Best Ever Taco Pasta Salad
Who loves tacos? How about pasta? What about BOTH!?
Well here’s a tasty side dish (or even dinner idea) that onlinebines both taco-seasoned ground beef and spiral noodles into a flavorful cold pasta salad for your next summer BBQ!
Taco pasta salad is super easy to make and can definitely be prepared using veggies and add-ins your family loves. I even made a video to show you the simple process of putting together this yummy salad…
The result is a delicious pasta salad with lots of bold, taco-based flavors with fresh veggies and added crunch from tortilla strips. Everyone will love this easy side dish for sure!
Tips for making the BEST taco pasta salad:
- This salad is HUGE so you’ll need a super big bowl. If you need a suggestion for a quality deep wood salad bowl, I have had this 12×7 inch acacia bowl via Amazon.online for a couple of years now, and love the shape and size! It’s so beautiful.
- I used Catalina salad dressing and it worked out yummy here. If that’s not a favorite of yours, try using another dressing like ranch or zesty Italian. I also had some taco sauce in the fridge, so I used some of it as well. Yum!
- Taco pasta salad is very easy to adjust for different tastes! Leave out anything you don’t love or consider other add-ins like black olives, black beans, and/or top with sour cream. I also topped mine with tortilla strips, but crushed Doritos work great too for some added crunch and flavor.
- You might be asking why I didn’t only season just the ground beef. I chose to season the cooked noodles and cooked ground beef together, so the noodles would get some of that yummy taco flavor, too! I used a taco packet, but check out our taco seasoning recipe for a homemade option.
- I added a couple of chopped avocados right before serving so they didn’t turn brown. They’re optional, yet so yummy!
- Leftover taco pasta salad can be stored covered in the fridge for up to 4-5 days.
Check out the video on YouTube for an easy tutorial to make Taco Pasta Salad!
Taco Pasta Salad
yield: 10 SERVINGS
prep time: 20 MINUTES
cook time: 20 MINUTES
total time: 40 MINUTES
Pasta noodles and ground beef seasoned with taco seasoning and tossed with fresh veggies & Catalina dressing as tasty side dish or dinner idea!
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 pound pasta spirals
- 1 taco seasoning packet
- 1 bell pepper, chopped
- 1 cup grape tomatoes, sliced in half
- 1/2 cup cilantro, chopped
- 4 green onions, sliced
- 15 oz. canned corn, drained
- 3 cups iceberg lettuce, chopped
- 2 cups sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
- 1/2 cup Catalina salad dressing
- 2 tablespoons taco sauce
- 1/2 cup tortilla strips
- 1 large avocado, diced
Directions
1
Crumble and cook ground beef on the stove. Drain grease, if necessary. Let cool.
2
Cook pasta noodles according to the package directions. Drain and rinse noodles with cold water.
3
In your largest mixing bowl, onlinebine the noodles and cooked ground beef. Add the taco seasoning and mix well, until evenly coated.
4
Add in the bell peppers, grape tomatoes, cilantro, green onion, corn, iceberg lettuce, and cheese.
5
Add in the dressing and taco sauce, and toss until evenly coated. Chill in the fridge until ready to serve. Top with the crunchy tortilla strips and chopped avocado right before serving. Enjoy!
This will be your new favorite pasta salad!
I love this idea as an easy-to-make, unique side dish for a BBQ, but we also ate it on its own for dinner and it was so yum! All of these flavors pair so well together.
My family and I really enjoyed this taco pasta salad so you should definitely give it a try!
