Simple Southwest corn salad with black beans and cilantro in a chile lime dressing is a refreshing and healthy salad that makes great use of summer corn.
In the argument in favor of eating what’s in season, I present you with corn. In summer, local, fresh corn is sweet, crunchy and pretty darn amazing. Corn in winter? Blech. No thanks. I’ll wait for warmer days. But during these long, lazy days of summer, corn is always in my house. It shows up in my CSA share most weeks and we typically eat it on the cob with a little butter and salt. But lately, we have been away on weekends and out a lot, so I’ve had to look for other ways to use some of the delicious corn. (Scallops over corn and super easy corn chowder, for example.)
So when I made fajitas the other night, I threw together this simple corn salad as a side. a can of black beans, a couple ears of light steamed corn and a few other basic ingredients, and bam! Fresh, healthy corn salad. You can even pile it right on your tacos or fajitas if you want. I preferred to scoop it up with a spoon as an amazing side. And want to hear the bonus: both kids loved it! Nutmeg ate 2 helpings and Eclair picked out the beans and then devoured the rest. Considering my kids typically only eat plain undressed veggies, this was a major win in my house. Thank you corn salad! We will meet again.
- 2 ears of corn
- 1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
- ½ a small red bell pepper, minced
- small handful of cilantro leaves, chopped
- 2 Tbsp. minced red onion
- 1 scallion, thinly sliced
- ¼ tsp. ground cumin
- ¼ tsp. chile powder
- Pinch of chipotle powder
- Juice of half a lime
- 2 Tbsp. olive oil
- Steam the corn for 3 minutes. Allow to cool then cut kernels off the ears and place in a medium bowl. Add beans, red pepper, onions, cilantro and scallions.
- In a small bowl, whick together the cumin, chile powder, chipotle powder, lime juice and olive oil. Season with salt.
- Pour the dressing over the salad and stir to combine. For best flavor, let it sit for about 15 minutes before serving. Also delicious the next day!
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