This Taco Pasta Salad is a family favorite! This pasta salad recipe is perfect for BBQs, potlucks and big family gatherings! It has a secret ingredient that stops everyone in their tracks!
Make a bunch of BLT Ranch Burgers, a big Zucchini Sheet Cake, a huge batch of my mom’s Bacon Spinach Salad and you have the perfect menu for a big family get together.
Growing up with two older brothers, I always wanted a sister. I remember one year for Christmas I actually asked my parents for a twin sister, because I was kind of a punk as a kid.
They gave me a mirror.
I wonder where I got my punkiness from.
And then after growing up with two brothers, I married a man with FIVE.
But the thing about all those brothers is that it has actually meant sisters! Seven sister in laws!
Don’t tell anyone, but one of my very favorite sister in laws is the wife of the brother who is just one older than Nathan (did you follow that?). Deanna has been part of my in law family the longest, so I have known longer than almost all of my other sister in laws. She is so many awesome things, but I enjoy her most as an aunt and as a friend. She seriously loves my kids so much, it is the greatest thing to watch. And even though right now she lives on the other side of the stupid planet (remember when I made this Pina Colada Sangria for her send off?) and when I text her I’m either interrupting her breakfast or keeping her awake too late, she is one of my favorite people text with . . . I always end up cry laughing ????
THE BEST TACO PASTA SALAD RECIPE
So this is her recipe. She has made it for tons of family functions, and I loooooove it. I snarf it down every time she makes it. The secret ingredient to this, if you can believe it, is French dressing. I know that sounds super totally weird, but it is all the exact right flavor combos.
This makes a HUGE batch, so it is perfect for BBQs and family functions. You can make it ahead of time, but just wait to add the dressing and chips until right before you serve it otherwise the chips and the lettuce will get all soggy and weird.
Enjoy!
OTHER RECIPES YOU WILL LOVE
If you like this Taco Pasta Salad, you will also love these other great family recipes:
Taco Pasta Salad
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef cooked and drained
- 1 pound rotini cooked and drained and rinsed with cold water
- 1 oz or 3 TBSPs taco seasoning
- 1 green pepper diced small
- 1 small yellow onion diced small
- 1 pint grape tomatoes sliced in half
- 2 cups shredded cheddar jack cheese
- 3 cups shredded iceberg lettuce
- 1 1/2 cups French dressing
- 9 3/4 oz bag Nacho Doritos crushed
Instructions
- Stir together the beef and the taco seasoning.
- In a very large bowl, mix together the beef, noodles, green pepper, onion, tomatoes, lettuce, and cheese.
- Mix in the French dressing until everything is well coated. Then stir in the chips. Enjoy right away.
Jodi says
Funny, I didn’t even read the story until after all the comments, I was too busy drooling over the recipe. I can’t wait to try this today for a Birthday party!!
Linda says
My husband is very picky and he really like this salad as our son and I did to.
That’s great to hear! Thank you for the feedback Linda!
Ed Selden says
What are the calories for this?
Ed Selden says
1 cup serving..
Hi Ed! I haven’t done the calculations for the servings on this. Can I recommend My Fitness Pal? It’s a great app that is super easy to use and gives you the calorie output for different dishes. You can even enter the link for this recipe and it will pull all the ingredients and give you an approximation. I just did it for this recipe and it said 354 calories per serving if there are 20 servings.
Deb Roefs says
What would you suggest serving with it? I’m making a light evening meal for a few people that don’t have a lot of time to eat it as they are popping in when they aren’t judging dance events.
This is such a great question, Deb! I have only really had this as a side amongst a bunch of other dishes. If you really want it to be a light meal, I would suggest just putting out a veggie tray with some hummus and ranch dips and a fruit tray.
Sandy says
I was surprised there was lettuce in this, as I couldn’t see it from the picture. Was thinking this would be a great alternative to taco salad because it wouldn’t get soggy (and one of my girls doesn’t like lettuce salads). Do you think it would be OK without the lettuce?
I think it would be just fine without the lettuce. You could also try adding the lettuce at the last minute!
Julie says
I was wondering g about not adding letter too..im dying to make this but need a group large enough to enjoy. Memorial day it’s happening. Would western dressing be ok on it. .. thanks for sharing….yes I know my punctuation is not correct…im busy. Lol
Katie Borkowski says
I made mine with Western dressing. And I also added the lettuce on the side. I figured this way I could keep the leftovers and not have soggy/wilted lettuce.
It turned out great. Even my picky husband ate seconds and asked for leftovers to take for lunch the next day. This is highly unusual for him, so it really says something about how good this was!
I also did a combo of green and red peppers, but that is a minor change.
Heather says
Now that you mention it, there is no lettuce in the salad shown in the picture.
If you look at the second picture, you can see a HUGE pile of lettuce in the about 11 o’clock position.
Leslie Crowder says
I fixed this salad for my parents’ 50th-anniversary celebration this weekend and it was a huge hit! I have given out several copies of the recipe, linked folks to it on Facebook and pinned it to one of my more popular Pinterest boards. I made it with seasoned ground turkey because my dad is allergic to beef and no one questioned it. Super easy to make ahead of time–I waited and added the lettuce and Doritos right before serving. I will definitely make this again! Everyone else at it cold but my husband ate his warmed and loved it!
I’m so happy to hear this, Leslie!
Tina says
Was looking for a recipe to make for our Cinco De Mayo potluck at work, and this is perfect! Can’t wait to try it, thanks for sharing!
I hope you like it!
Debbie says
It looks totally awesome. Can’t wait to try it.
I hope you like it!
Diane says
I am making this for my high school girls’ tennis tournament, tomorrow. I have a recipe for pizza pasta and they beg me to make it each time we have a tournament. I told them I was making something different and they cried until I showed them the photo! Stay tuned!
I hope they love it!
Heytrn says
I added corn and left out the Doritos. I also used turkey and gluten free noodles. It was great kids loved it a lot!
Glad to hear it!