BBQ Chicken Pasta Salad with Lime and Sour Cream

Its no secret, I really like pasta.  Sometimes, much to Mr. Mommy's chagrin, I go a little overboard with it.  Every week, I have to check my menu to make sure we aren't having pasta every day.  There are so many  ways to present it that its hard to get bored with. 

Pasta salad is one of my favorite ways to serve it, but I get tired of the same old mayo or Italian dressing versions that seem to show up at every potluck dinner or BBQ.  Enter THIS pasta salad.  There's not a teaspoon of mayo to be seen, and the tangy bite comes from BBQ sauce.  Its refreshingly different!  The fact that its chock full of all different kinds of veggies takes away from some of the guilt associated with pasta salad.  Now this isn't light by any stretch of the imagination, but it is light-er.  (At least that's what I keep telling myself.)  This will become a staple at all your family gatherings and BBQs, trust me!

BBQ Chicken Pasta Salad with Lime and Sour Cream

Serves 12-15

1 lb. bow tie or spiral pasta

2 cups frozen peas

1 cup frozen corn kernels

2 1/2 lbs. chicken, cooked and cut into bite sized pieces (Rotisserie chicken works great!)

1 1/2 cups BBQ sauce (I used Sweet Baby Ray's)

1 tsp. hot sauce

2 Tbs. Fresh lime juice (Did I mention is NEEDS to be fresh?)

1/2 cup sour cream

2 stalks celery, diced

1 medium red onion, diced

1 medium carrot, peeled and coarsely shredded

4 tomatillos, chopped

1/4 cup fresh cilantro

Salt and fresh ground pepper to taste

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil.  Add the pasta and cook according to package directions.  During the final 2 minutes of cooking, add the frozen peas and corn, stirring to make sure they don't stick together.  Drain and rinse under cool water.  Transfer the pasta mixture to a baking sheet to dry while you prepare the remaining ingredients.

In a bowl, whisk together the BBQ sauce, hot sauce and lime juice.  Add the chicken and toss to coat.

In another large bowl, combine the sour cream, pasta and veggie mixture, celery, red onion, carrot and tomatillos.  Toss well to coat.  Fold in the chicken/BBQ mixture and cilantro, mixing until just combined.  Season with salt and pepper.

Source:  Taken from The Daily Herald newspaper many years ago