Chicken Caesar Pasta Salad (High Protein, Greek Yogurt Dressing)

This chicken caesar pasta salad is the lunch I pack four days a week from September until it gets too cold to want a salad: grilled chicken breast, rotini, crunchy romaine, shaved parmesan and croutons, all tossed in a creamy caesar dressing made with Greek yogurt instead of a cup of mayo. It takes 25 minutes, it comes out to 42g of protein a bowl, and the dressing is better than the bottled kind by a mile. It sits next to my Greek yogurt chicken salad, chicken shawarma bowls and buffalo chicken bowls in the meal prep rotation — the high protein lunches I can make on a Sunday without thinking.

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Why this caesar pasta salad recipe actually holds up as a high protein meal.

• The dressing is Greek yogurt, and nobody can tell. A classic caesar dressing is egg yolk and a cup of oil or mayo. Mine is plain Greek yogurt whisked with parmesan, lemon, garlic, Dijon and a squeeze of anchovy paste, which gives you the same tang and umami with 8g of protein per serving instead of 20g of fat. It is the same swap I use for the ranch in my buffalo chicken bowls.
• Three sources of protein, so the number is real. Grilled chicken breast, a chickpea or lentil pasta, and the yogurt-parmesan dressing stack up to 42g a bowl. If you use regular pasta you still land at 36g. Either way it is one of the few pasta salads that counts as a high protein meal rather than a side — the protein calculator can tell you how that fits your day.
• It is built for protein meal prep. Rotini holds dressing in its spirals without going soggy, romaine stays crisp if you keep it chopped a little bigger, and the croutons go on at the end so they stay crunchy. Four containers on Sunday, lunches through Thursday — the same system as my Greek yogurt chicken salad and dense bean salad.

Here's what you'll need.

Here is everything that goes in — a chickpea pasta like Banza gives you the biggest protein number, but regular rotini works too.

Here's how it all comes together.

STEP 1 — Sear the chicken.

Pat two chicken breasts dry, pound the thick ends to an even inch, and season with salt, pepper, garlic powder and a pinch of oregano. Sear in a hot skillet with a tablespoon of olive oil for 5 to 6 minutes a side until 165°F, then rest 5 minutes before slicing. A grill pan or the air fryer at 380°F for 14 minutes works too.

STEP 2 — Whisk the Greek yogurt caesar dressing.

While the chicken cooks, whisk a cup of plain Greek yogurt with grated parmesan, lemon juice, a grated garlic clove, Dijon, anchovy paste, Worcestershire, a tablespoon of olive oil and plenty of black pepper. Thin with a spoonful of water until it pours like ranch.

STEP 3 — Cook and cool the pasta.

Boil the rotini in well-salted water until just al dente, drain, and rinse under cold water for 30 seconds so it stops cooking and does not melt the romaine. Shake it dry — wet pasta waters down the dressing.

STEP 4 — Build the salad.

Slice the rested chicken and add it to a big bowl with the cooled pasta and the chopped romaine. Keep the romaine pieces about an inch wide so they stay crunchy in the fridge.

STEP 5 — Dress and finish.

Pour over three-quarters of the dressing and toss until every spiral is coated, then add shaved parmesan, croutons and more black pepper. Taste, add the rest of the dressing if you like it creamier, and finish with a squeeze of lemon.

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Things I learned while testing this recipe.

• Pound the chicken before you sear it. An even inch-thick breast cooks through in 12 minutes without a dry edge. The first time I skipped this step the thin end was leather by the time the thick end hit 165°F.
• Rinse the pasta, then dry it. Cold rinsing stops the cooking and keeps the romaine from wilting on contact. But toss it in the colander a few times afterward — pasta that is still dripping turns a thick caesar into a thin one.
• Use anchovy paste, not more salt. Half a teaspoon from a tube is the difference between a dressing that tastes like yogurt and one that tastes like caesar. It does not taste fishy; it tastes like the restaurant version.
• Croutons go on per serving for meal prep. If you are packing lunches, keep the croutons in a bag and add them when you eat. They stay crunchy for the whole week that way.

Why this is the meal prep lunch I keep coming back to.

• Four lunches from one 25-minute session. Everything scales: two chicken breasts, a box of pasta, two heads of romaine and one batch of dressing fills four containers. I keep the dressing separate for days three and four so the romaine stays crisp.
• 42g of protein for about 480 calories. With chickpea pasta and the yogurt dressing it is one of the most filling lunches I make for the calories — the fiber from the pasta and the protein keep me full until dinner without a 3pm snack.
• It uses what you already cook. Leftover air fryer chicken breast, a rotisserie chicken, or the extra from last night’s garlic butter chicken bites all work. Skip the first step and the whole thing is 15 minutes.

Here's what I'd serve with this.

• Creamy tomato basil soup — soup and salad lunch on a cold day
• Air fryer chicken breast — the chicken I batch-cook for this on Sundays
• Cottage cheese flatbread — warm, high protein and perfect for scooping up the last of the dressing
• Greek yogurt chocolate bark — a cold, high protein dessert that uses the rest of the yogurt tub
• Greek turkey meatballs — today’s other new recipe — swap them in for the chicken and it is a different salad

Just in case you have leftovers.

Storing: Keep it in airtight containers in the fridge for up to 4 days. For days three and four, store the dressing separately and toss before eating. Keep the croutons in a bag at room temperature. It does not freeze — the romaine and yogurt dressing both break down.

Reheating: This one is meant to be eaten cold. If the pasta has stiffened in the fridge, let the container sit on the counter for 10 minutes and stir in a spoonful of dressing or a squeeze of lemon to loosen it back up.

More easy high protein recipes...

Greek yogurt chicken salad Chicken shawarma bowls Buffalo chicken bowls Cottage cheese mac and cheese

Also new today: Greek turkey meatballs with tzatziki — juicy feta-and-herb meatballs baked in 30 minutes, 35g protein a serving.

More high protein lunches with real numbers

If you want a week of meals built like this one — a real protein count, real fiber, nothing fussy — the Ultimate GLP-1 High Protein High Fiber Cookbook is full of the same kind of meal-prep-friendly lunches and dinners.

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