Black Bean & Corn Salad (No Cook)

Super simple, no cooking required and infinitely customizable! Simple cold salads like this are a corner stone to our family meal prep.

Simple bean and veggie salads like this are a regular part of my families meal prep. These days we’re cooking for the 3 of us but even before that, Sami and I would often make a large batch of some veggie heavy salad to pick on throughout the week. Sometimes they’d be based around black beans, sometimes chick peas, sometimes cannellini beans, it often varied and the actual recipes were rarely the same. They would feature whatever produce we had on hand along with a good amount of dried spices.

If I really think back on it, bean salads were also one of the first things I would regularly cook for myself back when I first moved to NYC back in 2006. Back then, my diet was centered around bodega sandwiches, canned foods and the occasional Trader Joe’s run (back when there were only 2 in the city and $25 could go a long way there). But even back then, black bean and chick pea salads were there for me, providing affordable, healthy and hearty meals.

But I digress to today’s recipe, which is a simple black bean and corn salad that comes together without any cooking. For this, it’s all about the produce and balancing their flavors with acidity, spices and salt.

We generally use canned black beans for ease of use but feel free to sub them out for dried beans if you prefer. I like to opt for fresh raw corn for this when available because it has a really sweet flavor with a crisp skin. Fresh corn also has a very nice milky quality to it without being noticeably starchy which makes it a great choice for a salad like this.

Diced raw white onion is our go to for these types of salads. Raw white onion has a nice and bright bite to it that isn’t overwhelming. It’s also a common choice in a lot of Latin American cooking, especially in salsas and salads like this one. And while I’m not sure this is a distinctly or authentic Latin dish, it is definitely inspired by Latin cooking.

We’re also adding in some red and/or orange bell peppers for their sweet crispness, some chopped cherry tomatoes for their sweet juiciness and some cilantro for an herby element and it’s wonderful flavor. Note: Feel free to sub with your herb of choice like parsley or Thai basil if cilantro tastes like soap to you.

Next up, a nice and crumbly cheese. We generally use either a Mexican Queso Fresco or a Greek Feta (both work great! Note: For a vegan version of this, sub for a crumbly vegan cheese or omit the cheese altogether

For spices we’re adding in some cumin, aleppo pepper, garlic powder, sweet paprika, salt and pepper and are tossing everything with some high quality olive oil and lime juice. And thats about it!

I want to reiterate here that a salad like this is really adaptable so feel free to try out different ingredients and spices along the way. Eat this salad by itself, with some chips or as a filling for something like a quesadilla or an empanada!

Cheers,

Joey

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Full Recipe:

No Cook Black Bean & Corn Salad

Super simple, no cooking required and infinitely customizable! Simple cold salads like this are a corner stone to our family meal prep.

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Prep Time 5 minutes mins

Cook Time 5 minutes mins

Servings: 4

Course: lunch

Cuisine: American, Mexican

Calories: 391

Ingredients Method Nutrition Notes

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x?

• 1 can black beans strained
• kernels from an ear of corn or ⅔ of a can
• 1 cup white onion diced
• 1 cup red bell pepper, diced
• 1 ½ cups diced cherry tomatoes
• ¼ cup cilantro rough chop
• ½ cup queso fresco or another crumbly white cheese like feta
• ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
• juice from 2 whole limes
• 1 tbsp aleppo pepper
• 2 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tbsp sweet paprika
• salt and pepper to taste

Method

 

1. In a large bowl, combine black beans, corn, onion, peppers, tomatoes, cilantro, cheese, aleppo pepper, cumin, garlic powder, paprika, lime juice and olive oil. Mix everything together and season to taste with salt and pepper (add more lime juice if desired).
2. Serve by itself, as a side or use it as a filling for something like a quesadilla or empanada! Keep the leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 4-5 days.

Nutrition

Calories: 391kcalCarbohydrates: 40gProtein: 13gFat: 22gSaturated Fat: 5gPolyunsaturated Fat: 3gMonounsaturated Fat: 13gTrans Fat: 0.1gCholesterol: 11mgSodium: 636mgPotassium: 633mgFiber: 11gSugar: 11gVitamin A: 1720IUVitamin C: 11mgCalcium: 176mgIron: 4mg

Notes

• For a vegan version of this, sub for a crumbly vegan cheese or omit the cheese altogether
• Add a roasted poblano pepper for some smokey heat.

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