Black Bean Salad with Lime Vinaigrette
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This easy black bean salad is a crowd favorite, perfect for making ahead and pairing with grilled chicken, cornbread, or tortilla chips for a delicious spread.
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 perfect for entertaining because you can make it ahead of time—in fact, it gets better the longer it sits.
Try serving it with my grilled tequila lime chicken or blackened chicken for a delicious (and easy!) cookout. Or, for a fun appetizer, pair it with tortilla chips for scooping!
“This was the most delicious concoction of ingredients I’ve tasted in YEARS!!!”
What You’ll Need To Make Black Bean Salad
- Black Beans: Form the hearty base of the salad, providing protein and texture.
- Corn: Adds sweetness, crunch, and color. Fresh summer corn is best, but when it’s not in season, you can use canned or frozen corn. You’ll need a total of about 2-1/4 cups of corn kernels for the salad.
- Red Peppers: Offer a pop of color and juicy sweetness to the salad.
- Garlic and Shallots: Infuse the salad with depth of flavor.
- Salt, Sugar, and Cayenne Pepper: Season the salad, balancing flavors and adding a hint of heat.
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil & Lime: Combine to make a smooth, tangy vinaigrette with a bright, flavorful kick.
- Fresh Cilantro: Adds a burst of freshness and to the salad.
- Avocados: Contribute creaminess and richness (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. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the corn for a few minutes.
Refresh the ears under cold running water to stop them from cooking further. Once cool, place the corn on a clean dish towel set over a cutting board, then use a serrated knife to cut the kernels off the cobs. The dish towel helps dry the corn and keeps the kernels from bouncing around.
Next, rinse and drain the black beans and combine them with the corn and remaining ingredients, except for the avocado.
Toss and chill the salad until ready to serve. Right before serving, dice the avocado and add to the salad. It’s important to do this at the last minute to keep the avocado 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. Enjoy!
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Black Bean Salad
This make-ahead and festive black bean salad is a huge crowd-pleaser. Perfect for a summer cookout!
Ingredients
- 3 ears fresh corn (see note)
- 2 15-ounce cans black beans, rinsed and drained
- 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
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Boil the corn for 3 to 4 minutes until tender-crisp, being careful not to overcook. Drain the corn and immediately immerse it in very cold water to stop the cooking. Place the corn on a clean dish towel set over a cutting board, then use a serrated knife to cut the kernels off the cobs. (The dish towel dries the corn and keeps the kernels from bouncing everywhere.)
- 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.
- Note: If using frozen or canned corn, you'll need 2¼ cups.
Pair with
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (8 servings)
- Serving size: 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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Nutrition content?
I wondered about putting the avocado in it and refridgerating it. Will the avocado turn brown or mushy?
Tried it upon completion and the flavor is amazing! Can’t wait to try it after it’s been chilling for a day. Just concerned about how/if the avocado will change in consistency or color. Thank you!!
Hi Jennifer, It’s best to add the avocado closer to serving time, but in my experience the lime juice in the vinaigrette keeps it pretty fresh.
This looks and sounds wonderful…my only issue is we don’t like/eat cilantro…can you think of anything to substitue?
Hi Marge, You can simply leave it out or substitute flat leaf parsley. Enjoy!
This is AMAZING! My hubby and I have been grazing on it the past two days for lunch and dinner. So flavorful. Thank you!
This was fabulous — i used half the olive oil, added onion, and a gn. pepper and it was beyond good. My husband and I grazed on it for 3 days. Yummy! I also bought parsley instead of cilantro on accident(I was soo ticked) so next time I make it I will add the cilantro because its normally one of my favorite things. Thanks again for an amazing recipe.
Made this yesterday and it tastes even better the second day! This will be a mainstay in my summer dinner/lunch rotation!
This was my first official “Pinterest” recipe that I created; and it was fantastic. I resisted the temptation to add any sort of meat. The only change I made was that I omitted the avocado. I threw mine in a tortilla and ate it as a wrap. So good.
This was a fabulous salad! I had to add chopped chicken to please the man in the house ; ) I will definately be making more of this!
Jenn, This is the best black bean salad I have ever made in my life. I love this just the way it is, it doesn’t need one more thing. Thank you so much for this it’s awesome!
I don’t particularly like avacodo, so although this recipe sounds really good, there must be something you could suggest to replace it with.
Thank you, Sondra
Hi Sondra, You can just leave it out, or add a bit more corn or red peppers.
Mango also is very delicious in place of the avocado.