Mexican Pasta Salad

Mexican Pasta Salad – seriously delicious! Easy to make and great for a crowd! Pasta, red onion, green onion, corn, black beans, tomatoes, cilantro tossed in a quick dressing of ranch dressing, salsa, and cumin. Add chicken, ground beef, ham or bacon to the leftovers and turn this side into a main dish! YUM!

mexican pasta salad in a bowl

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Great Side Dish For a Crowd

Pasta salad is one of my go-to recipes for potlucks and cookouts. It is easy to make and feeds a crowd! This Mexican Pasta Salad is seriously delicious! We ate this for lunch last week and have it on the menu for our 4th of July cookout. I can’t wait to have this again. Pasta, black beans, corn, onions, peppers tossed in a quick salsa-ranch dressing. SO good! You could even add some chicken or ground beef to the mixture and have a quick main dish!

mexican pasta salad in a bowl

How To Make Easy Mexican Pasta Salad

This pasta salad is very easy to make. Toss together cooked pasta, black beans, corn, chopped tomatoes, red onion, green onions, and chopped bell pepper in a large bowl. Whisk together salsa, cumin, and ranch dressing. Pour that over the pasta mixture and toss. Add in some fresh cilantro, if desired. I know some people have an aversion to cilantro. So it is totally optional. Pop it in the fridge for a few hours and you are set! The hardest part is boiling the pasta!!

  • Feel free to mix up the vegetables in this pasta salad. Kidney beans, pinto beans, olives, avocado would all be nice.
  • You can add some chicken, ground beef, ham, or bacon and turn this side dish into a quick main dish. I’ve done this with the leftovers and it is great!
  • Here is the recipe for our Copycat Outback Ranch Dressing: https://www.plainchicken.com/copycat-outback-ranch-dressing/
  • Is this pasta salad spicy? There may be a kick to this Mexican Pasta Salad depending on what heat level of salsa you use. I usually use a medium-heat salsa.
  • My favorite store-bought salsas are Trader Joe’s salsa, Mateo’s Gourmet Salsa, or Kylitos Salsa. I get the Mateo’s and Kylito’s salsa at Walmart.
  • Can Mexican Pasta Salad be made in advance? Absolutely! I prefer to make this the day before serving and let it sit in the refrigerator. That gives the flavors time to develop.
  • How long does pasta salad keep? This pasta salad will keep for 3 or 4 days in the refrigerator.
mexican pasta salad in a bowl

What to Serve With The BEST Pasta Salad

As I said, this pasta salad is great for cookout and potlucks. It goes great with burgers, chicken, pork chops, and hot dogs. SO, pretty much everything! Here are a few of our favorite recipes from the blog that go great with this macaroni salad:

Slow Cooker MOJO Pork

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bowl of pasta salad

Mexican Pasta Salad

Yield: 10 people
Prep Time 15 minutes
Total Time 15 minutes
Mexican Pasta Salad – seriously delicious! Easy to make and great for a crowd! Pasta, red onion, green onion, corn, black beans, tomatoes, cilantro tossed in a quick dressing of ranch dressing, salsa, and cumin. Add chicken, ground beef, ham or bacon to the leftovers and turn this side into a main dish! YUM! #pastasalad #mexican #sidedish #potluck

Equipment:

Ingredients:

  • 1 (16-oz) package elbow macaroni
  • 1 (11-oz) can corn, drained
  • 1 (15-oz) can black beans, rinsed and drained
  • 1 bell pepper, chopped
  • ½ red onion, sliced
  • 4 green onions, chopped
  • cups grape tomatoes, cut in half
  • ¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro, optional
  • 1 cup salsa
  • cups bottled ranch dressing
  • 1 tsp cumin

Instructions:

  • Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain.
  • In a large bowl combine cooked pasta, corn, black beans, bell pepper, red onion, green onion, tomatoes, and cilantro.
  • Whisk together salsa, ranch, and cumin. Pour over pasta mixture. Mix until thoroughly combined.
  • Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours to overnight.

Notes:

  • Feel free to mix up the vegetables in this pasta salad. Kidney beans, pinto beans, olives, avocado would all be nice.
  • You can add some chicken, ground beef, ham, or bacon and turn this side dish into a quick main dish. I’ve done this with the leftovers and it is great!
  • Here is the recipe for our Copycat Outback Ranch Dressing: https://www.plainchicken.com/copycat-outback-ranch-dressing/
  • There may be a kick to this Mexican Pasta Salad depending on what heat level of salsa you use. I usually use a medium-heat salsa.
4 jars of salsa on the countertop
  • Our favorite store-bought salsas are Mateo’s, Kylito’s, Pace Picante Sauce, and Pace Restaurant Style Salsa.
  • I prefer to make this the day before serving and let it sit in the refrigerator. That gives the flavors time to develop.
  • This pasta salad will keep for 3 or 4 days in the refrigerator.

Steph

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Comments

  1. This sounds delicious! You can bet I’ll try this recipe. We love macaroni salad and I make a fiesta corn salad with black beans and corn, tomatoes, etc. I am looking forward to trying the salsa/ranch dressing combo in this dressing. Thanks!

  2. Seriously such a great meal and crowd pleaser! So far I’ve made it twice and have gotten many comments. I also add some Cotija cheese or shredded cheddar cheese after letting it marinate overnight.

  3. Do you mean HV Ranch dressing in the bottle or the kind you make up fresh with the packet with mayo and sour cream???

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