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Home › Recipes
12 Comments

Mexican Street Corn Pasta Salad

Stacey Pirtle

by Stacey Updated: Jul 8, 2023

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Cool, creamy, with a bit of crunch and a hit of spiciness, this colorful Mexican Street Corn Pasta Salad recipe with a creamy chile lime dressing has all the flavors of traditional Mexican Street Corn served up as the perfect cookout, tailgate and BBQ side dish!

Mexican Street Corn Pasta with cool mayo & sour cream chile lime dressing


A new favorite pasta salad recipe? I dare say, it is! I can’t wait for you to try this out-of-this-world tasty street corn salad! With crumbly cotija cheese, cool cilantro, golden sautĂŠed corn, crisp red onions, and the bite of fresh jalapenos all topped with an easy sour cream/mayo based chile lime dressing, this salad is the perfect partner for burgers, tacos, BBQ chicken and even by itself as a light lunch!

RELATED RECIPES: Mexican Street Corn Foil Packets, Confetti Frito Corn Salad

What is Mexican Street Corn?

Corn on the cob, or elote, is a popular street food in Mexico. Sold by street vendors, the corn is grilled, drizzled with a creamy mayo/sour cream sauce and topped with chile powder, lime and crumbled cheese and served on a stick for eating on the go!

MORE SUMMER CORN RECIPES: Fresh Sweet Corn Relish, Green Chile Corn Salsa Dip

Ingredients for Mexican Street Corn Pasta Salad with jalapenos and a creamy mayo chile lime dressing

Ingredients for Street Corn Pasta Salad with Chile Lime Dressing

  • rotini pasta
  • golden kernel corn
  • cotija cheese (or feta)
  • cilantro
  • red onion
  • jalapenos

Creamy Chile Lime Dressing Ingredients

  • sour cream
  • real mayonnaise
  • lime juice
  • chili powder
  • garlic
  • ground cumin
  • salt & black pepper
  • ground cayenne pepper
The steps for making mexican street corn pasta salad with red onion, jalapenos. cilantro and creamy dressing

How to Make Mexican Street Corn Pasta Salad

Boil Pasta. In a large pot of generously salted water, boil pasta just to al dente. Drain and let cool.

Sautee Corn. While pasta is boiling, heat olive oil in skillet over medium high heat. Drain corn and add to hot skillet. Corn should sizzle a little and possibly pop. Sautee corn until brown and a little seared. Remove from heat and allow to cool.

Make Salad. When pasta and corn are cooled, combine in a large bowl with chopped cilantro, diced onion, diced jalapeno peppers and 1 cup crumbled cotija cheese.

Make Dressing. Whisk together dressing ingredients, drizzle about ½-2/3 over salad and toss. Save the rest of dressing for leftovers since the pasta will soak up the dressing and need refreshing.

Mexican Street Corn Pasta Salad with cilantro, lime, jalapenos and cotija cheese

Tips for Making the Best Mexican Street Corn Pasta Salad

  • Make sure you generously salt the water for boiling the pasta. This seasons the pasta (& its your only chance!) as it cooks, absorbs some water and softens. Unseasoned pasta makes for an overall bland pasta salad.
  • Only cook the pasta until it is al dente, or still a little firm. This helps your pasta retain its taste, texture and shape and saves your salad from being mushy.
  • Don’t skip the sautĂŠing the corn! This adds loads of flavor to the corn and brings out its the sweetness. It also keeps the flavors of this pasta salad recipe truer to grilled or fried street corn.
cool and creamy, #1 cookout salad, street corn pasta salad with cilantro & lime

Add Ins & Variations

  • This Mexican Street Corn Pasta Salad recipe can get a little spicy, especially as it sits. At my house, that’s a good thing. But you can regulate how spicy your salad gets by adding more or less jalapenos, substituting the jalapenos with green bell peppers and lessening the amount of or omitting the cayenne pepper.
  • Add a little chopped bacon for deep smoky flavor. Black beans are also a great addition.
  • Instead of canned corn, use about 3 cups frozen corn. You could also buy canned or frozen fire roasted corn if you were in a pinch and didn’t want to sautee your own. For the perfect summer corn salad, grill 3-4 ears of fresh sweet corn to make this recipe.

Other Pasta Salad Recipes You’ll Love!

  • Waldorf Chicken Pasta Salad
  • Bacon Tomato Pasta Salad
  • Taco Pasta Salad with Creamy Avocado Dressing
  • Southern Macaroni Salad
  • Tuscan Tortellini Pasta Salad
Mexican Street Corn Pasta with cool mayo & sour cream chile lime dressing

Mexican Street Corn Pasta Salad

Cool, creamy, with a bit of crunch and a hit of spiciness, this colorful Mexican Street Corn Pasta Salad recipe with a creamy chile lime dressing has all the flavors of traditional Mexican Street Corn served up as the perfect cookout, tailgate and BBQ side dish!
Print Pin Rate
Course: Salad, Side Dish
Cuisine: American
Keyword: cookouts, party, picnic, tailgate
Prep Time: 5 minutes minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes minutes
Servings: 6
Author: Stacey | SouthernDiscourse.com

