Meal prep chicken pasta salad with pesto and rocket

Meal prep chicken pasta salad with chicken breast, wholewheat pasta, rocket, sun-dried tomatoes, pine nuts and green pesto.

At a glance

• Serves 2
• Prep time: 15 min
• Cooking time: 15 min
• Total time: 30 min
• Calories: 450 kcal per serving
• Protein: 35 g
• Fat: 14 g
• Carbs: 45 g

Ingredients

• 200 g chicken breast fillet
• 1 handful of rocket
• 100 g wholewheat pasta
• 1 tbsp pine nuts
• Salt
• 5-6 sun-dried tomatoes (dry or in olive oil)
• Pepper
• 2 tbsp green pesto (made with olive oil, no seed oils)

Method

You’ll need: frying pan · saucepan · chopping board · knife · sieve

1. Cook the wholewheat pasta in salted water until al dente, drain and let the steam evaporate a little.
2. Cut the chicken breast fillet into strips and fry in a hot frying pan with a little olive oil for 5–7 min until cooked through. Season with salt and pepper and leave to cool briefly.
3. Cut the sun-dried tomatoes into thin strips. Toast the pine nuts in a small dry frying pan until golden brown.
4. Mix the still slightly warm wholewheat pasta with the green pesto. Fold in the chicken strips and sun-dried tomatoes.
5. Carefully mix in the rocket, or scatter it over right at the end so it stays fresh.
6. To serve, divide the pasta salad between bowls and finish with the toasted pine nuts.

Good to know

A salad like this is pleasantly uncomplicated and is still a real joy when it's cold. Hearty and fresh, without feeling heavy.

Swaps

Chicken breast fillet → turkey breast fillet (similar protein content) Wholewheat pasta → chickpea or lentil pasta (more protein, also provides fibre) Green pesto → homemade pesto with olive oil, basil, parmesan and walnuts (without seed oils) Pine nuts → walnuts or almonds (walnuts contain omega-3, almonds vitamin E)

Allergens

Contains gluten (wholewheat pasta), milk (pesto) and pine nuts; depending on the pesto, it may also contain tree nuts. Good for children if the tomatoes aren't too salty; in pregnancy, only with chicken that's cooked right through.

Frequently asked questions

What's in chicken breast, nutritionally?

Chicken breast mainly contains protein, as well as niacin, vitamin B6, phosphorus and selenium. The fat content is fairly modest if you remove any visible fat.

Why wholewheat pasta here?

Wholewheat pasta keeps more of the whole grain, so it provides fibre as well as magnesium, iron and B vitamins. How much exactly depends on the brand and on how finely the flour is milled.

What do sun-dried tomatoes bring to the dish?

Sun-dried tomatoes contain concentrated potassium and carotenoids such as lycopene. They're often much saltier than fresh tomatoes, so it's worth checking the ingredients list.

What do pine nuts bring nutritionally?

Pine nuts provide unsaturated fatty acids, vitamin E and magnesium. They also go off quite easily, so they should taste mild rather than bitter.

Does rocket suit everyone?

Rocket has a high water content and provides a little fibre, but its mustard-oil note isn't to everyone's taste. If you're sensitive to bitter or peppery leaves, simply use a little less.