Tahini Caesar Pasta with Grilled Chicken

Name: Tahini Caesar Pasta with Grilled Chicken
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 1 h
Yield: 6
Cuisine: Cajun
Ingredients: 1 lb Rummo Linguine Pasta; 2 tbsp Jacobsen Salt Co. Kosher Sea Salt; Water for cooking pasta; 1 tbsp Texas Olive Ranch Extra Virgin Olive Oil; 2 tbsp butter; 1 1/2 lb chicken tenderloins; Cattleman’s Grill Blackening Seasoning; 2 tbsp Texas Olive Ranch Roasted Garlic Extra Virgin Olive Oil; Chives for garnish; 1 cup Soom Organic Tahini; 1 cup cold chicken stock; 1/4 cup parmesan, grated on microplane; 2-4 tbsp lemon juice; 2 tbsp Cattleman’s Grill Pit Fire; 1 tbsp anchovy paste; 1 tbsp Kozlik’s Dijon Classique; 4 cloves garlic, crushed, peeled; 1 tbsp Cattleman’s Grill Lone Star Brisket Rub

Sep 10, 2024 • Tom Jackson

Tahini Caesar Pasta with Grilled Chicken is a flavorful fusion dish that combines creamy tahini-based Caesar dressing with tender blackened chicken and linguine pasta. The dressing is made with Soom Organic Tahini, chicken stock, parmesan, lemon juice, and a blend of seasonings like anchovy paste and Cattleman’s Grill Pit Fire, giving it a rich and tangy Caesar twist. The pasta is cooked al dente, tossed in the creamy tahini dressing, and thinned with pasta water for the perfect consistency. The blackened chicken, seasoned with Cattleman’s Grill Blackening Seasoning and seared on a hot griddle, adds a smoky, savory touch to the dish. Served together and garnished with fresh chives, this hearty meal offers a delicious balance of bold flavors and textures.

WHAT YOU'LL LOVE

Tahini Caesar dressing made from scratch in a food processor: Soom Organic Tahini, chicken stock, parmesan, lemon juice, anchovy paste, garlic, and Cattleman's Grill Pit Fire blended smooth produces a creamy, tangy, deeply savory dressing that coats every strand of linguine — richer and more complex than any bottled Caesar.
Pasta water is the finishing move: Reserving two cups of starchy pasta water and adding it gradually to the tahini dressing on the hot pasta thins the sauce to exactly the right consistency while keeping it glossy and clinging — the technique that separates restaurant pasta from home pasta.
Blackened chicken tenderloins seared on a cast iron griddle: Butter-brushed tenderloins seasoned with Cattleman's Grill Blackening Seasoning hit the screaming-hot cast iron at 425°F and develop a genuine blackened crust in minutes — the char and spice is the counterpoint the rich tahini pasta needs.
Done in 30 minutes: Dressing in the food processor, pasta boiling, chicken on the griddle — all three happen simultaneously, and everything comes together on one plate in well under half an hour.

Tahini Caesar Pasta with Grilled Chicken

Tom Jackson

Rated 5.0 stars by 3 users

Cuisine

Cajun

Servings

6

Prep Time

30 minutes

Cook Time

30 minutes

Calories

416

Elevate your pasta night with this bold and flavorful Tahini Caesar Pasta with Grilled Chicken! This dish brings together tender linguine coated in a creamy tahini Caesar dressing, made with a zesty blend of parmesan, garlic, lemon, and anchovy paste, creating a rich and tangy sauce. The blackened chicken tenderloins, seared to perfection on a hot griddle, add smoky, savory notes that pair beautifully with the smooth pasta. Finished with a sprinkle of fresh chives and served warm, this recipe is an exciting twist on the classic Caesar, guaranteed to impress your taste buds with every bite!

Print Recipe

Ingredients

1 lb Rummo Linguine Pasta
2 tbsp Jacobsen Salt Co. Kosher Sea Salt
Water for cooking pasta
1 tbsp Texas Olive Ranch Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 tbsp butter
1 1/2 lb chicken tenderloins
Cattleman’s Grill Blackening Seasoning
2 tbsp Texas Olive Ranch Roasted Garlic Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Chives for garnish

Tahini Caesar:

1 cup Soom Organic Tahini
1 cup cold chicken stock
1/4 cup parmesan, grated on microplane
2-4 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp Cattleman’s Grill Pit Fire
1 tbsp anchovy paste
1 tbsp Kozlik’s Dijon Classique
4 cloves garlic, crushed, peeled
1 tbsp Cattleman’s Grill Lone Star Brisket Rub

