Black Bean Salad with Corn, Avocado & Lime Vinaigrette
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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.
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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
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- 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.
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This black bean and corn salad is so delicious. No matter whom I serve it to, it is a winner. Have received many requests for this salad recipe and to bring to a party. And, I always say you need to subscribe to ONCE UPON A CHEF because Jen has the best recipes and I have never been disappointed in any of them. I use this salad as a side dish or a main dish for lunch. If I don’t have any avocadoes, it is still fabulous. Thank you Jen for so generously sharing your recipes! They have truly made me a better home cook.
❤️
Finally made this last week, it was delicious. I had some Vaquero beans from Rancho Gordo that I cooked up and added some of the adobo from the chipotles for an added kick. This recipe is now in my do again file, thanks Jenn.
Made this salad for the second time as it was such a hit with my family. I only used one chipolte pepper as I was not sure if 2 would be too spicy for my kids. It was perfect. Super fresh and a great summer salad. The combination of the cilantro and the corn, beans and avocado are great. Oh and soaking the onions seems to take some of the heat out of them, but they still retain the flavour. What a great trick.
This salad is totally addictive. I just love it. Perfect with a barbecue. So much lovely crunch.
This is a great summer salad and can be tweaked by adding other things. I added some finely chopped radish which made a nice crunch (jicama would be good, too), and I added finely chopped jalapeno. We enjoyed the hint of heat and thought it made the salad more interesting.
Very good, but it needed a little more flavor, so I added ground cumin and that made it great. Didn’t have fresh limes or shallots, so I substituted Roses Lime juice (not adding the recipie’s sugar and part of a blanched red onion. Also added about a cup of blanched green beans cut into one inch pieces. Will make again with these modifications.
I am about to make this recipe for the third time. It is fabulous. My husband, who is no foodie, raved about it. I do add some chopped citrus grilled chicken to make it a complete meal. I love that you can make this ahead and it is very healthy. Great as leftovers, too.
I’ve been making this salad for years. It’s simple, colourful and super tasty 😋
Goes well with chicken or I add brown rice or pearl barley to make it into a whole vegetarian meal.
Hello Jenn,
I am making your Black Bean and Corn Salad. My family LOVES this recipe!!
But I am not able to find any fresh corn on the cob. So I am wondering what your suggestion for using frozen corn would be?
Hope to hear from you soon as we are having the salad tomorrow. YIKES!
haha
Many Thanks,
Sandy
I’m having my daughter’s field hockey team over for a team dinner and am wondering if this is a weird salad to have in the fall. Is this more of a summer salad?
Hi Michelle, the fresh corn makes this a bit more summery but you can serve it all year round because you can sub in frozen or canned corn during the cooler months. So I don’t think it’s weird and I bet a bunch of hungry girls will happily eat it! 🙂
Oh My Gosh!
I just asked you this question and now I see an answer!
Thank YOU!
Traders Joe’s has a frozen roasted corn that’s excellant in this recipe.
Hi Jen
I LOVE all your recipes and this is my favorite summer alternative to lettuce salads. I am making it for a special dinner tonight and I accidentally bought Italian parsley instead of cilantro. Will that work?
Sure — it will have a slightly different flavor but will still be delicious! 🙂
Amazing!! I cut the sugar (fresh sweet corn) and I only used 2 tlbs of oil!! One of the best dips, salads, or garnishes for tacos I have ever had!!! I brought it to a Labor Day party and it was a hit! Thank you.
Really yummy and even better if you add some feta as well!