July 8, 2021

Spice up your pasta salad game with this Buffalo Chick’n Pasta Salad!  Tender vegan chick’n, tangy buffalo-ranch dressing, and the satisfying crunch of celery, carrots, and sweet red onion make for the perfect side dish (or mouthwatering main) for all your backyard BBQs and summer cookouts!

Easy Buffalo chick’n pasta salad

If you ask me, BBQs, cookouts, potlucks – basically any reason to gather outdoors and eat good food during the summer  just aren’t the same without a really good pasta salad … and my Vegan Buffalo Chick’n Pasta Salad checks all the boxes. It’s:

• zesty

• crunchy

• easy

• refreshing

• absolutely delicious

basically the perfect pasta salad, am I right? Grab a drink and let’s get to making the best Buffalo Chick’n Pasta Salad!

what goes in buffalo chick’n pasta salad?

The thing I love most about pasta salads is that they’re super versatile – as long as you’ve got the noods, everything else is pretty much no holds barred – and my Buffalo Chick’n Pasta salad is, shockingly enough, everything we love about Buffalo Chick’n! Here’s what’s in it:

• Soy curls – you can also sub for chick’n strips!

• noods! I like penne rigate, but any short noodle will do

• buffalo ranch dressing – homemade and so delicious, you’re gonna wanna douse this stuff on everything!

• fresh herbs

• celery

• carrots

• red onion

• vegan feta-style crumbles

If you love buffalo wings, buffalo dip, buffalo anything – then you’re gonna love this!

how to make buffalo chick’n pasta salad

The hardest thing about pasta salad is gathering up the strength to to wait for it to chill – but trust me, you need to wait for this buffalo chick’n salad to chill! Other than that, it’s easy peasy! Here’s what you’ll need to do:

1. Soak the soy curls in hot water for 8 to 10 minutes. After the soy curls have soaked, drain and squeeze out the excess water thoroughly through a fine-mesh sieve or cheesecloth.

2. Meanwhile, cook the pasta. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Cook the pasta according to the package directions until al dente. Drain the pasta, but do not rinse. Next, season and cook your soy curls, then set aside.

3. Make that addicting buffalo-ranch dressing! Combine the ingredients in a large bowls and whisk together!

4. Toss! Add the cooked noodles, reserved cooked soy curls, celery, and red onion to the bowl, tossing gently to combine thoroughly.

5. Chill & Enjoy. Refrigerate at least 2 hours, preferably 3 to 4. Serve with thinly sliced fresh green onion vegan feta-style crumbles, and enjoy!

tools you’ll need:

• A huge salad bowl for tossing everything together
• A stock pot for boiling your pasta noods
• A colander for draining your pasta noods
• A mandolin or sharp knife and cutting board
• A sturdy spatula to mix it all up really good
• And a cute serving bowl to bring it all together

more salad recipes that are perfect for summer entertaining

1. Antipasto Potato Salad
2. Cold Ramen Noodle Salad
3. Vegan Chick’n Salad Wonton Cups

showstopper, right?

I have a feeling this Buffalo Chick’n Pasta Salad is gonna be the talk of the town (in a good way, of course!). If you make it, I’d love to see! Snap a photo or video and show me your noods by tagging me on Instagram at @eat_figs_not_pigs and #EatFigsNotPigs.  I love seeing all your recreations of my recipes! Until next time, friends!

XO!

Vegan Buffalo Chick'n Pasta Salad

Ashley

Spice up your pasta salad game with this Buffalo Chick'n Pasta Salad! Tender vegan chick'n, tangy buffalo-ranch dressing, and the satisfying crunch of celery, carrots, and sweet red onion make for the perfect side dish for all your backyard BBQs and summer cookouts!

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 4 hours hrs

Cook Time 15 minutes mins

Total Time 4 hours hrs 15 minutes mins

Course Pasta Salad

Cuisine Vegan

Servings 8 -10

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• ½ 8-ounce bag soy curls (about 2 ½ cups) *see recipe notes*
• 1 LB short pasta noodles such as Penne Rigate or Farfalle, sub gluten-free if needed
• 2 teaspoons vegan-friendly poultry seasoning *see recipe notes*
• 2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 cup vegan-friendly buffalo wing sauce *see recipe notes*
• ½ cup vegan mayonnaise
• ½ cup unsweetened and unflavored non-dairy milk
• 1 teaspoon dried dill weed
• ½ teaspoon each: garlic powder onion powder, pepper
• 2 cups thinly sliced celery about 4 to 5 stalks
• 1 cup shredded carrot about 1 large carrot
• 1 cup thinly sliced red onion about 1 onion
• Kosher salt
• Thinly sliced green onion for serving
• Vegan feta-style crumbles such as Follow Your Heart or Violife, for serving

Instructions

 

• Soak the soy curls in hot water for 8 to 10 minutes. After the soy curls have soaked, drain and squeeze out the excess water thoroughly through a fine-mesh sieve or cheesecloth.
• Meanwhile, cook the pasta. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Cook the pasta according to the package directions until al dente. Drain the pasta, but do not rinse.
• While the noodles are cooking, season the soy curls with the poultry seasoning, tossing to ensure they’re evenly coated. Heat the olive oil in a pan over medium-high heat. Once the oil is hot, add the soy curls in an even layer, giving them a good stir every 2 to 3 minutes, until they look slightly crisped around the edges, 8 to 10 minutes. Set aside.
• To make the buffalo-ranch dressing, combine the wing sauce, mayo, milk, dried dill weed, garlic powder, onion powder and pepper in a large bowl. Add the cooked noodles, reserved cooked soy curls, celery, and red onion to the bowl, tossing gently to combine thoroughly. Taste and adjust seasonings, adding salt to taste. Refrigerate at least 2 hours, preferably 3 to 4.
• Serve with thinly sliced fresh green onion vegan feta-style crumbles, and enjoy!

Notes

*The brand soy curls that I typically purchase are Butler Foods. I usually purchase them in bulk directly from the site (www.butlerfoods.com), or on Amazon. If you are unable to access soy curls, simply substiture for vegan chicken strips or pieces, as there many different brands that are fairly accessible. Some brands I tend to reach for most often are Gardein Meatless Chick’n Strips, Alpha Foods Grilled Chik’n, Morning Star Veggie Chik’n Strips, and Sweet Earth Mindful Chik’n. To substitute, simply cook the chick’n pieces you purschase according to package directions and add them into the pasta salad when you’d add in the cooked soy curls.

*Most poultry seasonings are typically vegan-friendly, but as always, make sure to check the ingredients. Usually, poultry seasoning is just a blend of spices used to season poultry (in this case, we’re using it to season soy curls). I find poultry seasoning to be pretty accessible at most grocery stores, and the brands I typically reach for most often are McCormick, Simply Organic, and Trader Joe’s Vegan Chicken-less Seasoning Salt.

*Always check to make sure Buffalo Wing Sauce doesn’t contain butter. My favorite brand is Sweet Baby Ray’s, but feel free to use whatever you love!

Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!