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    Home / Side Dishes / Cowboy Pasta Salad – Easy Recipe to Feed a Crowd!

    Cowboy Pasta Salad – Easy Recipe to Feed a Crowd!

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    by Kathy 2 Comments

    Take a trip down south with this Cowboy Pasta Salad Recipe.  Made with ground beef, bacon, black beans and corn, this hearty recipe could feed a whole army of Cowboys!

    cowboy pasta salad is a great side dish for picnics or parties

    LOOKING FOR MORE GREAT RECIPES FOR A CROWD?  CHECK OUT:

    • SOUTHWEST PASTA SALAD
    • POTATO SALAD WITH EGG RECIPE
    • SOUTHERN CHICKEN SALAD SANDWICH RECIPE
    • JOHN WAYNE CASSEROLE
    • CHEESY FUNERAL POTATOES
    • CROCKPOT GREEN BEAN CASSEROLE

    Pasta salad is a great side dish for any number of occasions, from cookouts to picnics to parties.  It is easy to serve and easy to share and a batch of it usually feed a lot of guests.  For the longest time, I thought that there were only a couple of different kinds potato salads: the white kind and the yellow kind.  Oh yeah, and German Potato Salad……  It never occurred to me that you could put a ton of fun ingredients into your potato salad to liven things up a bit!

    Pasta Salad With Meat?  Yes Please!

    To begin with, I’ve never even considered making a potato salad with meat.  I’m not talking about those little pieces of pepperoni or some cubes of ham, I’m talking about ground beef!  Real meat! Oh yeah, and bacon!  Because, how can you put the word “cowboy” in a recipe without using bacon?  Add some corn, black beans and onions and you are well on your way to a Tex Mex twist on one of our favorite side dishes.

    recipe for cowboy pasta salad has onion powder, garlic powder, cumin, salt and pepper

    Great Side Dish For A Crowd

    This recipe makes A LOT of food.  So it would be great to bring for office pitch-ins or any other gathering where there a lot of hungry mouths to feed.  While it could be a great side dish for many occasions, this Cowboy Pasta Salad Recipe could also stand alone just fine as a main dish!  I love recipes that can be used for different roles and this recipe for a Cowboy Pasta Salad is exactly that.

    The recipe itself is pretty easy, just cook the pasta, ground beef and bacon how you normally would.  Make sure you run the pasta under cold water afterwards and make sure you get as much grease off the ground beef and bacon as possible.  I try to cook the bacon very crispy because I think it gives the pasta salad a really cool texture.  But you can cook yours however you like it.

    Cowboy pasta made with ground beef

    You probably already have most of these ingredients in your kitchen!  I bet you didn’t realize that you could make such a fun dish that could feed so many people with ingredients you already have lying around!  Check out the ingredients below!

    Cowboy Pasta Salad

    Cowboy Pasta Salad Ingredients:

    • 1 box, 16 oz, elbow macaroni pasta
    • 1 lb ground beef, browned
    • 12 bacon slices, cooked and chopped
    • 1 can, 15 oz, corn, drained
    • 1 can, 15 oz, black beans drained and rinsed
    • 1 pint, grape tomatoes, cut in half
    • 1-1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
    • 2 green onions, sliced
    • 1 teaspoon cumin
    • 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
    • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
    • 1 teaspoon salt
    • 1/4 teaspoon pepper
    • 1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro

    recipe for cowboy pasta salad has corn, black beans, tomatoes, cilantro,

    Dressing Ingredients:

    • 1 cup real mayonnaise
    • 1/2 cup barbecue sauce
    • 1/4 cup mustard
    • 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
    • 2 teaspoons hot sauce

    Cowboy Pasta Salad Instructions:

    1. Prepare pasta according to package directions. Drain and rinse with cold water.
    2. Cook ground beef and drain.  Cook bacon extra crispy chop into small pieces.
    3. Combine beef, bacon, corn, black beans, tomatoes, onions, and pasta in large mixing bowl and mix well.
    4. Add cumin, onion powder, garlic powder, salt and pepper and mix well.
    5. In a small bowl, combine mayonnaise, barbecue sauce, mustard, Worcestershire sauce and hot sauce and mix well until smooth.
    6. Pour over pasta and mix well until evenly coated.
    7. Stir in cilantro and cheese.
    8. Refrigerate for 4 hours or overnight for flavors to mingle.
    9. Mix well before serving.

    This recipe serves 18-20 cowboys, so tell your guests not to be shy with how much they are loading on their plate.  I hope you enjoy this Cowboy Pasta Salad Recipe, it’s a fun twist on a classic dish!  Cheers!

    pasta salad with meat

    cowboy pasta salad is a great side dish for picnics or parties
    5 from 1 vote
    Print

    Cowboy Pasta Salad

    Take a trip down south with this Cowboy Pasta Salad Recipe. This hearty recipe could feed a whole army of Cowboys!

    Course Side Dish
    Cuisine American
    Keyword Pasta Salad
    Prep Time 10 minutes
    Cook Time 10 minutes
    Resting Time 4 hours
    Total Time 4 hours 20 minutes
    Servings 18 people
    Calories 251 kcal
    Author BubbaPie

    Ingredients

    Cowboy Pasta Salad Ingredients:

    • 1 box 16 oz, elbow macaroni pasta
    • 1 lb ground beef browned
    • 12 bacon slices cooked and chopped
    • 1 can 15 oz, corn, drained
    • 1 can 15 oz, black beans drained and rinsed
    • 1 pint grape tomatoes, cut in half
    • 1-1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
    • 2 green onions sliced
    • 1 teaspoon cumin
    • 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
    • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
    • 1 teaspoon salt
    • 1/4 teaspoon pepper
    • 1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro

    Dressing Ingredients:

    • 1 cup real mayonnaise
    • 1/2 cup barbecue sauce
    • 1/4 cup mustard
    • 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
    • 2 teaspoons hot sauce

    Instructions

    1. Prepare pasta according to package directions. Drain and rinse with cold water.
    2. Cook ground beef and drain. Cook bacon extra crispy chop into small pieces.
    3. Combine beef, bacon, corn, black beans, tomatoes, onions, and pasta in large mixing bowl and mix well.
    4. Add cumin, onion powder, garlic powder, salt and pepper and mix well.
    5. In a small bowl, combine mayonnaise, barbecue sauce, mustard, Worcestershire sauce and hot sauce and mix well until smooth.
    6. Pour over pasta and mix well until evenly coated.
    7. Stir in cilantro and cheese.
    8. Refrigerate for 4 hours or overnight for flavors to mingle.
    9. Mix well before serving.
    Nutrition Facts
    Cowboy Pasta Salad
    Amount Per Serving
    Calories 251
    * Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

    cowboy pasta salad pin

     

     

     

    Filed Under: Main Dishes, Side Dishes Tagged With: Ground Beef, pasta salad

    Comments

    1. Tari says

      at

      5 stars
      Favorite for pot lucks. I serve with Chili Cheese Fritos. I am always asked for the recipe.

      Reply
      • Kathy says

        at

        I agree, it is such a great recipe to share!

        Reply

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