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    You are here: Home / Sides / Southwestern Pasta Salad

    LAST UPDATED: August 6, 2020 • FIRST PUBLISHED: August 6, 2020

    Southwestern Pasta Salad

    Jump to Recipe Print Recipe
    Southwest Pasta Salad

    Steal the show at your next cookout, with this hearty southwestern pasta salad. Bursting with hearty black beans, juicy bell pepper, and sweet summer corn kernels in a zesty cilantro-jalapeño dressing!

    Bowl of Southwest Pasta Salad on a White Wooden Surface

    Pasta salad is such a great idea in theory, but it can really be so bad! I've had way to many soggy pasta salads made with boring veggies and bottled salad dressing.

    Well it doesn't have to be like that! This was the best pasta salad I'd ever tasted. My husband said it tasted like summer on a plate. The cilantro dressing is full of flavor and I had a hard time resisting eating it from a spoon. This one is absolutely perfect alongside a black bean burger, and perfect for wowing vegans and non-vegans alike.

    Southwest Pasta Salad Ingredients

    Close Up of Southwest Pasta Salad

    Here's what you'll need!

    • Rotini pasta
    • Fresh cilantro
    • Olive oil
    • Shelled walnuts
    • Jalapeño pepper
    • Lime juice
    • Garlic
    • Cumin
    • Salt
    • Black beans
    • Red bell pepper
    • Corn (fresh or frozen!)
    • Scallions

    How to Make Southwest Pasta Salad

    Start by cooking your pasta. Boil it in some salted water according to the package directions, then drain it and give it a rinse in some cool water.

    While the pasta cooks and/or cools you can make the dressing. Place the cilantro, olive oil, lime juice, jalapeño, garlic, cumin, and salt into the bowl of a food processor. Blend it up until it's almost smooth — you want the texture to be somewhat like pesto.

    Side By Side Images Showing Dressing for Southwest Pasta Salad in a Food Processor Before and After Blending

    Place your pasta into a bowl, along with the black beans, diced red bell pepper, corn, and scallions.

    Ingredients for Southwest Pasta Salad Arranged in a Mixing Bowl

    Add the dressing and toss! Give your pasta salad a taste-test and make any adjustments you think are needed — more lime juice, more salt, more cumin, that kind of thing.

    Bowl of Southwest Pasta Salad with Wooden Spoon, Bunch of Cilantro in the Background

    Dig in and enjoy!

    Southwestern Pasta Salad Tips & FAQ

    • This pasta salad is best served right away, at room temperature. Most pasta salads keep pretty well, and I often prefer them chilled, but I find the flavor of this one is best right after it's been prepared.
    • If you do have leftovers, they'll keep in a sealed container in the fridge for about 3 days. I added a little extra lime juice to bring the flavor back up before serving my leftovers.
    • Can this pasta salad be made gluten-free? Yup! Just use your favorite gluten-free pasta.
    • I hate cilantro. Is there a substitute? I don't have a substitute for this particular dish, so you might be best off using a different recipe. Try my antipasto pasta salad or Greek orzo salad.

    Like this recipe? If so, be sure to follow me on Facebook, Pinterest or Instagram, or subscribe to my newsletter. And please stop back and leave me a review and rating below if you make it!

    Bowl of Southwest Pasta Salad on a White Wooden Surface
    5 from 1 vote
    Print

    Southwestern Pasta Salad

    Steal the show at your next cookout, with this hearty southwestern pasta salad. Bursting with hearty black beans, juicy bell pepper, and sweet summer corn kernels in a zesty cilantro-jalapeño dressing!

    Course Side
    Cuisine American
    Prep Time 20 minutes
    Cook Time 10 minutes
    Total Time 30 minutes
    Servings 8
    Calories 272 kcal
    Author Alissa

    Ingredients

    • 8 ounces dried rotini pasta
    • 1 (14 ounce or 400 gram) can black beans, drained and rinsed
    • 1 medium red bell pepper, diced
    • 1 cup fresh or frozen (and thawed) corn kernels
    • 2 scallions, chopped
    • Salt and pepper, to taste

    For the Dressing

    • 2 cups fresh cilantro (about 1 medium bunch), packed
    • ⅓ cup olive oil
    • ¼ cup lime juice
    • ¼ cup chopped walnuts
    • 1 medium jalapeño pepper, seeded and roughly chopped
    • 3 garlic cloves
    • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
    • ½ teaspoon salt
    US Customary - Metric

    Instructions

    1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook it according to the package directions.

