Black Bean Salad with Corn, Avocado & Lime Vinaigrette
This post may contain affiliate links. Read my full disclosure policy.
This make-ahead and festive black bean salad is a huge crowd-pleaser. Perfect for a summer cookout!
This black bean salad recipe was sent to me by one of my readers (thank you, Ellen!). It’s a huge crowd-pleaser and one of the most popular recipes on my website. The salad is ideal for entertaining because you can make it ahead of time — in fact, you should because it gets better and better the longer it sits. Try pairing it with my grilled tequila lime chicken or blackened chicken and cornbread for a delicious (and easy!) cookout. Or, for an appetizer spread, serve it tortilla chips for scooping and chicken quesadillas.
Table of Contents
“I have made this about 4 times in the last couple of weeks. My family loves it! The flavors and textures come together perfectly!”
What You’ll Need To Make Black Bean Salad with Corn, Avocado & Lime Vinaigrette
- Black Beans: Form the hearty base of the salad, providing protein and texture.
- Corn: Adds sweetness and crunch and contributes to the salad’s vibrant color.
- Red Peppers: Offer a pop of color and juicy sweetness to the salad.
- Garlic and Shallots: Infuse the salad with aromatic depth of flavor.
- Salt and Cayenne Pepper: Season the salad, balancing flavors and adding a hint of heat.
- Sugar: Balances the acidity of the lime juice and enhances the overall flavor profile of the salad.
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil: Creates a luscious and smooth vinaigrette, binding the ingredients together.
- Lime Zest and Lime Juice: Provide brightness and tanginess, elevating the salad’s flavors.
- Fresh Cilantro: Adds a burst of freshness and herbal aroma to the salad.
- Avocados: Contribute creaminess and richness, complementing the other ingredients perfectly. If you’re unsure of the most efficient way to prepare an avocado, see my step-by-step guide on how to cut an avocado.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-by-Step Instructions
Begin by cooking the corn in boiling salted water.
A few minutes is all it takes — you want it super crisp. Refresh the corn under cold water to stop the cooking process.
Place the corn on a clean dish towel set over a cutting board, then use a serrated knife to cut the kernels of the cobs. (The dish towel both dries the corn and prevents it from bouncing all over the place.)
Next, rinse and drain the black beans.
Combine the corn and black beans with the remaining ingredients, except for the avocado.
Toss and chill until ready to serve.
Before serving, dice the avocado and add to the salad. It’s important to add the avocado at the last minute to keep it from turning brown.
Toss well, then taste and adjust seasoning, if necessary. You may find that it needs a bit more salt or a squirt of lime juice, as the flavors tend to mellow in the fridge.
That’s all there is to it. Enjoy!
Frequently Asked Questions
Sure, I recommend chilling it for a few hours or overnight. If necessary, you can make it up to 1 day ahead. Just hold off on adding the avocado until you’re ready to serve to keep it fresh and vibrant.
This is best with fresh corn but when it’s not in season, you can use canned or frozen corn. Just drain and rinse canned corn before adding and if using frozen, ensure it’s thawed beforehand. You’ll need a total of about 2-1/4 cups of corn kernels for the salad.
To add a kick of heat, you can double the cayenne pepper or add a diced jalapeño. For the jalapeño, adjust the amount based on your preference for spiciness, keeping in mind that the heat of the peppers lies in the seeds and veins.
You May Also Like
Black Bean Salad with Corn, Avocado & Lime Vinaigrette
This make-ahead and festive black bean salad is a huge crowd-pleaser. Perfect for a summer cookout!
Ingredients
- 2 15-ounce cans black beans, rinsed and drained
- 3 ears fresh cooked corn, kernels cut off the cob
- 2 red bell peppers, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoons minced shallots, from one medium shallot
- 2 teaspoons salt
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 9 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, best quality such as Colavita
- 1 teaspoon lime zest (be sure to zest limes before juicing them)
- 6 tablespoons fresh lime juice
- ½ cup chopped fresh cilantro, plus more for garnish
- 2 Hass avocados, chopped
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients except for avocados in a large bowl and mix well. Cover and chill for a few hours or overnight. Right before serving, add avocados and mix gently, being careful not to mash avocados. Garnish with a more chopped cilantro if desired. Serve at room temperature.