Ingredients

  • 16 oz rotini pasta
  • 2 (15 oz) can golden kernel corn
  • 1 cup cotija cheese (Mexican crumbling cheese), or feta
  • ⅔ cups chopped cilantro
  • 1 small/ medium red onion, diced
  • 1.5 large fresh jalapenos, deseeded, deveined & diced (about ⅓ cup)
  • olive oil

Creamy Chile Lime Dressing

  • 1 cup sour cream
  • ½ cup real mayonnaise
  • 3-4 tablespoons lime juice
  • 2 teaspoons chili powder
  • 1 teaspoon minced garlic
  • ½ teaspoon cumin, heaping
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • Âź teaspoon cayenne pepper
  • Âź teaspoon coarse ground black pepper
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Instructions

  • In a large pot of generously salted water, boil pasta just to al dente. Drain and let cool.
  • While pasta is boiling, heat olive oil in skillet over medium high heat. Drain corn and add to hot skillet. Corn should sizzle a little and possibly pop. Sautee corn until brown and a little seared. Remove from heat and allow to cool.
  • When pasta and corn are cooled, combine in a large bowl with chopped cilantro, diced onion, diced jalapeno peppers and 1 cup crumbled cotija cheese.
  • Whisk together dressing ingredients, drizzle about ½-2/3 over salad and toss. Save the rest of dressing for leftovers since the pasta will soak up the dressing and need refreshing.
Mexican Street Corn Pasta with cool mayo & sour cream chile lime dressing
Did you make my Mexican Street Corn Pasta Salad?Show me how it went! Share on Instagram, tag @southerndiscourse, and use the hashtag #SouthernDiscourse!
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Cool, creamy, with a bit of crunch and a hit of spiciness, this colorful Mexican Street Corn Pasta Salad recipe with a creamy chile lime dressing has all the flavors of traditional Mexican Street Corn served up as the perfect cookout, tailgate and BBQ side dish!

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Filed Under: Cookouts, Recipes, Salads Tagged With: Mexican, potluck

Meet Stacey

Southern Discourse is a place where you can find southern family dishes, along with special recipes & table settings. Bringing connection & friendship back to the table by wrapping everything in the faith & grace from which true hospitality springs! Read More

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Comments

    5 from 9 votes (3 ratings without comment)

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    Recipe Rating




  1. Avatar photoLabefranc52@yahoo.ca

    November 5, 2023 at 5:48 pm

    5 stars
    vraiment très bonne *****

    Reply
    • Stacey PirtleStacey

      November 8, 2023 at 10:34 pm

      Bonjour, Franc! Merci! I am so glad liked it!

      Reply
  2. Avatar photoMary Gresham

    May 21, 2024 at 6:10 pm

    5 stars
    Beautiful looking salad…taste delicious!

    Reply
    • Stacey PirtleStacey

      May 25, 2024 at 5:10 pm

      Thank you so much, Mary! This one is definitely a cookout favorite for us!

      Reply
    • Avatar photoKelly

      November 28, 2024 at 10:28 am

      5 stars
      Made this for my work holiday potluck and it was a big hit! Substituted the seasonings for Tajin and was so tasty! Making another batch today to enjoy at home with the family!

      Reply
      • Stacey PirtleStacey

        November 28, 2024 at 10:37 am

        Hi, Kelly! Awesome! Thank you so much! I am tickled you loved this pasta salad recipe! Thank you for letting this recipe be a part of your holiday celebrations.

        Reply
  3. Avatar photoKimberly

    July 11, 2024 at 1:23 am

    5 stars
    Made this and loved it! I used fresh corn on the cob, “grilling it” on cast iron pan. Used bell peppers instead of jalepeno because my husband can’t handle hot anymore. Didn’t have lime, so subbed with fresh lemon juice. Also, used Tajin in place of cayenne pepper. Used feta and Ranchero cheeses. Can’t wait to make this for a party. Delish!

    Reply
    • Stacey PirtleStacey

      July 30, 2024 at 2:50 pm

      Hi, Kimberly! Oh my goodness! This recipe with fresh corn!! YES! Can’t wait for you to make this recipe for you party. Thank you so much!

      Reply
  4. Avatar photoRebecca

    February 22, 2025 at 10:51 am

    5 stars
    I made it for a church social and everyone loved it😄

    Reply
    • Stacey PirtleStacey

      March 25, 2025 at 2:24 pm

      Hi, Rebecca! This is awesome! Thank you!

      Reply
  5. Avatar photoKelli Nicole Bivins

    May 13, 2025 at 7:42 am

    5 stars
    I’ve made this delicious dish twice now, and both times it was the HIT of the party.
    This past time I made it with gluten free pasta, and it was still delicious! Plus, it feeds a lot of folks.
    Thank you!!!

    Reply
    • Stacey PirtleStacey

      June 9, 2025 at 5:47 pm

      Hi, Kelli! You are so welcome! This absolutely makes my day!

      Reply

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Meet Stacey

Southern Discourse is a place where you can find southern family dishes, along with special recipes & table settings. Bringing connection & friendship back to the table by wrapping everything in the faith & grace from which true hospitality springs! Read More

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