Cowboy Pasta Salad - The Keep At House Chef

This is likely one of the most filling pasta salads on the market! It’s full of meat, cheese, beans, and greens. Convey to a BBQ or make as a fast and simple dinner at residence and we promise there received’t be any complaints about leaving hungry!

If you happen to love this recipe, you’ll love our “cowboy caviar” Black Bean and Corn Salad.

Why Our Recipe

Loaded with all the great things. We’re speaking beef, bacon, cheddar, and veggies.
Our creamy selfmade salsa verde dressing brings a smoky kick you’ll love.
Makes for a brilliant filling dinner, or carry it to a potluck or BBQ to feed a crowd.

A Bowl full of Cowboy Pasta Salad displaying the ingredients on top.

Half of this pasta salad’s flavorful goodness comes from our scrumptious, selfmade dressing. It’s our secret ingredient! Bear in mind, pasta salad is barely nearly as good because the dressing you placed on it. Our cowboy dressing is made with salsa verde, lime juice, and loads of smoky spices and seasonings. The salsa permits you to actually mess around with the warmth stage, so in case you prefer it scorching, ensure to make use of medium to scorching salsa.

Ingredient Notes

Overhead layout of Ingredients for Cowboy Pasta Salad.

Rotini Pasta: Rotini’s nice for grabbing onto all that dressing. No rotini? Use one other quick pasta like fusilli or penne.
Floor Beef: We like utilizing 80/20 beef for the perfect taste. Floor turkey or rooster works too if you would like it a bit of lighter.
Cheddar Cheese: Sharp cheddar brings a bit of additional punch, however truthfully, any cheese you’re keen on will work. Pepper jack can be superior if you would like a bit of kick.
Cherry or Grape Tomatoes: Both one is ideal. Reduce them in halves or quarters so that you get the right chunk. A mixture of purple and yellow tomatoes seems to be actually fairly too.
Black Beans: Give them a great rinse and drain to maintain issues from getting soggy.
Canned Corn: Completely fantastic to make use of straight from the can, however you may also use uncooked recent corn or frozen corn.
Pink Onion: Pink onions are the perfect for consuming uncooked.
Jalapeño: Completely elective! Contemporary jalapeños add a pleasant spicy crunch, or use pickled for rather less warmth.
Bacon: Crumble it up! Prepare dinner your individual or seize the pre-cooked type.
Salsa Verde: Seize a jar of your favourite delicate or medium salsa verde. Use no matter warmth stage you want.
Lime Juice: Contemporary-squeezed is all the time going to have the perfect taste, however bottled lime juice works too.

Regulate the Warmth

Among the finest issues about cowboy pasta is how straightforward it’s to tweak the spice. If you happen to’re into warmth, seize a scorching salsa verde, bump up the chili powder, and toss just a few additional jalapeño slices on prime. Not a fan of spicy? Keep on with delicate salsa and skip the chili powder and jalapeños. Straightforward!

Closeup image of Cowboy Pasta Salad with dressing drizzled over it.

Make-Forward Directions

This salad’s tremendous straightforward to make forward. You possibly can whip up the dressing 1 to 2 days early and stash it within the fridge. Prepare dinner the pasta and floor beef the night time earlier than, too. Simply hold them separate so all the pieces stays recent. If you’re able to eat, all you’ve bought to do is chop the cheese and tomatoes and toss all of it collectively in an enormous bowl. Completed and performed.