Corn, Tomato, & Avocado Salad (Summer In a Bowl)
Every weekend I look forward to going to our local farmer’s market. Well, except when I have to schlep everything I can’t resist buying back to my car. For example, today my Sherpa trip included 6 ears of fresh, sweet corn (corn is heavy-who knew?), a sun-kissed orange honeydew, a bushel of peaches and nectarines (well, it felt like a bushel), some gorgeous deep purple eggplants, vine-ripened, ginormous heirloom tomatoes, ruby-red strawberries and sweet-tart blackberries. Yep, all in a day at the market.
Why so many ears of corn? Last week, a friend brought this Corn Salad to an end-of-summer dinner and all I could think of was making a vat for myself (yes, vat). In addition, my favorite fresh corn recipe is Elote Corn or Mexican Street Corn. Corn on the cob, grilled, slathered with mayonnaise, sprinkled with chile powder or Tajin, Cotija Cheese, and finished with a squeeze of lime. If Kevin Costner had an Elote stand on the third baseline in Field of Dreams, they wouldn’t even have had to play baseball. Just shuck that corn cause “If you grill it, they will come.” I needed a lot of corn if I was going to enjoy both dishes this week.
Summer Salad Fun
This Corn, Avocado, and Tomato Salad comes in a close second to Elote Corn. The crunchy corn, creamy avocado, and sweet, tart tomatoes all work together. You could make it with frozen corn but save that for a cold winter day when you long for a bit of summer and fresh corn is nowhere in sight.
Cook the corn as you like. Throw the cobs on the grill, or boil them for a few minutes. My method involves microwaving the corn for about 2-3 minutes, husk on, removing the husk, and charring the corn over an open flame. Cool the corn then cut the kernels off the cob.
The rest is easy, toss all the ingredients in a bowl, add the dressing, and gently mix. Let it sit for 15 minutes. Garnish with cilantro leaves and scallions and serve. This salad goes well with ANYTHING if you ask me. Perfect for a potluck, block party, or summer barbecue.
Go ahead and add your touches to this salad. Add red bell peppers or cucumbers for crunch or change the flavor profile by adding different spices or cheeses like Feta for the Cotija. Enjoy!
Corn, Tomato and Avocado Salad
Ingredients
For the Salad
- 3-4 ears fresh corn approximately 3 cups. You can use frozen corn off-season
- 1 ripe avocado diced
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes halved
- 1/4 cup red onion finely chopped or thinly sliced
- 1/4 cup fresh cilantro plus some for garnish chopped
For the Dressing
- 2-3 tablespoons of lime juice 1-2 limes
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin
or instead of Cumin
- 1 teaspoon Tajin seasoning adjust to taste
- Salt and pepper to taste
Options!!!
- 1/4 cup red bell pepper, de-veined, de-seeded, diced
- 1/4 cup cucumber, de-seeded, diced
- 1/2 jalapeno deveined, deseeded, finely diced
- 1/4 cup Cotija cheese, crumbled
- 1-2 stalks green onions, chopped for garnish
Instructions
For the Corn:
- You can cook the corn however you like boil, grill or microwave. My method: Microwave corn, husk on for 3-3.5 minutes. When cool enough, shuck the corn. To char the corn, microwave for 2.5-3 minutes, shuck, and then using metal tongs, hold over open flame, rotating the corn until it is charred to your liking. It is not necessary to char, I like the added color and hint of smokiness.OR-grill on the bbq or grill pan on the stove. This will take about 10-12 minutes, place the corn on grill ~ 5 minutes per side, unil it is charred.
For the Salad:
- In a large bowl, combine the cooked and cooled corn, diced avocado, halved cherry tomatoes, finely chopped red onion, and chopped cilantro.
- If you add red bell pepper or cucumbers, increase the amount of dressing to taste
- In a small bowl, whisk together the lime juice, olive oil, garlic, cumin or Tajin seasoning, salt, and pepper until well combined.
- Pour the dressing over the salad and gently toss to coat all the ingredients with the dressing.
- Taste and adjust the seasoning if needed. Add more seasoning, lime juice, salt, or pepper according to your preference.
- Let the salad sit for about 10-15 minutes before serving to allow the flavors to meld.
- Serve the salad chilled or at room temperature.