    2. While the pasta cooks, prepare the dressing. Place all ingredients into the bowl of a food processor and blend until smooth.

    3. When the pasta has finished cooking, drain it into a colander and rinse the pasta with cool water.

    4. Transfer the pasta to a bowl and add the dressing, black beans, bell pepper, and corn. Toss to evenly coat everything with the dressing.

    5. Taste-test and adjust any seasonings to your liking.

    6. Serve.

    Nutrition Facts
    Southwestern Pasta Salad
    Amount Per Serving
    Calories 272 Calories from Fat 104
    % Daily Value*
    Fat 11.6g18%
    Saturated Fat 1.5g8%
    Sodium 242mg10%
    Potassium 326mg9%
    Carbohydrates 35.5g12%
    Fiber 5.3g21%
    Sugar 2.3g3%
    Protein 8.7g17%
    Calcium 32mg3%
    Iron 2mg11%
    * Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

     

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    About Alissa Saenz

    Hi, I'm Alissa! I'm a former attorney turned professional food blogger. I love creating vegan recipes with bold flavors! You can read more about me here.

    I'd love to connect with you on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest.

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Emma {Emma's Little Kitchen} says

      May 23, 2015 at 1:26 pm

      In lure with the italian-mexican fusion happening here! Love the refreshing new take on the (sometimes) dull pasta salad :)

      Reply
    2. Nichole Kraft, Food Writing Copyeditor says

      May 26, 2015 at 10:40 am

      You had me at "cilantro" and "lime juice." My husband is one of those people who thinks cilantro tastes like soap, so unfortunately, I won't be able to make this for us. (Good thing I didn't know that about him until after we were married. It might have been a deal breaker for me. Just kidding!) The good news is that hubby and I do attend potlucks often. This would be a great potluck dish, especially since it looks so quick and easy to prepare. Thank you for sharing!

      Reply
    3. Bonnie says

      June 05, 2015 at 8:08 pm

      I made this cilantro pesto and put it over tofu, asparagus, and brown rice. It's delicious!

      Reply
      • Alissa Saenz says

        June 07, 2015 at 9:38 pm

        Glad you liked it! I've been wanting to try it on some other stuff too - maybe grilled veggies. Thanks Bonnie!

        Reply
    4. plasterers bristol says

      July 01, 2015 at 1:27 am

      Yum this sounds really delicious. I love trying new recipes from blogs. Thanks for sharing :-)

      Simon

      Reply
    5. Sharanpreet Kaur says

      August 07, 2020 at 8:08 am

      Pasta is my favorite dish, i love to eat pasta. I definitely try this pesto pasta.

      Reply
    6. marquis | realrawkitchen says

      August 07, 2020 at 11:33 pm

      oh hell yeah, I love that you combined pasta and beans 😍 we've got heaps of fresh cilantro growing in the garden now, so I'm having so much fun exploring all the recipes where I can use it. This is up next 😋

      Reply
    7. Angie says

      August 20, 2020 at 4:16 pm

      5 stars
      I just made this and it's absolutely wonderful - the dressing is AMAZING! Thank you for the great recipe. I'm definitely going to make this again and again.

      Reply
    8. Mimi B says

      August 31, 2020 at 8:04 pm

      We loved this recipe. Our garden cilantro had gone to seed, but had a lot of healthy, flavorful Thai basil, so I made the substitution. EXCELLENT!! I wasn’t sure the cumin flavor would work with basil, but it was delicious!!
      So for those who are not fans of cilantro, we loved it with Thai basil. Be brave!
      Thanks for another wonderful and versatile recipe, Alissa.

      Reply
      • Alissa Saenz says

        September 01, 2020 at 8:06 pm

        I'm intrigued...and jealous of your Thai basil! It does sound delicious though - I've made curry pastes that include Thai basil and cumin, so I can see how it would work. I'll be giving your version a try some time!

        Reply
    9. Christine says

      September 14, 2020 at 1:56 pm

      This was excellent . Everyone enjoyed it!

      Reply
    10. Aryan Bansal says

      January 02, 2021 at 2:19 am

      Hey! I loved the salad recipe. Thanks for sharing.

      Reply
    11. Baz says

      January 27, 2022 at 7:48 am

      Hello! I've seen so many variations on this recipe....the black beans and sweetcorn are the key ingredient, then dozens of different dressings and inclusions. This looks far and away the best version, trying it tonight, can't wait!

      Reply

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    Hi, I'm Alissa! I'm a former attorney turned professional food blogger. I love creating vegan recipes with bold flavors!

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