Name: Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 15 min
Ingredients: 12 ounces Tri-Colored Rotini Pasta; 10 strips Bacon; 3/4 cups Mayonnaise; 1/4 cup Sour Cream; 1/2 cup Milk; 3/4 cups Cherry or Grape Tomatoes; 1 cup Shredded Cheddar Cheese; 1 package Ranch Mix; 1/2 tsp Garlic Powder; 1/2 tsp Onion Powder

This Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad is going to be your new favorite side dish for cookouts, BBQs and tailgating parties. Tender pasta is combined with crunchy bacon and a ranch sauce for a taste that is seriously addictive!

Pasta Salads

Whenever I’m at a cookout or a BBQ party, I’m always just as excited about the side dishes as I am about what comes off the grill. I’ve had some seriously tasty recipes in my day, from the fresh and light Corn and Tomato Salad to a zesty Macaroni Salad with Ham and Cheese. In fact, I LOVE pasta salad dishes. Some of my other favorites are this Easy Rotini Pasta Salad and this Cowboy Pasta Salad. I just feel like side salad dishes are full of really fun flavor combinations.

Bacon and Ranch: A Match Made In Heaven

Speaking of flavor combinations, do you want to know what one of the best is? Yeah, chocolate and peanut butter. But, I’m talking about the OTHER one. Bacon. And Ranch! Bam!!!!! Yummm!

That smooth, creamy texture and flavor of ranch dressing combined with the salty, crunchiness of the bacon is to die for! I love bacon and ranch on lettuce, in a potato or on a sandwich. It’s so good anywhere. So, today, we thought we’d share a recipe for Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad!

Bacon and Ranch Pasta Salad

This recipe is so easy to make. Just mix some ingredients, cook your pasta and get you bacon really crispy. Throw it all in together and let it chill for a bit. Here is what you will need to get started:

Bacon
Mayonnaise
Sour Cream
Milk
Cherry or Grape Tomatoes
Shredded Cheddar Cheese
Ranch Mix
Garlic Powder
Onion Powder

Bacon and Ranch Pasta Salad: Notes, Tips and Tricks

AL DENTE: Cook the pasta to al dente. You want it to stay nice and firm so that it won’t get to soggy when mixed with all the other ingredients.
WHERE ARE THE OLIVES?: You may see some other recipes that put black olives in their dish. I am not a fan of black olives. That is the only reason that I left them out. If you want to put a 4.25 ounce can of black olives in this recipe, go for it! I won’t hold it against you.
ADD PEAS: Give this dish a little extra color and flavor with some peas. Simply let some frozen peas thaw out and toss them in with the bacon, tomatoes and cheese at the end.
AVOCADO: Do you love avocado? I do! It might be a good idea to top this Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad with some fresh sliced avocado.
CUBED CHEESE: Instead of shredded cheese, go for cubed cheddar cheese in this recipe. This can give it a little more texture and bursts of cheesy flavor!
CRISPY BACON: This recipe is best with the bacon nice and crispy. Make sure you are cooking it enough. It doesn’t matter if you cook it on the stove top or the oven. Me, I like to broil my bacon in the oven on low for about 10 minutes. I flip them halfway through.
PLAY WITH THE PASTA: We used Tri-Colored Rotini Pasta for this recipe. But feel free to give it a try with another kind that strikes your fancy. Shells would be fun too!

I hope you enjoy this recipe for Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad. Let me know how it turns out for you in the comments.