It’s chicken salad! It’s pasta salad! And it has scrumptious flavors straight from the borderlands! It must be Southwestern Chicken & Macaroni Salad! The tender chicken and macaroni are wonderfully savory, and roasted poblano peppers bring the refreshing revitalizing heat to this fantastic side dish! Instead of mayo, Southwestern Chicken & Macaroni Salad features a tangy, creamy salsa and cream cheese sauce that will have you diving in for another helping.
Ingredients
- 2 poblano peppers, halved lengthwise
- 1 (25-ounce) package frozen fully-cooked crispy chicken strips
- 8 ounces large elbow macaroni
- 4 ounces cream cheese, softened
- 1 (17-ounce) container salsa taquera or 3/4 cup regular salsa
- 1 avocado, seeded and peeled, chopped
Directions
Step 1 –Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.
Step 2 –Line a baking sheet with foil.
Step 3 –Place the peppers on the baking sheet, cut-side down.
Step 4 –Roast the peppers until the skin is blistered and charred, about 20 minutes.
Step 5 –Bring the foil up around the peppers and fold them together to enclose the peppers like a package.
Step 6 –Transfer the foil package from the oven and let it stand until the peppers are cool enough to handle, about 15 minutes.
Step 7 –Using a sharp knife, loosen edges of the skins of the peppers.
Step 8 –Gently pull the skins off of the peppers and discard them.
Step 9 –Remove the stems, seeds, and membranes from the peppers.
Step 10 –Chop the roasted peppers.
Step 11 –Cook the chicken and the macaroni according to the respective package directions.
Step 12 –Drain the pasta and rinse it well under cold water. Set the pasta aside.
Step 13 –Cut the chicken into 1/2-inch-thick pieces.
Step 14 –In a large bowl, add the cream cheese and 1/2 of the salsa taquera and beat, using an electric mixer, on low speed, until smooth.
Step 15 –Gradually beat the remaining salsa taquera into the cream cheese mixture.
Step 16 –Add the chopped peppers and the macaroni to the salsa mixture and toss to combine.
Step 17 –Gently fold the avocado and the chicken into the macaroni mixture.
Step 18 –Serve immediately or cover and chill for up to 2 hours before serving.