Pair with
Nutrition Information
Powered by 
- Per serving (8 servings)
- Serving size: 3/4 - 1 cup
- Calories: 464
- Fat: 24 g
- Saturated fat: 3 g
- Carbohydrates: 52 g
- Sugar: 7 g
- Fiber: 15 g
- Protein: 13 g
- Sodium: 591 mg
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
Gluten-Free Adaptable Note
To the best of my knowledge, all of the ingredients used in this recipe are gluten-free or widely available in gluten-free versions. There is hidden gluten in many foods; if you're following a gluten-free diet or cooking for someone with gluten allergies, always read the labels of your ingredients to verify that they are gluten-free.
See more recipes:
Comments
Add a Comment
This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
I made this last week with a friend, and LOVED it. I thought it was good right after it was made but it really does get better as it sits.
Recently took this to a potluck and expected to have some to take home! Boy was I wrong, it was all gone! Made it just as written except used frozen car. Thanks for another great recipe!
I’ve tried making several black bean/corn salads and this one is the BEST. I even use it as an appetizer with corn chips and everyone loves it. Make sure not to mash the avocado when stirring because they are “fragile”. Leave them in small chunks. I also use Green Giant White Shoepeg corn rather than fresh corn on the cob just to cut down on time.
Due to a rain delay and an emergency room, I’ve a lot of experience with this recipe. Here’s what I’ve learned:
Don’t waste time with dried beans. Canned are equivalent.
The salad will not hold more than a day after the lime juice is in. It’s safer to marinate not so long than dump and redo when the ingredients are over-marinated.
I’d pan-sauté the corn, even if that means using olive oil from the dressing to keep it light.
As you might glean, I worked hard for a serving of this salad. That’s because I stole some from the rain-delayed batch and it was perfection. I couldn’t give up!
Great recipe.
I substituted a mango for the sugar the first time I made it. Yesterday I tried using a large nectarine. I should have used two. Mango is best though, in my opinion. The salad definitely needs to sit overnight. It’s much better the next day.
Can this be made the evening before a mid afternoon bbq the next day without sacrificing texture or freshness? Or best to do chopping prep the night before (except avocados, do that the day of) then combine in morning to allow a few hours for flavor mingling?
Haven’t actually made it yet (clearly), but expect it’ll be worthy of 5 stars!
Yes, you can definitely make it the night before. It actually gets better as it sits! Just add the avocado right before serving.
Yes! Definitely make it the day before, leaving the avocados out. The salad needs to sit for the flavours to come out. Wait for the last minute before serving to add the avocados.
Love this recipe. For me personally I will omit the sugar next time as I feel the peppers are sweet enough on their own and the added sugar was just too much for me. I may also add a little cumin next time as it is another flavor I love. Thanks for sharing!
Are you supposed to add vinegar to this recipe?
Hi Ke, no vinegar is necessary for this. Enjoy!
I added a little apple cider vinegar and really liked it. I left out the shallots and sugar, used green instead of red pepper, and red pepper flakes instead of cayenne, and added rice. May grab cilantro from the store tonight to add to it, but its really good w/o it too. How would you freeze this?
Hi Chas, unfortunately, this recipe won’t freeze well- sorry!
Delicious summer salad; a perfect side for a grilled entree or Mexican cuisine. I had to make a few modifications (based on what I had in my refrig). These included substituting minced red onion for the shallots (worked well and added color); did not use lime zest since I already had 4 limes in my refrig from which the zest had been used. The lime flavor came through with just the juice. In terms of procedures, I did not bother boiling the corn. I like the “fresh” corn flavor and if you use a ceramic knife to remove the kernels the corn won’t “bleed” juice into the dressing. This recipe is hearty enough to serve as a meatless lunch. Will make it often.
This is so good. I can’t wait for company to make it so I cut in half when it’s just us. I use Trader Joe’s frozen grilled sweet corn and Goya low sodium black beans. delicious. Thanks Jen.