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Skinny Italian Chicken Pasta Salad

Averie Sunshine

5 from 9 votes

Updated: May 13, 2026

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This Lighter Pasta Salad with Italian Dressing 🥒🍅🥦🍋 is EASY, ready in 30 minutes, and has crisp fresh veggies, chicken breast, and a tangy homemade Italian lemon vinaigrette to keep it lighter and healthier while still being super flavorful and fresh!

Easy Pasta Salad with Italian Dressing

• Pasta isn’t inherently the “healthiest” of foods but if you’re going to partake in pasta, it feels better when there’s an abundance of fresh vegetables along with lean protein.
• And in this Italian pasta salad with homemade vinaigrette, there’s the notable absence of cheese or a creamy sauce or dressing. Instead, there’s a light but zippy, homemade Italian vinaigrette that lightly coats and flavors everything. So that’s exactly what this skinnier pasta salad has going for it: Veggies, lean protein, no cheese or heavy sauces.
• It’s a spinoff of this Italian Chicken Pasta Salad that has been a reader favorite over the years. And summer is the season for pasta salads and the time is ripe for this one. There’s tender chicken, fresh broccoli, orange bell peppers, juicy tomatoes, crunchy cucumbers, green onions, mint, and al dente pasta.
• It’s also a very flexible recipe. Don’t have broccoli on hand but have sugar snap peas? Make the easy swap. Your kids aren’t a fan of bell peppers but will eat carrots? Go for it. Use what you have on hand and enjoy.
• This salad makes a big batch and can feed a crowd. I like to think of the four P’s: potlucks, picnics, parties, and planned leftovers.

Ingredients in Lighter Italian Pasta Salad

To make this healthier pasta salad with Italian dressing, you’ll need: 

• Pasta: I used rotini pasta but any small shaped pasta, such as ziti, penne, small shells, wheels, bowtie, or similar are all great.
• Chicken: To keep this lighter and leaner, boneless skinless chicken breast are my go to, but you can also substitute with boneless skinless chicken thighs.
• Vinaigrette: Olive oil, lemon juice and zest, apple cider vinegar, honey, Italian seasoning, kosher salt, pepper, and optional cayenne pepper.
• Veggies: Broccoli florets, orange bell pepper, cherry tomatoes, cucumber, and green onions are what I used here but this is very flexible and feel free to use zucchini, summer squash
• Fresh herbs: If you have fresh parsley, cilantro, mint, basil, or your other favorites feel free to toss them in for a fresh pop of flavor!

Note: Scroll down to the recipe card section of the post for the ingredients with amounts included and for more complete directions.

How to Make Pasta Salad with Italian Dressing

1. Cook the pasta according to package instructions in salted water.
2. While it’s cooking, add the diced chicken to a large skillet and saute for about 7-8 minutes, or until done. 
3. The vinaigrette is made with lemon juice, lemon zest, apple cider vinegar, Italian seasoning, and a bit of olive oil. Add it to the pan you’re cooking the chicken in and let it simmer for just a minute so that the flavors can really marry together. Heat has a way of helping flavors develop in a way that just mixing them together in a bowl does not.
4. Transfer the chicken, sauce, and cooked pasta to a large bowl and gently stir in the veggies, fresh herbs as desired, and add more salt, pepper, or seasonings if needed.
5. Optionally cover and chill the pasta salad or serve immediately.

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5 from 9 votes

Lighter Italian Chicken Pasta Salad

By Averie Sunshine

🥒🍅🥦🍋 is EASY, ready in 30 minutes, and has crisp fresh veggies, chicken breast, and a tangy homemade Italian lemon vinaigrette to keep it lighter and healthier while still being super flavorful and fresh!

Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes minutes

Servings: 8

Equipment

• Large Stockpot
• large skillet OR
• large nonstick skillet

Ingredients 

Italian Dressing

• ▢ 2 tablespoons olive oil
• ▢ 3 to 4 tablespoons lemon juice
• ▢ 3 to 4 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• ▢ 2 to 3 tablespoons honey
• ▢ 1 heaping tablespoon Italian seasoning
• ▢ 2 teaspoons lemon zest
• ▢ 1 teaspoon kosher salt, or to taste
• ▢ 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, or to taste
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper, optional and to taste (does not make it spicy but adds lots of flavor)

Pasta Salad

• ▢ 12 ounces rotini pasta, bowtie or ziti may be substituted
• ▢ 2 tablespoons olive oil
• ▢ about 1 1/4 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts, diced into bite-sized pieces and seasoned with salt and pepper
• ▢ 1 ½ to 2 cups broccoli florets
• ▢ 1 yellow or orange bell pepper, diced small
• ▢ 1 cup cherry or grape tomatoes, halved, (your favorite tomatoes may be substituted)
• ▢ 1 cup cucumber, diced small
• ▢ 2 or 3 green onions, sliced into thin rounds
• ▢ optional fresh herbs such as basil, mint, etc., finely chopped and to taste

Instructions 

• To a medium bowl or large measuring cup, add 2 tablespoons olive oil, lemon juice (zest the lemon before juicing it), apple cider vinegar, honey, Italian seasoning, lemon lest, salt, pepper, optional cayenne, and whisk to combine; set sauce aside.
• Cook pasta according to package directions in salted water, drain, place in an extra-large bowl; set aside. While pasta is cooking, also cook the chicken.
• To a large skillet, add 2 tablespoons olive oil, add the chicken, season with salt and pepper, and cook over medium-high heat for about 5 minutes, flipping intermittently so all sides cook evenly. Cooking time will vary based on thickness of chicken breasts and sizes of pieces.
• Add the sauce and allow it to bubble at a medium-fast boil for about 1 minute. Stir sauce and flip chicken intermittently throughout.
• Add the chicken and the sauce to the pasta bowl.
• Add the broccoli, bell peppers, tomatoes, cucumber, onions, optional fresh herbs (I had mint on hand and added about 3 tablespoons), and toss very well to combine. 
• Taste and check for seasoning balance, making any necessary adjustments (more Italian seasoning, salt, pepper, extra olive oil, extra cayenne, splash of lemon juice, etc.) before serving.
• Salad may be served immediately, or cover and refrigerate until chilled.

Notes

Storage: Salad will keep airtight in the fridge for up to 5 days. 

Nutrition

Serving: 1serving, Calories: 337cal, Carbohydrates: 40g, Protein: 22g, Fat: 10g, Saturated Fat: 2g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g, Monounsaturated Fat: 6g, Trans Fat: 0.01g, Cholesterol: 45mg, Sodium: 385mg, Potassium: 538mg, Fiber: 3g, Sugar: 7g, Vitamin A: 758IU, Vitamin C: 43mg, Calcium: 35mg, Iron: 1mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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