This easy Elote Pasta Salad is inspired by Mexican street corn and is packed with a creamy lime dressing, roasted corn, fresh cilantro, and crumbled cotija cheese. It incorporates the flavors of street corn in the heartiness of an easy to prep ahead pasta salad.
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Why you'll love this recipe
- Pasta salads like this one, or my Tortellini Pesto Salad and Lemon Orzo Feta Pasta Salad, are perfect to prep ahead when entertaining. It can be made completely in advance and just served at room temperature, making it a great potluck side dish.
- Similar to my Greek Chicken Pasta Salad, this recipe uses Greek yogurt as the base of the dressing.
- The smoky corn, creamy dressing, and fresh herbs pair perfectly together making this a super flavorful pasta salad that everyone will be asking you for the recipe for!
Key Ingredients & Substitutions
- Pasta: Any short pasta will work! In these photos, I used gigli. Penne, orecchiette, or fussili would also all be great.
- Fire-Roasted Corn: To keep this recipe easy, I like to use frozen fire-roasted corn from the grocery store (like this corn from Trader Joe's!). If fresh corn is accessible to you, charring corn on the cob and than removing it from the cob would be delicious.
- Cotija cheese: The crumbled cotija adds a cheesy and salty flavor. If you can't find cotija cheese, feta cheese is a good substitute.
- Cilantro: The fresh cilantro adds brightness to this pasta salad.
- Lime: For maximum flavor, I use both fresh lime juice and lime zest in the dressing.
- Greek yogurt and sour cream: The combination of Greek yogurt and sour cream creates a super creamy dressing that is also balanced in tartness.
- Chili powder: This recipe uses American chili powder, which is a blend and is much milder than pure ground chili peppers that you may find outside the US. If you'd like your dressing a bit spicier, you can add a dash of cayenne pepper.
How to make elote pasta salad
Make the creamy chipotle lime dressing by whisking together the lime juice, lime zest, Greek yogurt, sour cream, and chili powder. Set aside.
Cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water until al dente. Drain. Toss the hot pasta in a large bowl with ½ cup of the dressing and let it cool.
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Meanwhile, if the corn is frozen, defrost it by cooking the corn kernels on medium heat on the stovetop.
When the pasta has cooled, toss it with the rest of the dressing, corn, cilantro, and cotija cheese. Taste and adjust for seasoning before serving.
Prep ahead tips
This pasta salad is the perfect side dish for making ahead and serving at room temperature. Stored in an airtight container, it stays fresh in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. For the best flavor at a party, I recommend serving it within 24 hours.
Chef tips
- Toss the cooked pasta with ½ cup of the dressing while it is still hot. The hot pasta will absorb the flavors of the dressing. I do not recommend adding all the dressing at this time, otherwise, it will absorb too much dressing and the pasta salad will be dry.
- If you'd like to speed up the cooling process for the pasta, lay the cooked pasta out on a sheet pan. It will stop the cooking process more quickly and will cool much faster.
More make-ahead salad recipes you'll love
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📖 Recipe
Elote Pasta Salad (Mexican Street Corn Inspired)
Ingredients
- 1 lb short pasta such as gigli, fussili, orecchiette, or penne
- 2 ½ cups roasted corn fresh or frozen
- ¾ cup crumbled cotija cheese
- ¼ cup chopped cilantro
Dressing:
- ½ cup Greek yogurt or mayo
- ½ cup sour cream
- ¼ cup lime juice about 2 limes
- 4 tsp. Lime zest about 2 limes
- 1 tablespoon Chili powder
- Kosher salt
Instructions
For the dressing
- In a small bowl, combine all the dressing ingredients and set aside.
For the pasta
- Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Add the pasta and cook according to package directions until al dente. Drain. Immediately toss the hot pasta with ½ cup dressing. Cool.
For the corn
- Meanwhile, if using frozen corn, heat a medium skillet on medium high heat. Add the corn and cook, stirring occasionally until no longer frozen.
To assemble
- When the pasta has cooled, toss it with the rest of the dressing and all other ingredients. Taste, adjusting the seasoning as needed, before serving.
Notes
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Jeff the Chef @ Make It Like a Man! says
What a fantastic salad! I love elote!