Mexican Macaroni Salad

Anne Lawton
by Anne Lawton
4 servings
25 min

Mexican Macaroni salad is a delicious twist on traditional macaroni salad. It's filled with sweet corn, salty olives, and tomatoes and tossed in a spicy and flavorful yogurt dressing to add healthy protein. It's a mayonnaise-free salad that is zesty, creamy and full of flavor.


Mexican macaroni salad tastes even better if it has been made ahead of time; make it early in the day so that the flavors can meld together.


This salad is versatile too! Make it less spicy or add more heat, change up the veggies, add cheese or meat. Make it your own!

Creamy and delicious Mexican Macaroni Salad

Healthy and simple ingredients!

Place the salad ingredients into a bowl

Stir in the yogurt dressing

Garnish with cilantro and enjoy!

Recipe details
  • 4  servings
  • Prep time: 15 Minutes Cook time: 10 Minutes Total time: 25 min
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Ingredients

  • 1 cup elbow pasta or shell pasta
  • ¾ cup cooked corn
  • ¼ cup onion
  • 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro
  • ½ cup diced tomatoes
  • 1 tablespoon minced jalapeno pepper
  • ½ cup sliced black olives
  • ¼ cup Greek yogurt
  • ⅛ cup salsa
Instructions

Prepare the ingredients - cook the pasta according to the package directions. Chop the tomatoes, pepper, and onion. Mix the yogurt and salsa together. If you are using fresh corn, cut the kernels off of the ears of corn. If using frozen corn, thaw it out.
Place the chopped salad ingredients (onions, olives, corn, tomatoes, peppers) into a large mixing bowl.
Add the pasta and mix all of the ingredients together.
Add the dressing and cilantro and serve or refrigerate.
Tips
  • If you are not serving the salad immediately, reserve half of the dressing and pour it over the salad just before serving.
  • Store leftover Mexican macaroni salad in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days in an airtight container. If the salad becomes dry, stir in a tablespoon of Greek yogurt and a splash of lime juice or salsa before serving.
  • Freezing is not recommended.
  • See the blog post for tips and recipe variations.
Anne Lawton
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Comments
  • Marta Marta on Nov 29, 2022

    Sound amazingly delicious

  • Me Me on Nov 29, 2022

    Looks good. It looks like one of those recipes you can make it with what you like. I don't care for black olives so will swap out for maybe celery and add some cubed cheese. Thanks for the recipe.

    • Anne Lawton Anne Lawton on Nov 29, 2022

      Enjoy! And yes, you can put whatever you like in this salad.


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