Vegan Buffalo Chick'n Pasta Salad
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!
Ingredients
- 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!
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