Try the delicious flavor of Chef Tom's Bacon & Asparagus Pasta Salad recipe. Cooked over lump charcoal with the Yoder Smokers adjustable flat top charcoal grill. Enjoy barbecue sides at their best this summer and impress your guests with unforgettable dishes!
WHAT YOU'LL LOVE
- Dicing the bacon before cooking it renders more surface area into crispy bits than cooking whole strips and chopping them afterward would
- Pouring rendered bacon fat over the raw asparagus before grilling seasons it with that same smoky flavor before it ever touches the grate
- Grilling the asparagus and garlic scapes together, then dicing and mincing them separately afterward, lets both vegetables char at the same time without needing two separate grilling stages
- Building the dressing with mayonnaise, feta, and hot sauce combines creamy, tangy, and spicy elements into one sauce, rather than needing a separate vinaigrette and cheese topping
Bacon & Asparagus Pasta Salad
Tom Jackson
Rated 5.0 stars by 1 users
Category
Side Dish
Cuisine
American
Servings
12
Prep Time
30 minutes
Cook Time
20 minutes
Calories
265
No summertime cookout is complete without some great barbecue side dishes. That's why Chef Tom is sharing his recipe for Bacon & Asparagus Pasta Salad, cooked over a bed of lump charcoal on the Yoder Smokers adjustable flat top charcoal grill!
Ingredients
- 8 oz steak cut bacon, diced
- 1 lb asparagus, woody ends trimmed
- 3 garlic scapes
- 2 oz (1/3 cup) feta cheese, crumbled
-
Cattleman’s Grill California Tri-tip Seasoning
-
12 oz orecchiette pasta
-
2 tbsp Jacobsen Salt Co. Kosher Sea Salt
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 2 oz (1/3 cup) feta cheese, crumbled
-
2 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
-
1 tsp Cattleman’s Grill California Tri-tip Seasoning
-
1 tsp Killer Hogs Hot Sauce
-
1/2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
For the dressing:
Directions
- Place a Weber Chimney Starter inside in the charcoal tray of your Yoder Smokers Charcoal Flat Top Grill. Fill the chimney with lump charcoal. Tightly ball up some paper and place under the charcoal. Light the paper with a torch or lighter. Let the charcoal burn all the way to the top before dumping. After dumping the charcoal, place the grill grate back in place.
- Bring a pot of water to a boil. Add the Jacobsen Salt Co. Kosher Sea Salt. Add the pasta and cook until tender. Strain.
- Place the diced bacon in a Lodge 12” Cast Iron Skillet. Transfer to the grill. Cook until browned. Remove from the grill.
- Place the asparagus in a shallow dish or foil pan. Pour a couple tablespoons of the bacon fat over the asparagus. Season with Cattleman’s Grill California Tri-tip Seasoning and toss to coat.
- Transfer the asparagus and garlic scapes to the grill. Cook until charred and tender. Remove from the grill. Dice the asparagus. Mince the garlic scapes.
- To make the dressing, combine all ingredients in a bowl and whisk to combine.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the pasta, asparagus, bacon, garlic scapes, 2 oz feta and dressing. Toss well to coat. Taste and adjust seasonings, as needed. Serve the Bacon & Garlic Pasta Salad immediately or chill for later use.
Recipe Note
Recipe FAQ
Why dice the bacon before cooking it instead of cooking whole strips and chopping afterward?
Dicing it first exposes more surface area to the heat, rendering more crispy bits throughout the skillet than whole strips would produce if chopped only after cooking.
Why pour the rendered bacon fat over the raw asparagus before it goes on the grill?
Coating the asparagus in that fat seasons it with the same smoky bacon flavor before it ever touches the grate, rather than relying on the grill alone to build flavor into the vegetable.
Why grill the asparagus and garlic scapes together instead of separately?
Cooking both at the same time lets them char together in one stage, rather than needing two separate trips to the grill for two different vegetables.
Why combine mayonnaise, feta, and hot sauce into one dressing instead of serving a vinaigrette with cheese on the side?
Building all three into a single dressing combines creamy, tangy, and spicy elements in one step, rather than needing separate components to hit the same range of flavor.
How indoor-friendly is this recipe?
4 out of 5 — a hot cast iron skillet or grill pan on the stovetop can render the bacon and char the asparagus and garlic scapes exactly the way the charcoal grill does here.
Recipe Highlights
Pre-diced bacon: Maximizes crispy surface area before cooking.
Fat-coated asparagus: Seasons the vegetable before it hits the grill.
Combined vegetable grilling: Chars both components in one stage.
Triple-flavor dressing: Merges creamy, tangy, and spicy into one sauce.
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Nutrition
Nutrition
- Nutrition Serving Size
- 3.84 oz
- per serving
- Calories
- 265
- Carbs
- 20 grams
- Protein
- 12 grams
- Fat
- 16 grams
- Sodium
- 820 milligrams
