This is a perfect dish for all of those fresh tomatoes and cobs of corn that are now in season. One word of caution though, freshly harvested corn does not have to be cooked long at all. I used to buy corn from the grocery store and boil it for 10 – 12 minutes, which seemed to be adequate.
I totally ruined our first batch of local corn by overcooking it by a long shot. I only boiled the second batch for 3 minutes and it was still overdone! I guess the third time really is a charm because I finally decided to boil the corn for 1 short minute and it was perfect. So keep a close eye on that pot if you use fresh corn too.
I also want to mention a little something about the beans in this recipe (or any recipe that calls for beans). I used to always buy canned beans and think nothing of it. Now that I am actually reading the ingredients I have realized the advantage of dried beans – no added salt!
Isn’t it odd that a bag of dried beans has 0 mg of sodium, but a can of the very same beans would have hundreds of grams of sodium in it? I will be the first to tell you that it doesn’t always work out for me to remember to soak the beans the night before, so I like to have a back-up can on hand (since it is a whopping 99 cents extra) just in case I forget.
I am happy to report though, I just learned that the Earth Fare brand of canned organic beans have incredibly low sodium (maybe only 15 mgs…but don’t quote me on that) so next time you are there stock up on some of those for sure!
Tomato, Corn & Black Bean Side Salad
This would also make a great dip!
Ingredients
- 3 ears corn, boiled for 1 minute (or longer if purchased at the grocery)
- 2.5 cups black beans, drained, rinsed, and cooked
- 8 ounces cherry tomatoes, halved
- ½ cup red onion, diced
- ½ cup basil, leaves only chopped (or cilantro)
- 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- salt, to taste
- pepper, to taste
- basil, for garnish (or cilantro)
Instructions
- Cut the corn kernels off the cobs and gently mix with the beans, sliced tomatoes, and red onions in a large bowl.
- In a small bowl whisk together the basil (or cilantro), vinegar, oil, garlic and S & P.
- Pour the dressing over the salad mixture and gently blend it together. Garnish with fresh basil (or cilantro) leaves and enjoy!
Recipe Notes
Nutrition Facts
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How to eat whole foods at restaurants
This is a great recipe! Easy to make, very forgiving, and a nice way to use things up. I literally searched ‘what can i make with black beans, onion, tomatoes, corn, cilantro’ because I had those things to use and this page came up! Love, love, love it.
I added a touch of diced jalapeno (after tasting, of course, and it was great as is!) and about a quarter teaspoon of cumin to make it taste a little more Tex-Mex, the bowl was empty in no time.
If you are super pressed for time, you could even use commercial dressing (red wine vinegar, balsamic, asian sesame, etc), just don’t forget to check before you add salt & garlic, and of course don’t add the oil and vinegar :>) Chick peas would also work really well.
This salad is easy to make into a dinner salad. Some leftover rotisserie chicken, or a pound of sauteed shrimp would be great. Throw in some rolls, if you like them, and voila! dinner.
Thanks for the recipe.
Glad to hear you enjoyed it! Thanks for those great tips. – Nicole
Love this blog so much!!! Just an FYI, Eden brand also makes canned organic black beans with no salt added. 15mg sodium can’t wait to try this recipe! Thanks!!!!
The 2.5 cups of beans is measured cooked, right?
Yes. ;)
Easy and delicious! This will definitely be a regular dish at our house. Served it as a side with quesadillas.
So hard to find organic corn though. Even Whole Foods doesn’t have it. Corn has a lot of GMO so that’s why I avoid it. You can buy organic frozen, but it’s not the same as fresh.
Thank you!
Hi Lisa, this looks like a great side dish. Is there any particular type of corn you use? I’ve read that corn is a GMO food and not sure if it was safe to eat. Thank you!
I use canned organic corn and rinse it well and it works fine.
Thank you for your response. Does it say non-gmo on the cans?
I believe al organic produce is nonGMO.
love this recipe — definitely use cilantro — i made it for a party and put it in the center of a ring of guacamole — served with tortilla chips — so you could get a bit of guac and some of this on a chip — it was great and pretty, too!
Hi, I live in a tiny town and the closest “Whole Foods” style store is almost 200 miles away roundtrip. It’s just not feasible for us to go there.
We only have 3 grocery stores in our area: Walmart, Meijers, and Kroger. I don’t eat meat, so that’s not a problem, but we don’t have a farmers market with local food.
Is there any way my family can still eat all real food?
Hi Stephanie. Yes yes! :) Just do your very best as your shop even with limited resources and avoid that processed stuff as much as possible. You might find it difficult to follow all the rules especially when it comes to local foods, but even stores like Walmart are getting better about what they stock….and I find Kroger to be particularly responsive to customer demand. Don’t give up if you find one particular rule difficult, just work around it. Strive simply to do better…you do not need to be perfect. You will find our FAQ pages helpful: https://www.100daysofrealfood.com/frequently-asked-questions/.
Thanks :)
I know this response is very late, but I can get all the real and organic food I need at Meijer and/or Kroger. Meijer especially has a great organic selection.
Do you have to cook the black beans if they are canned? Or do you only have to cook them if you are using dry beans? Thanks!
Hi Danielle. Nope canned beans are fully cooked. Just rinse them.
What do you serve this with? Do you have an entrée or meat that it goes well with? I can’t wait to try it!
It is super versatile but would be great with Lisa’s enchiladas: https://www.100daysofrealfood.com/2010/04/14/recipe-chicken-enchiladas/.
Just a fun thing to try — I never boil corn any-more as I now put it in the oven in a very wet towels. I strip down the corn just like when your going to boil it but I take a 9×13 pan and a flour sack towel and a reg. size terry towel both soaked in water. I put the flour sack towel down first and load in the corn and you can stack them on top of each other is you need to (I have cooked as many as 14 to 16 in one tray–I fold the flour sack towel over the corn then place the terry towel over the top (your terry towel should be almost dripping wet–I may add some water over the top of the covered corn — place in the over at 400 for 45 to 60 min’s—AMAZING and never over done—in the really hot months I just put our corn on the top rack two at a time of our outdoor grill wrapped in foil with water and butter and cook till the meat is ALL done. :)
I know this is a super old post, however. You don’t have to cook fresh corn at all, we always eat ours raw off the cob and it is sooo yummy. We also like frozen corn and peas in our lunches. When we do cook corn we don’t boil it either (unless it’s going into soup) we simply put it in the microwave in its covers and cook on high for a few minutes.
I found a great way to cook corn..as I used to boil mine as well, but never will do that again.
You bring water to boil..then add 2 tbsp sugar and 2 tbsp white vingear. Add corn. Cover with lid and remove from heat. Cook for 3-5 minutes. I usually do 5 minutes. The corn is cooked perfectly!
I just made this, but substituted frozen corn and cilantro. Yummy! It’s more of a “dump in a container with a lid and shake” type of recipe. Love it!