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This corn and black bean salad has lots of creamy avocado and is tossed in a dairy-free chipotle dressing made with zesty fresh lime juice. This easy salad features in-season fresh sweet corn, black beans, and jalapeños making it a fantastic summer side dish or simple dinner recipe.
📝 Why You’ll Love This Black Bean Corn Salad:
- Taste: A perfect balance of slightly spicy chipotle and jalapeño, zesty lime, aromatic garlic, and fresh cilantro.
- Texture: Creamy avocado, tender black beans, crisp corn kernels, and crunchy red peppers provide a satisfying mix of textures.
- Difficulty: Super easy.
- Time: Ready in under 20 minutes, perfect for last-minute gatherings or when you need a fast, nutritious meal.
- Why We Love This Salad: We love that this salad is served chilled- it’s a cool and crisp option for hot summer days, picnics, or barbecues. The ingredients bring together classic summer flavors that everyone enjoys. Plus, its incredibly versatile! Serve it with chips for a casual snack, or pair it with charred tortillas for an effortless and delicious taco dinner.
Ingredients:
Ingredient Notes & Substitutions
- Fresh Corn: I’m making use of inexpensive, in-season corn on the cob for this corn salad recipe. But you can also use frozen sweet corn or even canned corn.
- Red Pepper: I used red bell pepper to add a bit of crunch to the salad. You can use green peppers or poblano peppers instead.
- Red Onion: Feel free to use another type of onion or even minced green onions.
- Lime Juice: This helps add acid to the salad. I don’t recommend skipping it!
- Vegan Mayo: A bit of vegan mayo adds creaminess to the dressing. This can be subbed for plain unsweetened dairy free yogurt for a lighter option.
- Canned Black Beans: To make this recipe quick and easy, I used pre-cooked canned beans. You can also cook dried beans and use them in this recipe.
- Cilantro: I recommend using lots of fresh cilantro leaves and stems in this salad!
Helpful Equipment
Here are a few tools that will make creating this recipe extra easy:
- Large Bowl: For mixing up the salad ingredients
- Sharp Knife: For chopping the veggies
- Airtight Container: To store the salad in the fridge
Step-by-Step Instructions
*Ingredient Quantities are in the Recipe Card Below!*
STEP 1: Drain and rinse the can of black beans. Shuck the corn on the cob and cut the kernels off.
📌 TIP: You’ll only need 1-2 ears of corn for this recipe. A typical ear of corn has about 3/4 cup of corn kernels.
STEP 2: Add all the ingredients for the salad except the avocado to a mixing bowl. Toss to combine.
STEP 3: In a separate small bowl, mix together the dressing ingredients.
STEP 4: Pour onto the salad and toss to combine.
📌 TIP: I definitely recommend making this salad ahead of time and storing it covered in the fridge for at least 1 hour for the flavors to develop.
STEP 5: When ready to serve, add the diced avocado, if using, and gently fold into the salad until well coated.
Serving & Storage
As a standalone dish, this corn black bean salad recipe makes for a light and refreshing meal, perfect for warm days. For a crowd-pleasing appetizer or side dish for summer holidays like Fourth of July, Memorial Day or Labor Day, serve it alongside a bowl of crispy tortilla chips. It also works great as a filling for tacos! Just spoon it into warm, charred tortillas for an easy dinner option.
Below are some sides and other dishes it will pair well with:
- Creamy guacamole
- Spicy mango habanero salsa
- Vegan fish tacos
- Fresh-cut watermelon
When it comes to storage, keep the salad in an airtight container in the refrigerator, where it will stay fresh for 3-4 days. For the best flavor and texture, I recommend adding the avocado just before serving.
This salad tastes even better the next day, since the flavors have more time to meld together. It’s a great make-ahead option for busy schedules and you could make a big batch of this salad as part of a meal prep.
Helpful Tips For The BEST Corn & Black Bean Salad
❶ Add Avocado When Ready to Serve: To help prevent the avocado from browning, I recommend folding it in when ready to serve.
❷ Make Ahead of Time: For the best flavor, I recommend making this salad in advance so the flavors have time to develop!
❸ Season to Taste: Add more sea salt, black pepper, or up to another 1/2 teaspoon of cayenne powder to taste for a bit of heat.
More Delicious Vegan Side dishes and Plant Based Recipes:
- Vegan Cornbread
- Lemon Herb Couscous Salad
- Cilantro Coconut Lime Rice
- Crispy Black Bean Tacos
- Black Bean Sweet Potato Enchiladas
Did you make this vegan chipotle corn & black bean salad?
I’d love to know! Leave a star rating and comment below!
Chipotle Corn and Black Bean Salad
Ingredients
For the Salad:
- 15 oz can low-sodium black beans
- ¾ cup sweet corn
- ⅓ cup red onion, 46g diced
- ½ cup fresh cilantro, 14g minced
- ½ cup red bell pepper, 80g diced
- ½ jalapeño, 18g deseeded and minced (about 2 tbsp)
- 1 clove garlic, 4g minced
- ½ tsp salt, adjust to taste
- 1 large avocado, optional- diced
Creamy Chipotle Dressing:
- ¼ cup vegan mayo, 56g
- Juice of 1 lime, 22g
- ½ tsp smoked paprika, 2g
- ¼ tsp chipotle chili powder
- ⅛-¼ tsp cayenne powder, adjust to taste
- ⅛ tsp ground cumin
- ½ tsp agave nectar, 4g or maple syrup
Instructions
- Drain and rinse the can of black beans.15 oz can low-sodium black beans
- Add all the ingredients for the salad except the avocado to a medium mixing bowl. Toss to combine.¾ cup sweet corn, ⅓ cup red onion, ½ cup fresh cilantro, ½ cup red bell pepper, ½ jalapeño, 1 clove garlic, ½ tsp salt
- In a separate small bowl, mix together the dressing ingredients.¼ cup vegan mayo, Juice of 1 lime, ½ tsp smoked paprika, ¼ tsp chipotle chili powder, ⅛-¼ tsp cayenne powder, ⅛ tsp ground cumin, ½ tsp agave nectar
- Pour onto the salad and toss to combine. Optional but recommended: store covered in the fridge for at least 1 hour for the flavors to develop.
- When ready to serve, add the diced avocado, if using, and gently fold into the salad until well coated.1 large avocado
- Serve with tortilla chips and an extra squeeze of lime juice on top.
Did You Make This?
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