Corn Avocado Salad
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Corn Avocado Salad features sweet corn cut straight from the cob, diced avocado, roasted red peppers, herbs and an easy homemade dressing. It’s a great cold summer salad that can be made ahead for cookouts, BBQs, and potlucks.
Every summer, just when the heat gets intense, sweet corn shows up at our local farmers market. You can drive literally any direction from my house and fields of it stretch as far as the eye can see.
The abundance makes it cheap and I take full advantage of the three for a dollar price. But that also means I have to get creative if I expect it to be eaten frequently without complaint. We love homemade creamed corn, cornbread with fresh corn, and smoked corn on the cob, and this refreshing corn avocado salad.
Recipe Highlights
- Make Ahead – This is a chilled salad that’s perfect for parties. Make it the morning of and enjoy it cool or at room temperature later.
- Time-Friendly – You can make this quickly by using pre-roasted peppers, or you can use up that garden bounty and roast sweet bell peppers in just 20 minutes.
- Fresh Flavor – In-season sweet corn, summer ripened bell peppers, and creamy avocado are an irresistible summer salad you’ll love to enjoy and share.
The Ingredients
My favorite part of this corn salad is that each ingredient is fresh and vibrant in it’s own way, coming together in a beautiful balance that entice with every bite.
- Sweet Corn – Look for fresh cobs labeled ‘sweet corn’, either yellow or white. The color doesn’t make a difference in the level of sweetness.
- Roasted Red Bell Peppers – Either roast red bell peppers quickly, or buy a jar of roasted red pepper.
- Avocado – Ripe avocado should be tender to the touch, but not mushy.
- Jalapenos – Adjust the spice level by adding a spicier pepper like serrano, or leaving out spicy peppers all together.
- Lime – I prefer fresh limes, but a bottle of juice can also be used.
- Honey – Swap in maple syrup or agave nectar if needed.
- Olive Oil
- Salt & Pepper
- Pepper
- Cilantro – I’ve also used parsley. Cilantro has more flavor, but parsley is fresh and delicious as well.
Step by Step Instructions
While this may not be quite as simple as a simple green salad, it’s still simple enough to throw together on a hot summer day.
Step 1 (Optional): Roast the Corn and Red Peppers
Fresh sweet corn does not need to be cooked. If you’re using jarred roasted peppers and want to make this quickly, skip this and go to step 2.
If you’re like me and will take that extra time for the sake of flavor, preheat your oven or grill to 500°F. Line a heat safe pan with foil to contain any juices; we use the bottom of a broiler pan. Lightly oil the corn and peppers and arrange on top. Rotate them every 5 minutes for 20 minutes. The peppers should be blackened and soft, the corn should have a speckled browning.
Let the corn cool after roasting for 5-10 minutes. You’ll also need to steam the peppers after cooking, then peel away the skin and seeds. Learn how in my guide on how to roast peppers.
Step 2 – Prep Remaining Ingredients
Place a small bowl upside down inside a large serving bowl. Place one end of the corn on it and run a sharp knife down the length to cut the kernels into the large bowl.
Chop up your cilantro, jalapeno, and avocado. I recommend trying to keep uniform sizes on your chops, similar to the size of a corn kernel. This keeps each bite pleasantly balanced with all the ingredients. Add it all to the bowl with the cooled and chopped roasted red peppers, salt, and pepper.
Step 3 – Make the Dressing
Squeeze 1 1/2 to 2 limes into a bowl, add your honey, and whisk in the olive oil until combined. You can also add it all to a mason jar and shake until mixed.
Drizzle over the corn avocado salad and toss gently to combine. Place in the fridge for at least 30 minutes, better for an hour.
FAQs
I prefer making it the morning before I want to serve it. It’s best in the first 12-24 hours. But it’s good for up to 3 days.
I don’t care for the texture of these, so I don’t recommend them. You may feel differently!
Yes! In fact this is a great recipe to use with leftover boiled corn on the cob. Fresh corn can be added to the salad raw, grilled, broiled, roasted, or boiled.
Need Dinner Inspiration?
Have a delicious summer cookout with avocado corn salad and…
Love Roasted Red Peppers?
Try my Red Pepper Aioli!
Avocado Corn Salad with Roasted Red Peppers
Ingredients
- 5 ears Sweet corn, yellow or white
- 2 medium avocados
- 12 ounce jar roasted red bell peppers or 3 bell peppers
- 1/4 cup cilantro, chopped*
- 1/3 cup jalapeno, diced 1 large
- 1/4 cup lime juice 1 1/2 to 2
- 2 tsp honey
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
Instructions
- Cook the corn for best sweetness (can be cut from the cob and used raw too). Boil until tender or place on foil-lined baking sheet. If you'd like to roast fresh peppers, lightly oil them and place them on the same baking sheet as the corn.
- Broil or roast at 450-500°F for about 15-20 minutes. Rotate every 5 minutes until peppers are blackened and soft and corn is lightly roasted. Peppers may take less time than the corn.
- While corn and peppers are roasting, remove seeds and ribs from the jalapeno and finely dice. Chop cilantro and dice avocado. Set aside.
- When corn is done set it aside until cool enough to handle. If you roasted peppers, place in a bowl and cover to let them steam, then peel, deseed and dice them.
- Stand cooled corn on the flat stem side in a medium to large bowl, then run your knife down the sides of the cob to remove the kernels and catch them in the bowl.
- Once you've removed all the corn, add in roasted peppers, jalapeno, parsley, and avocado. Sprinkle the salad with salt and pepper.
- Whisk together the honey, oil, and lime juice. Drizzle on the vinaigrette. Stir to combine.
- Chill for at least 30 minutes, and serve within 2-3 days.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information and cooking times are provided as a best estimate. Values may vary based upon ingredients and equipment.
Really simple to make and paired well with BBQ chicken, and since I was already heating up the grill for chicken I was able to manage cooking the whole meal at once!
Greg, I’m so glad you were able to get your dinner cooked all at once and you enjoyed it. It is a great summer salad when grilling your meal to avoid heating up the kitchen.
This sound so delicious! Roasting always brings out all the natural sweetness in vegetables.
This was soooo perfect for our summer cookout! It was a well loved side dish that disappeared quick!
That’s fantastic to hear Eden! Thanks so much!
I make something very similar and it is always a hit whenever I bring it to a potluck. I love how your is bursting with corn and flavor.
Corn salad is always a winner! I hope you give this version a try and enjoy it!
Loved this amazing recipe. I just made a corn salad very similar to this a while ago. Roasted red pepper sounds amazing
Corn salad is wonderfully diverse, I think the peppers add a nice touch too!
This looks so pretty and delicious! It’s going to my next BBQ for sure!
That’s great! I hope you guys enjoy!