Stop making boring pasta salad and level up your kitchen game! 🥗✨

Tired of plain, soggy pasta salad? In today’s video, we’re levelling up your kitchen game with a fresh, vibrant, and super flavorful pasta salad that’s perfect for meal prep, summer lunches, or an easy weeknight dinner! I’ll also walk you through essential kitchen tips—including the truth about what a honing rod is for, how to keep your lettuce crisp for days, and the secret step you should never skip when mixing warm pasta into fresh salad greens. Whether you're here for the food or to sharpen your cooking techniques, there's something for everyone in Rae's kitchen today! ⏱️ TIMESTAMPS: 00:00 - Introduction & Catch-up 00:53 - Kitchen Tip: Honing Rod vs. Whetstone 02:50 - Ingredients Overview & Cutting Chives 05:25 - Salting Water & Salad Prep Setup 06:55 - Kitchen Hack: How to Keep Lettuce Fresh & Crispy 07:56 - Slicing Fresh Garden Lettuce 09:12 - Adding Cucumber, Herbs, Olive Oil & Salt 11:38 - Adding Cooked Chicken & Ham 14:40 - Mid-Cook Taste Test & Seasoning Tips 16:16 - Mixing In the Cooked Pasta (Important Cooling Tip!) 18:15 - Final Taste Test & Seasoning Advice 19:30 - Plating & Customising Fresh Toppings 20:25 - Taste Test & Wrap Up 🥗 INGREDIENTS MENTIONED: Pasta: Any cooked pasta of your choice (boiled in salted water) Meats: Pre-cooked chicken (diced/sliced) Ham (diced) Fresh Produce: Fresh mixed lettuce/salad leaves Cucumber (diced) Fresh chives (finely chopped) Tomatoes (diced, homegrown/fresh) Red onion (finely diced) Seasoning & Dressing: Olive oil (a good splash) Dried mixed herbs (to taste) Sea salt (Maldon sea salt or similar, to taste) Black pepper (optional, to taste) 💬 Join the Conversation: What's your go-to ingredient to level up a pasta salad? Let me know in the comments below! 🔔 Hit SUBSCRIBE to join Rae's Kitchen on the road to our 500-sub milestone for more easy home-cooked recipes from Rae's kitchen! #PastaSalad #EasyRecipes #MealPrep #HealthyLunch #HomeCooking #RaesKitchen