Charred Corn Salad with White Beans
Serves 4(main)-8(side)
This Charred Corn Salad is the most delicious use for summer corn! Plus, it requires just 9 ingredients and takes less than 30 minutes to make. It’s a crowd pleasing side dish for barbecues and picnics, but also hearty enough to stand in as a main dish.
This salad highlights the best of summer corn season. Fresh corn is sweet enough to eat raw, so this salad features both raw and charred corn. The sweetness that fresh corn brings to this salad is the perfect balance to the spiciness of the jalapeño peppers and the tartness of the lime juice.
Corn has antioxidant, anti-aging, digestive aiding properties. It also protects against diverticular disease, eye disorders, constipation.
The use of fresh purple corn is growing in popularity as an ingredient for corn chips and corn tortillas. A recent study shows that the use of purple corn extract, which is high in anthocyanins, effectively lowered the side effects of some of the drugs used to treat cancer.
Soluble corn fiber is a trending new corn supplement researched for its cardiovascular, anti-cancer and digestive potentials. Corns high fiber content has long made it valuable for promoting smooth digestion and supporting cardiovascular health. New research is on the cusp of better understanding how the digestion of whole corn may be converted into health-supportive substances. For example, corn impacts the bacterial composition in the lower intestinal tract aiding the absorption of calcium. These processes and digestive interactions are just being studied with more information and understanding about corns role in nutrition and healthy bodily functioning to soon be released.
Traditional Chinese Medicine uses Corn Silk/Yu Mi Xu to stop bleeding, lower blood pressure and detoxify.
Corn oil contains significant amounts of vitamin E, Q10, and phytosterols that all help lower cholesterol levels.
Ingredients
1/2 of a large red onion, thinly sliced
2 large or 3 small jalapeño peppers, thinly sliced
1/3 cup (75-80 mL) lime juice, plus 1 extra lime for finishing
4 1/2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, divided
Kosher salt to taste
Freshly cracked black pepper to taste
6 ears of corn (about 600-650g of corn kernels)
1/2 teaspoon paprika (optional)
1 pint (~300g) cherry tomatoes, sliced in half or quarters
1 (15-ounce/440g) can of cannellini beans (or navy beans, or chickpeas), drained and rinsed
2 medium ripe avocados*, diced
1 handful of fresh basil leaves, slivered
Instructions
In a large bowl, mix together the thinly sliced red onions, thinly sliced jalapeños, 1/3 cup lime juice, and 3 tablespoons of the extra virgin olive oil. Season with kosher salt and black pepper and let the mixture marinate for at least 20 minutes, or up to 1 hour. This helps soften the onion’s texture, as well as mellow its pungency.
Position an ear of corn upright in a large bowl. Use a knife in a downward direction to shave the corn kernels, allowing the kernels to drop into the bowl.
Heat a large cast iron skillet over medium-high heat with the remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons of the extra virgin olive oil. Add HALF of the corn kernels. Cook the corn for 3-5 minutes until charred in spots, tossing just once or twice to get a nice char on them. If you are using the paprika, add the paprika during the last 2 minutes of cooking and toss to combine.
NOTE: If you don’t have a large-sized cast iron skillet, cook the corn in two batches to get the most even browning. You might need to add a tiny bit more oil if you do this.
Add the charred corn to the bowl with the marinated onions and jalapeños. Add the raw corn to the bowl, along with the sliced cherry tomatoes and drained beans. Season to taste with salt and pepper and the juice from the extra lime, toss to combine and taste again for seasonings. Be pretty generous with the salt.
Add the basil and toss to combine. If serving the salad immediately, dice the avocado and mix gently to combine. If keeping some of the salad as leftovers, add the avocado only to the portion you plan to eat now.
Notes
* If serving all of the salad immediately, add in the avocado now. But if you plan to keep leftovers, add the avocado only to the portion of the salad you plan to eat today.
