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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Tonight for supper with company I made your Black Bean Salad with Corn, Avocado & Lime Vinaigrette along with the Grilled Tequila Lime Chicken as well as your Cornbread Muffins. The whole meal was a huge hit and will definitely be making it again! I love your recipes and always find wonderful dishes to make. Thank you so much!
Making this dish for the weekend to accompany a seafood meal (thanks for your great suggestions for a seafood feast, btw). Do you have any thoughts on the best way to cook corn: boiling, microwave, on the grill? Does it make a difference on how the corn will be used…as a standalone side dish, or in another preparation?
I usually boil my corn just because it’s the easiest/most convenient way to go. If you want to have more of a smoky flavor, you can grill it. Hope that helps and that you enjoy the salad!
wrap your corn in paper toweling, wet the whole thing and microwave three minutes…fast . no pot
This looks amazing! I am not a fan of red pepper; can I substitute tomatoes and/or yellow peppers? Thank you.
I’d substitute with yellow peppers. Enjoy!
Would this freeze well (without avocado)?
I don’t think this will freeze well — sorry!
Wow! Really good and easy to make. My son was visiting and when he saw the cans of black beans he got excited, thinking I was making the corn and black bean salad with honey chipotle dressing from your website! But he liked this one equally as well and I did find it a bit easier than dealing with the chipotle chilis. I served this as a side to grilled steak but love the idea of adding chopped, grilled chicken.
I haven’t made this yet but it seems like it would make a wonderful dip with tortilla chips! Has anyone tried it?
We use it that way more than anything else! Just get a sturdy taco chip and enjoy.
As usual another fabulous recipe. Goya black beans are the best. I always use Goya. Their products are so superior.
I have been using this recipe since it appeared on your web site, but recently I found another way to use it! I had leftover grilled chicken, so I decided to make chicken enchiladas. Had a little leftover black bean and corn salad, so I added just a teaspoon or so to each enchilada before I wrapped it up (minus the avocado). Made sure to get dressing in each,too! The enchiladas were amazing!! Used the regular sour cream, verde salsa and cheese on the top, but the inclusion of the leftover salad made it a very special dish. Thanks so much for your wonderful work to make these recipes so special.
This looks delicious but adding avocado at the last minute won’t work. Also there are plenty of good black bean (organic) brands that don’t come with the politics of Goya, unless you support them yourself.
Let’s keep politics out of food. Goya does make a good product.
I prefer to judge food products on their quality and leave politics out of it.
I prepared this dish and it was delicious, my family wants the recipe, great for a pot luck.