High-Protein Elote Pasta Salad
This recipe was created before I started documenting my recipes online, so there isn't a photo or video for it yet. But I've made it, loved it, and wanted to share it with you anyway. 🤎
Creamy, smoky, a little tangy, and made for bringing to the potluck.
If Mexican street corn and pasta salad had a baby, this would be it.
Sweet corn, creamy dressing, salty cotija, fresh lime, and a little chili come together with pasta and tender chicken for a potluck dish that's actually filling. It's colorful enough to look pretty on the table, easy enough to make ahead, and packed with protein without screaming "high-protein recipe."
Ingredients
For the Pasta Salad
- 12 oz pasta
- 2 cups cooked chicken, shredded or chopped
- 3 cups corn, fresh, frozen, or canned
- 1/2 cup red onion, finely diced
- 1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
- 1/2 cup cotija cheese, crumbled
- 1 jalapeño, finely diced — optional
- 1 avocado, diced — optional
For the Creamy Elote Dressing
- 1/2 cup Greek yogurt
- 1/4 cup mayonnaise
- Juice of 2 limes
- 1 tsp chili powder
- 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp cumin
- Salt and black pepper, to taste
Make It
- Cook the pasta according to the package directions. Drain and rinse under cold water until cooled.
- While the pasta cooks, prepare the dressing by whisking together the Greek yogurt, mayonnaise, lime juice, chili powder, smoked paprika, garlic powder, cumin, salt, and pepper.
- If using fresh or frozen corn, sauté it in a skillet for a few minutes until lightly charred. Let it cool.
- Add the cooled pasta, chicken, corn, red onion, cilantro, cotija, and jalapeño to a large bowl.
- Pour the dressing over everything and gently toss until coated.
- Fold in the avocado if using.
- Chill for at least 30 minutes before serving.
- Give it a good stir before putting it on the potluck table. Add another squeeze of lime and a sprinkle of cotija right before serving.
Potluck Tip: If you're making this the night before, reserve a little dressing. Pasta absorbs dressing as it sits, so a quick stir with an extra spoonful before serving will bring it right back to life.
My Gym Girlies 💪
This is a pasta salad you can actually make part of the meal instead of just taking one tiny scoop because you think pasta salad "doesn't count."
The chicken and Greek yogurt dressing add a solid protein base, while the pasta and corn give you carbohydrates that can actually help fuel your training.
Want to bump up the protein even more? Add another cup of chicken. Use a higher-protein pasta. Add extra Greek yogurt to the dressing. Serve it alongside grilled chicken at the cookout.
And if you're bringing this to a BBQ, don't feel like you need to make a separate "fitness meal." Build your plate around the food you actually want to eat.
My From-Scratch Girlies 🌿
This one is practically made for a summer garden.
Use fresh corn when it's in season. Grab cilantro and jalapeños from the garden. Add your own garden onions. Make your own Greek yogurt. Use homemade mayo. Squeeze in your own limes if you're lucky enough to have a lime tree—but I'm not holding my northern-garden girlies to that one.
And if you've canned corn from last summer? This is exactly the kind of recipe to pull it out for. You can even make your own taco seasoning or chili blend instead of reaching for a packet.
The goal isn't to make every ingredient yourself. It's to slowly make your kitchen feel more and more like your kitchen.
For Both Girlies 🌿💪
This is exactly the kind of food I want more of.
Food that can be protein-conscious without being boring. Food that can be made from scratch without taking all day. Food you can bring to a friend's BBQ, put on a family dinner table, or portion out for your own lunches.
You don't have to choose between the gym and the garden. You can be the girl measuring out her protein… and the girl getting excited because the corn is finally ready to harvest. Both belong in the same kitchen.