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Tomato Corn Pasta Salad is the perfect summer pasta salad to take to barbecues! Full of seasonal produce and tossed in a sweet and tart honey lime vinaigrette.
Pasta salad is a no brainer side dish to make for summer barbecues. It goes great with grilled meats like these steak fajita skewers with cilantro chimichurri or these sweet and spicy grilled chicken and pineapple skewers.
Macaroni salad is always a usual suspect to show up on the table, but I prefer to keep my pasta salads mayo free. No need to risk getting someone sick if it sits out longer than it should.
This Tomato Corn Pasta Salad is a must make this summer, especially if you want something with Southwest flavor. This summer pasta salad is full of seasonal produce, tossed in a honey lime vinaigrette and topped off with salty queso fresco. It’s easy to make and will definitely be a crowd pleaser!
Ingredients For Tomato Corn Pasta Salad
- cavatappi pasta
- cherry tomatoes
- zucchini
- fresh or frozen corn
- green onions
- jalapeño
- queso fresco
- cilantro
- lime
- honey
- chili powder, ground cumin, garlic powder
How to Make Tomato Corn Pasta Salad
Cook the pasta, drain it and rinse it under cold water to cool it off. Let it drain while you chop the vegetables for the salad. Add the pasta, vegetables, cilantro and crumbled queso fresco to a large serving bowl.
Add the lime juice, spices, honey and olive oil to a jar with a lid or a glass measuring cup. Shake or whisk the vinaigrette until it’s combined and then pour it over the pasta salad. Stir everything together and then serve it or refrigerate until you’re ready to serve.
Frequently Asked Questions
To make the tomato corn pasta salad vegan, omit the queso fresco and swap the honey for either maple syrup or agave.
Queso Fresco is a mild, fresh, crumbly cheese that is most commonly used in Mexican cuisine. It’s similar to feta, but not quite as sharp or salty in flavor. It can be used in fillings or as a topping like I used it for with these Black Bean Tacos with Avocado Corn Salsa. Queso fresco is not a melting cheese. It get’s soft, but don’t expect it to melt the way mozzarella does.
Yes. The pasta salad can be made a day ahead of time, but wait until the day you serving it to toss it in the vinaigrette. Pasta absorbs a lot of the dressing or sauce that it’s in so it’s best to do it the day you eat it or make extra vinaigrette.
The leftovers are good for up to three days. However, the pasta will absorb a lot of the vinaigrette so you may want to make extra.
Any short pasta will work. Try shells, elbows, rotini, or orecchiette.
More Summer Pasta Salad Recipes
- Tomato Avocado Pasta Salad
- Shrimp Orzo Salad with Feta and Herbs
- Summer Vegetable Orzo Salad
- Berry Pesto Pasta Salad
- Greek Orzo Salad
Tomato Corn Pasta Salad
Ingredients
Pasta Salad
- 12 ounces uncooked cavatappi pasta or similar shape
- 1 cup halved cherry tomatoes
- 1 cup diced zucchini
- 3/4 cup fresh or defrosted frozen corn
- 2 green onions thinly sliced
- 1 seeded and deveined jalapeño finely chopped
- 1/3 cup crumbled queso fresco
- 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
- Vinaigrette
- 1/4 cup fresh lime juice
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
Instructions
- Cook the pasta until al dente. Drain and rinse the pasta under cold water.
- In a large serving bowl add the tomatoes, corn, zucchini, green onions, jalapeño, cilantro and queso fresco. Add the cooled pasta in with the other ingredients. Season with salt and pepper.
- In a jar with a lid or a measuring cup, shake or whisk together all of the ingredients for the vinaigrette. Pour over the pasta salad and toss everything together until coated. Taste for seasoning and serve or cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
