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Cowboy Pasta Salad

Cowboy pasta salad is a loaded BBQ ranch pasta salad with beans, corn, crunchy Fritos, and cheddar. Cook penne, toss with a ranch–BBQ–chili dressing, and chill until the flavors meld.
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Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
chilling 2 hours
Total Time 2 hours 30 minutes
Servings: 12 servings
Course: Side Dish
Cuisine: American
Calories: 560
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Penne pasta
  • 1 lb penne pasta
Black beans
  • 1 can (15 oz) black beans drained and rinsed
Corn
  • 1 can (15 oz) corn drained
Cherry tomatoes
  • 1 cup cherry tomatoes halved
Red bell pepper
  • 1 red bell pepper diced
Red onion
  • 0.5 cup red onion diced
Cheddar cheese
  • 1 cup cheddar cheese shredded
Ranch dressing
  • 1 cup ranch dressing
BBQ sauce
  • 0.25 cup BBQ sauce
Chili powder
  • 1 tsp chili powder
Bacon
  • 6 slice bacon cooked and crumbled
Fritos corn chips
  • 2 cup Fritos corn chips crushed
Salt and pepper
  • 1 salt and pepper to taste

Equipment

  • 1 sheet pan

Method
 

Cook and cool the pasta
  1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the penne pasta according to package directions (typically 8–10 minutes) until al dente. Drain and rinse with cold water until the pasta is cool to the touch.
  2. Lay the bacon slices on a sheet pan and cook until crisp (bake at 400°F for about 15–20 minutes). Crumble the bacon and set aside.
Make the BBQ ranch dressing
  1. In a small bowl, whisk together ranch dressing, BBQ sauce, and chili powder until smooth and evenly colored, about 30 seconds. Taste and season with salt and pepper to match your preference.
Assemble and chill
  1. In a large bowl, combine the cooled penne, black beans, corn, cherry tomatoes, red bell pepper, red onion, and cheddar cheese. Toss gently so the cheese is distributed throughout.
  2. Pour the BBQ ranch dressing over the salad and toss until everything looks coated and glossy, scraping the bottom of the bowl. Add extra salt and pepper only if needed.
  3. Cover and refrigerate the cowboy pasta salad for 2 hours so the flavors set. The pasta should look firm and slightly saucy after chilling.
Serve
  1. Just before serving, sprinkle crumbled bacon over the top. Add crushed Fritos on top right before the first scoop so they stay crunchy.

Notes

For the best texture, chill without the Fritos and bacon—add them only right before serving to keep the chips crisp. Store leftovers in the refrigerator up to 3 days; the salad can be frozen up to 1 month, but the Fritos won’t stay crunchy after thawing. For a lighter option, use reduced-fat ranch and shredded cheese—this keeps the same BBQ ranch flavor while cutting calories.