Summer Corn Black Bean Salad
It's Corn (Season)!
Remember that TikTok from a couple of summers back where the kid was eating corn in the middle of the summer and loving it? That's me. During every corn season. Every year.
I recently got back from a pretty long solo road trip to the prairies to visit family. On my way back, I, of course, came through the Fraser Valley. It's the beginning of corn season, so I had to stop and grab some fresh ears.
My favorite way to eat corn on the cob is to grill it, still in the husk, on the bbq. The husks protect the kernels and because the husks still have quite a bit of moisture, they kind of steam the kernels as well. But it also gives the corn a kind of smokiness that's just perfection.
Slather those babies in some butter (or vegan butter), salt and pepper, maybe some tajin, and that's just bliss. I could eat three by myself.
It's one of those height-of-summer vegetables that's best enjoyed simply.
But let's say you want to turn it into something... a little more. A light dinner or a lunch, maybe something you could serve on the side of some bbq'd proteins.
Enter this Summer Corn Black Bean Salad. The corn is still the star here, but the supporting cast is also pretty spectacular: sweet peppers, summer fresh tomatoes and zucchini, black beans for fibre and protein, lots of lime and fresh herbs to bring the brightness.
There's precious little cooking going on here, which is how it should be at the height of summer when it's really too hot to cook anyway. Cook the corn on the bbq and you don't even have to turn your stove on.
You can also serve this with a stack of tortilla chips, as it makes almost a kind of salsa.
Summer Corn Black Bean Salad
Ingredients
For the salad
- 2 ears fresh corn cooked, kernels sliced off
- 1 can black beans (540 ml) drained and rinsed
- 1/2 medium zucchini cut in small dice
- 1 medium sized sweet pepper cut in small dice
- 1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes halved
- 2 tbsp shallot or red onion finely minced
- 1/3 cup fresh cilantro chopped
- 1 avacado diced
For the dressing
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 2 tbsp fresh lime juice
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 1 tsp dijon mustard
- 1 tsp chipotle sauce
Instructions
- Place all the salad ingredients into a large bowl and toss to combine. Reserve a little of the cilantro and avocado for garnish.
- Place all the dressing ingredients into a mason jar, screw on the lid, and shake well to combine. Taste for seasoning. Dress the salad and toss it, then taste for seasoning, adding additional salt or a little cayenne or fresh chopped jalapeno if you like it spicier. Garnish with reserved cilantro and avocado before serving.
- This salad keeps well, in fact, it's very hearty and will probably get better as time goes by in the fridge.