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Directions

Preheat your Yoder Smokers YS640s Pellet Grill to 425ºF, set up for direct grilling (diffuser removed) with a Yoder Smokers Cast Iron Griddle installed over the fire box.
Combine all caesar dressing ingredients in the food processor and process until smooth.
Fill a large pot two-thirds full with water and bring to a boil. Add the kosher salt. Add the pasta. Cook to al dente, about 10 minutes. Strain and reserve two cups of the pasta water. Return the pasta to the pot. Drizzle the pasta with olive oil and cover to keep warm.
Pour the tahini dressing over the pasta. Add pasta water to thin to desired consistency, about 1 cup water.
Melt the butter then brush onto the chicken tenderloins. Season the chicken with Cattleman’s Grill Blackening Seasoning.
Place the Texas Olive Ranch Roasted Garlic Extra Virgin Olive Oil on the griddle. When the oil is hot sear the chicken on the griddle and cook to 155ºF. Rest for a few minutes then slice.
Serve the chicken over the pasta. Garnish with chives.

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Recipe Note

Recipe FAQ

What is tahini and where do I find Soom Organic Tahini?
Tahini is a paste made from ground sesame seeds — the same ingredient used in hummus — with a rich, nutty, slightly bitter flavor that works as a base for sauces and dressings the way mayonnaise does in Western cooking. Soom Organic Tahini is available at ATBBQ and is one of the smoothest, least bitter tahinis on the market, which makes it ideal for a dressing where the sesame flavor needs to complement rather than dominate the Parmesan, lemon, and anchovy.

Can I make the tahini Caesar dressing ahead of time?
Yes — the dressing keeps well refrigerated for up to 5 days in a sealed container. It will thicken as it chills; thin with a tablespoon of warm water at a time before tossing with the pasta. Make it the night before and the flavors will develop further as the garlic, anchovy paste, and Pit Fire seasoning continue to meld.

Why does the recipe use pasta water to thin the dressing?
Pasta water is starchy — the dissolved starch from cooking the linguine creates an emulsifying agent that helps the dressing bind to the pasta rather than pooling at the bottom of the bowl. Plain water thins the dressing but doesn't help it cling. Reserve at least a cup of pasta water before draining, then add it to the dressing one tablespoon at a time until the sauce coats a spoon and flows slowly — that's the right consistency for tossing.

What does "direct grilling with diffuser removed" mean on the YS640s?
The standard YS640s setup uses a heat diffuser plate that distributes heat evenly across the cooking surface for indirect cooking. Removing the diffuser exposes the cooking surface directly to the fire box, producing significantly higher temperatures at the grate or griddle surface — the kind of intense, focused heat needed to blacken chicken properly. At 425°F in indirect mode, the griddle surface may only reach 350°F–375°F; in direct mode it can exceed 500°F at the griddle surface, which is what creates the blackened crust.

Can I make this indoors?
4 out of 5 — Great in the kitchen, better on the grill. A cast iron skillet over high heat on the stovetop replicates the griddle sear well — preheat the dry skillet for 3–4 minutes before adding oil, then sear the butter-brushed, seasoned tenderloins. The pasta and dressing are completely stovetop. The YS640s direct-heat setup produces a slightly more aggressive char, but the blackened crust is fully achievable indoors.

Recipe Highlights

Process the dressing until completely smooth: The food processor needs to run long enough to fully emulsify the tahini, chicken stock, lemon juice, Parmesan, and anchovy paste into a uniform sauce. Under-processed dressing will be grainy and separated — the tahini needs time to incorporate completely with the liquids. Stop and scrape the sides of the bowl at least once during processing, then run again until the texture is smooth and cohesive.
Butter-brush the chicken before the blackening seasoning: The melted butter does two things: it helps the Cattleman's Grill Blackening Seasoning adhere evenly to every surface of the tenderloin, and it browns during the sear, adding richness to the crust. Applying seasoning to dry chicken produces uneven coverage and less crust formation — the butter is the binding layer that makes blackening work.
Add pasta to the dressing, not dressing to the pasta: Tossing the cooked linguine into the dressing bowl (rather than pouring dressing over a bowl of pasta) ensures every strand gets fully coated from the start. Pouring dressing onto plated pasta concentrates the sauce in the center and leaves the outer pasta underdressed. Add the pasta water as you toss to reach the right coating consistency.
Rest the chicken 3–5 minutes before slicing: The tenderloins pull at 155°F and continue climbing during rest. Slicing immediately releases the juices onto the cutting board rather than keeping them in the meat. A brief rest produces noticeably juicier sliced chicken — critical when it's going on top of a pasta dish where dryness is immediately obvious.