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.
So simple – and so delicious!! I used 2 cans of fire-roasted corn instead of fresh because it’s what I had on hand. Definitely a keeper and highly recommended.
Jean,
This black bean salad is fantastic! I have made it for all kinds of palates. Two different vegans.
It is so satisfying for everyone.
Thank you Brad Schneider
All I can say is this is magic. I ate half of the salad while waiting for the rest of the dinner to cook. My fiance agreed – just so delicious. Had it with grilled pork chops and was the perfect summer evening meal. Thank you Jenn!
****SIGH***** This was the most delicious concoction of ingredients I’ve tasted in YEARS!!! We’ve had it as our main dinner meal TWICE recently. The flavors in the dressing really pulls it all together. Thank you for another stupendous recipe, Jen!
Vinegrette directions?
Hi Diana, for this recipe, you don’t make the vinaigrette separately; you just combine all of the ingredients together. Hope that clarifies!
Usually, I “wing it,” but I’m having friends for lunch tomorrow, so I decided to try your recipe. I must say, I don’t think I’ll be “winging it” anymore, haha! Thank you for sharing this – it’s absolutely delicious!
Wonderful! My husband liked it, too!
Delicious mix of flavors and textures. Added rotisserie chicken to make it a full meal. I had organic dried black beans – so instead of canned, I simmered the dried beans for an hour with garlic, cumin, red pepper, onion, (and salt) – wow, really took the beans up a notch! Was definitely a hit at the family reunion pot luck.
Just made this for dinner. Delicious! Going to serve it with cold boiled shrimp.
Last summer I started making the ears of corn in the microwave because I try not to boil a pot of water when it is so hot. I don’t husk the corn and thoroughly wet them with cold water.
Place two at a time in the microwave for 5 min at full power. Allow them to cool for a few minutes and then you can pull the husk and silk off very easily.
Great tip! I also don’t like to boil a large pot of water in the heat of summer, it really heats up the kitchen. Thanks!
Excellent! Used chickpeas not corn, purple onion not shallots. Taco seasoning instead of cayenne. Added feta! And broccoli sprouts. Items I had on hand. Delicious!
This salad is perfection! I’ve been asked to bring this to get togethers when I ask what I can contribute. I’ve heard multiple times that this is the best version that people have tasted. I normally set it out with tortilla scoops, but lots of people like it as a side dish too. It is very summery and light, but also good year round. I don’t bother with cooking the corn, I just cut it off the cob and use as is. Yummy!