Go Back
Mexican Street Corn Pasta Salad

Mexican Street Corn Pasta Salad

This Mexican street corn pasta salad is bursting with flavor! Mixed in a creamy and zesty dressing with sweet corn and cotija cheese!
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Total Time 20 minutes
Course Dinner
Servings 6 people

Ingredients
  

  • 16 oz. box of rotini pasta
  • olive oil
  • 15 oz. can of corn OR 2 cups of frozen corn, cooked
  • 1/2 cup cotija cheese
  • 2 tbsp fresh cilantro, chopped + more for garnish If you don't like cilantro, you can skip this ingredient, or use parsley instead!
  • paprika for garnish (optional)

For Dressing

  • 1/3 cup mayonnaise
  • 2/3 cup sour cream
  • 1/2 tsp garlic powder
  • 1/2 tsp chili powder
  • salt + pepper, to taste
  • pinch of cayenne pepper
  • 1 tsp lime zest
  • juice of 1 lime

Instructions
 

  • Mix together all of the ingredients for the dressing and set aside.
  • Cook pasta according to package directions.
  • When pasta is done, place in large strainer in sink and rinse with cold water to speed up cooling process.
  • Make sure to drain as much water as you can. You don't want watery pasta salad!
  • Place pasta back in the pot you used to cook it in, and drizzle with a good amount of olive oil. Season with some salt and pepper. Mix together to coat.
  • Add your corn, cotija cheese, cilantro and most of the dressing (you want to save some dressing to drizzle on after) to the pot with pasta. Mix everything well together.
  • Transfer pasta to a serving bowl. Drizzle the rest of your dressing on top of pasta. Sprinkle with some more cotija cheese (optional), paprika (optional), cilantro (optional), and cut up lime wedges (optional).
  • See *note below for tips on preventing salad from drying out.
  • Enjoy!!

Notes

* Just like any pasta salad, the dressing can dry out the pasta the longer it sits in the fridge. Make sure to drizzle a good amount of olive oil on pasta to help it stay creamy.
If you are making this for a gathering that you are attending, make the pasta salad a little before you head to the gathering so it doesn't have enough time to dry out.
If you are hosting the gathering, make the pasta salad in time so it's ready to serve right away. The creamier it is, the better!
Keyword bbq food, corn, mexican street corn, pasta, pasta salad, salad, side dish