customize it the way you want.
Add more of less of any ingredient to make it perfect to your personal taste!
5 from 4 votes

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Ingredients

For The Salad:

  • 12-16 ounces (340-454) dried pasta , cooked to package instructions 
  • 2 cups (280 g) shredded chicken
  • 4 cups (120 g) spinach , rough chopped or baby spinach
  • 1/4 cup (40 g) sliced red onions
  • 1 cup (150 g) cherry tomatoes , halved
  • 1 cup (135 g) crumbled blue cheese
  • 1/2 cup (60 g) dried cranberries

For The Dressing:

  • 1 cup (240 ml) olive oil
  • 1/3 cup (80 ml) red wine vinegar
  • lemon zest , from 1 medium lemon
  • juice of one medium lemon (about 1/4 cup-60ml)
  • 3 cloves garlic , minced
  • 2 teaspoons (10 ml) sugar or honey
  • 2 teaspoons (10 ml) kosher salt , or to taste
  • 1/2 teaspoon (2.5 ml) black pepper , fresh cracked if possible
  • 1 teaspoon (5 ml) dried oregano , or 2 teaspoons fresh chopped oregano

Instructions 

  • Prepare the pasta: Fill a large bowl (big enough to hold cooked pasta) halfway with ice water. Boil pasta to package instructions. Drain pasta, rinse with cold water and shock the pasta by adding it to the cold water to get it cold fast. Once cold, drain the pasta, transfer to a large bowl and set aside.
    Cook Pasta
  • In a jar or bowl, add all the dressing ingredients (olive oil, red wine vinegar, lemon zest, lemon juice, garlic, sugar/honey, salt, pepper, oregano). Shake or whisk the dressing to combine. Taste the dressing and adjust salt, pepper or additional seasonings, to taste.
    Make Dressing
  • Add pasta, chicken, spinach, red onion, tomatoes, blue cheese and cranberries in a large bowl. Pour dressing in the bowl and stir everything together to coat with the dressing.
    Chill pasta salad for at least 1 hour before serving.
    Combine Salad Ingredients

Video

YouTube video

Nutrition Information per Serving

Calories: 265kcal, Carbohydrates: 21g, Protein: 14g, Fat: 9g, Saturated Fat: 3g, Cholesterol: 31mg, Sodium: 1178mg, Potassium: 299mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 8g, Vitamin A: 1574IU, Vitamin C: 10mg, Calcium: 106mg, Iron: 2mg

More Easy Recipes:

Chicken Spinach Blue Cheese Pasta Salad Recipe step by step