Beef Taco Pasta Salad

Close up of Taco Pasta Salad in a bowl, from above

Serve Taco Pasta Salad to guests at summertime gatherings like barbecues or potlucks! Panorama Organic Ground Beef shines in this recipe. Add in bowtie pasta, red onion, green bell pepper, cherry tomatoes, corn, avocados, green onions, Colby Jack cheese and a homemade creamy dressing to complete this non-salad salad. A mash-up of classic pasta salad and taco salad, this entree packs in flavor to make a dish that's great to share.

Prep Time 30

Cook Time 30

Total Time 1

Servings servings

Calories 398kcal

Ingredients

16 oz. farfalle pasta cooked (1 lb.)
½ small red onion diced (about ½ cup)
½ green bell pepper diced (about ¾ cup)
1 cup cherry tomatoes halved
2 small avocados diced
1 ear of corn cooked and sliced (1 cup)
½ cup green onions chopped
16 oz. 85/15 Panorama Organic Ground Beef (1 lb.)
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon taco seasoning
¾ cup shredded Colby jack cheese
Parsley chopped, for garnish

Creamy Taco Salad Dressing

¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons ketchup
2 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon sour cream
3 tablespoons reserved pasta water
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper
¼ teaspoon paprika
¼ teaspoon onion powder

Instructions

Cook the Fresh Corn

Bring a large pot of water to a boil.
Add a tablespoon of sea salt.
Add the corn, and boil for 9-10 minutes, or until bright yellow.
Remove the corn from the pot (don't dump out the water--you need this for the pasta!), and let cool… or char it on the stovetop, 4-5 minutes.
Let cool, then slice off the cob.

Cook the Pasta

If you're using canned or frozen corn, bring a large pot of water to a boil. Season it with sea salt.
When the water is at a rolling boil, add the pasta, and stir with a wooden spoon.
Cook for 9-10 minutes, or until al dente.
Reserve about 1/3 cup salted pasta water, then drain the pasta into a colander.
Once the pasta has drained, transfer it back to the pot and add TWO teaspoons of olive oil on top of the pasta so it doesn’t stick together before putting together the pasta salad.

Chop the Veggies

While the pasta cooks, work on chopping the rest of the raw veggies.
Dice the green bell pepper and red onion.
Slice the cherry tomatoes in half.
Open the avocado, remove the pit and the skin, and then chop it into bite-sized pieces.
Remove the kernels from the cooked corn. (Or open the can of corn or heat the frozen corn in the microwave. No judgment here.)
Chop the green onion.
Set everything aside for when you’re going to put together the salad.

Brown the Beef

Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.
Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil.
When the oil is shimmering, add the ground beef and the taco seasoning.
Break up the ground beef with the back of a wooden spoon, and move it around the pan as it browns.
Since grass-fed beef is lower in fat and requires less cooking time, this will take anywhere between 7-9 minutes to be cooked through.
Once the meat is crumbly and browned and delicious, remove from the pan, and set aside.

Make the Dressing

In a mason jar, combine the olive oil, ketchup, honey, red wine vinegar, sour cream and pasta water.
Add all of the seasonings to the mixture.
Put the lid on, and shake vigorously. I found that the sour cream sometimes can be a problem because it can add a few lumps to the dressing—but if that happens, do not fret!
Refrigerate until time to dress the salad.

Put together the Taco Pasta Salad

In a large bowl, combine the cooked pasta and beef along with the red onion, green bell pepper, tomatoes, avocados, corn, green onions and most of the cheese.
Pour the entire mason jar of the dressing on top of the ingredients.
Use tongs to gently toss the ingredients together.
Once mixed, sprinkle with the rest of the cheese on top, as well as parsley.
Serve immediately, and enjoy!

Notes

This pasta salad can be enjoyed warm or cold. My family prefers it when the beef and pasta are warm, but if you make yours in advance and don't want to heat the elements separately (or it's already thrown together, and you don't want to heat the whole thing), it's still delicious when cold!

Time saving tips:

Purchase canned or frozen corn instead of fresh to have one less cooking element.
You can chop all the ingredients except the avocados in advance.
You can cook the beef and pasta early, too.
Keep the prepped ingredients separate until it’s almost time to serve, then reheat the beef before tossing the salad together.

If you forget to reserve the pasta water, don't fret! You can use 3 tablespoons of water with a pinch of salt.

Nutrition