Tortellini Salad with Chicken

4.94 from 43 votes

A simple Mediterranean-inspired cold tortellini salad with chicken is a fresh, healthy, and satisfying lunch or dinner!

Course Dinner, Lunch

Cuisine Italian

Keyword chicken pasta salad, cold tortellini salad, pasta salad, tortellini pasta salad, tortellini salad, tortellini salad recipe

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 15

Chilling Time 1

Total Time 30

Servings cups

Calories 260.6kcal

Author Blair Lonergan

1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breast tenderloins (or 2 cups of chopped or pulled rotisserie chicken)
1 (9 or 10 ounce) package fresh three cheese tortellini pasta
2 cups loosely packed baby spinach
1 cup diced red onion
1 cup halved grape or cherry tomatoes
1 cup diced seedless cucumber
1 (2.25 ounce) can sliced black olives, drained
¼ cup crumbled feta cheese
¼ cup loosely packed fresh basil leaves, chopped

Combine all of the dressing ingredients in a large jar or measuring cup. Shake (or whisk) until completely combined. Set aside.

If you're using cooked rotisserie chicken, you can skip this step!
Season the chicken with salt and pepper on all sides, to taste. Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Place the chicken in the skillet and allow the chicken to cook on one side, undisturbed, for at least 6-7 minutes. Flip, and cook the chicken for about 6-8 more minutes, or until it is nicely browned on both sides and cooked through.
The chicken is done when it reaches an internal temperature of 165°F, or when the juices run clear.
When the chicken is cooked through, remove it from the skillet and place it on a cutting board to rest.

Cook the tortellini in a large pot of well salted boiling water, according to package instructions. Drain; rinse under cold water.
While the tortellini cooks, dice the chicken into bite-size pieces or shred with two forks.

In a large bowl, gently combine the diced chicken, cooked tortellini, spinach, onion, tomatoes, cucumbers, olives, and feta cheese. Pour about ¼ cup vinaigrette over the salad (or more, to taste). Reserve the remaining vinaigrette.
Serve the salad immediately, or cover and refrigerate for up to 24 hours. Stir in the chopped fresh basil just before serving. Add extra reserved vinaigrette to moisten the salad as needed, and season with additional salt and pepper to taste. If the dressing solidifies when chilled, just let the salad/dressing sit on the counter and come to room temperature before enjoying.

Instead of making your own dressing, sub with your favorite store-bought vinaigrette. Any Italian dressing, vinaigrette, pesto, or Greek dressing will work!

Make it vegetarian by substituting a can of drained, rinsed chickpeas for the chicken.

Use just about any tortellini that you like. Frozen or dried tortellini is fine as a sub for the fresh tortellini -- just cook according to package directions. You can also use a meat or spinach-filled tortellini instead of the cheese tortellini.

Try adding more fresh herbs, such as parsley, thyme, rosemary, oregano, or chives. Italian seasoning would also give the dish even more Mediterranean flavor.

Use other veggies, such as frozen peas (thawed), diced carrots, marinated artichoke hearts, or diced sweet red bell pepper. Capers or kalamata olives would also be great!

If you don't care for feta cheese, try cubed mozzarella, shaved Parmesan cheese, or the little fresh mozzarella pearl balls.