Description
Rotel pasta fiesta brings zesty Tex-Mex flavors dancing across your plate with spicy chorizo and creamy cheese. Comfort meets excitement in this quick skillet sensation that delivers bold southwestern charm you’ll crave again and again.
Ingredients
Scale
Protein:
- 1 pound (453 grams) ground beef or ground turkey
Pasta and Vegetables:
- 12 ounces (340 grams) penne, rotini, or favorite pasta, cooked and drained
- 1 small onion, finely chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 (10 ounces / 283 grams) can Rotel diced tomatoes and green chilies (mild or spicy)
Cheese and Sauce Ingredients:
- 8 ounces (227 grams) cream cheese, softened
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese (or Mexican cheese blend)
- ¼ cup milk (more if needed to adjust consistency)
Seasonings:
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- ½ teaspoon cumin
- Salt and pepper, to taste
Optional Garnishes:
- Chopped cilantro
- Crushed tortilla chips
- Sliced jalapenos
Instructions
- Prepare a large pot of salted water and cook pasta until it reaches a perfect tender-yet-firm texture, ensuring each strand is cooked uniformly. Carefully drain the pasta, reserving a small amount of cooking liquid for potential sauce adjustment.
- Heat a spacious skillet over medium-high temperature and crumble ground beef, allowing it to brown evenly and develop rich caramelized edges. Eliminate excess fat, then introduce finely diced onions and minced garlic, sautéing until they become translucent and fragrant.
- Incorporate Rotel tomatoes into the meat mixture, complementing the proteins with zesty spices like chili powder and cumin. Season generously with salt and pepper, stirring continuously to distribute flavors and create a harmonious blend.
- Reduce skillet temperature and introduce cream cheese, gently folding until it melts completely and creates a luxurious, velvety base. Gradually add shredded cheese and milk, stirring persistently to achieve a smooth, creamy consistency.
- Gently fold cooked pasta into the cheesy meat sauce, ensuring each pasta piece is thoroughly coated and absorbs the rich, spicy flavors. If needed, splash reserved pasta water to enhance sauce texture.
- Transfer the vibrant, steaming pasta to serving dishes and garnish with fresh cilantro, crispy tortilla chip fragments, or thinly sliced jalapeños for an extra burst of excitement and textural contrast.
Notes
- Customize pasta texture by cooking slightly less than package instructions for a firmer bite that holds sauce better.
- Balance heat levels by choosing mild or spicy Rotel tomatoes depending on personal preference and family spice tolerance.
- Create a lighter version by substituting ground turkey or plant-based meat alternatives for traditional ground beef, reducing overall fat content.
- Enhance protein and nutrition by adding black beans or diced bell peppers during the meat mixture cooking stage for extra vegetables and fiber.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Category: Lunch, Dinner, Snacks
- Method: Mixing
- Cuisine: Mexican
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 6
- Calories: 570
- Sugar: 3 g
- Sodium: 780 mg
- Fat: 32 g
- Saturated Fat: 16 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 10 g
- Trans Fat: 1 g
- Carbohydrates: 41 g
- Fiber: 2 g
- Protein: 34 g
- Cholesterol: 95 mg