Name: Southwestern Pasta Salad
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 25 min
Yield: 8
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 1 pound small pasta; 1 (15 ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed; 1 (10-ounce) package frozen corn, thawed; 1 red bell pepper, diced; 8 ounces queso fresco, crumbled; 1 1/2 cups salsa; 1/4 cup olive oil; 3 tablespoons lime juice; 1 teaspoon cumin; 1 teaspoon chili powder; 2 garlic cloves, minced; salt & pepper, to taste; 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro; 1 avocado, diced

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Southwestern Pasta Salad is the perfect side dish for all your summer BBQs. It has pasta, black beans, corn, bell pepper, queso fresco, avocado, cilantro, salsa, and a light lime dressing.

Originally posted April 28, 2015. Updated July 21, 2026.

This summer has been a pasta salad summer for my house. I swear I’ve made pasta salad 3 times a week. It doesn’t matter what else I’m making, I’m making pasta salad to go with it.

I love this Southwestern Pasta Salad because it just has so much in it. So many different flavors and textures!

It starts with pasta, of course, but it also has beans, several kinds of vegetables, queso fresco, salsa, and a light lime dressing. It’s so delicious and really easy to make.

Ingredients

Pasta – you can use any small pasta shape like rotini, penne, farfalle, etc.
Black beans – make sure you drain and rinse them.
Corn – I use frozen corn and let it thaw in the fridge overnight. You can also use canned corn.
Red bell pepper – any color works but I like the pop of red that the red bell pepper gives.
Queso fresco – you could use cotija instead. I like the texture of queso fresco in this recipe but either works.
Salsa – use your favorite salsa. Use a chunky one if you want tomato chunks in your pasta salad or a more restaurant-style salsa if you don’t want tomato chunks.
Olive oil – you can use vegetable oil or avocado oil instead.
Lime Juice – fresh lime juice is the tastiest but the bottled stuff works too.
Cumin
Chili powder
Garlic – you can use garlic powder if you don’t have fresh garlic.
Cilantro – leave it out if you don’t like it.
Avocado – I like to add avocado right before serving so that it doesn’t brown while the pasta salad chills.

How To Make Southwestern Pasta Salad

Cook pasta. Cook pasta according to package instructions. Drain and rinse under cold water. Set aside.
Make dressing. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together olive oil, lime juice, cumin, chili powder, garlic, and salt and pepper.
Combine. To the mixing bowl, add black beans, corn, red bell pepper, queso fresco, and salsa. Toss to combine.
Chill. Cover and chill for 1 hour.
Finish. Right before serving, add cilantro and avocado.

How Long Is It Good For?

This pasta salad will be good for up to 3 days. Make sure to store it in an airtight container in the fridge. You can serve

Keep in mind that the veggies will soften the longer that the pasta salad sits in the fridge.

Variations

Add protein. If you want to make this a full meal, add some grilled chicken or steak.
Use salsa verde. If you want to change up the flavor profile a little bit, use salsa verde instead of tomato salsa.

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Yield: about 8 servings