Corn and Black Bean Salad
I created this salad to mimic the flavors in quesadillas. There is no cheese in this recipe (the "queso"), but the
flavors and the fried tortillas will remind you of the South-West.
Ingredients
- 5 ears of corn, shucked
- 4 T. canola oil, 2 tsp. at first, the rest later
- 1 small red onion
- 1 clove of garlic, freshly pressed
- 1 red pepper, roughly chopped
- 1 tsp. chili powder
- 1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
- juice from 2 limes
- 2 T. minced pickled jalapeno peppers
- salt to taste
- 5 flour tortillas, cut into small wedges
- sea salt or kosher salt to taste
Wrap each ear of corn in microwave-appropriate plastic wrap and microwave until just cooked (about 1.5 minutes per ear).
With a sharp knife, cut the kernels off the corn.
Heat a large frying pan over medium-high heat until hot. Add corn and cook, stirring, until kernels begin to brown and pop.
Remove the corn to a large serving bowl.
Heat the 2 tsp. oil in the same pan. Add red onion, and cook until translucent, add the garlic and red pepper, and cook just
until the pepper begins to soften. Add the onion and pepper mixture to the corn. Mix in the chili powder, beans, lime juice,
and jalapenos. Adjust the salt (don't oversalt because you will be adding the salted tortillas later). Cover and chill until ready to serve.
Just before serving, heat the remaining oil in the frying pan. Fry the tortilla wedges, turning, until golden. Blot excess
oil on paper towels, and sprinkle with sea salt or kosher salt.
Serve the salad with the tortillas on the side. You can either use the tortilla wedges to scoop up the salad in individual
bites, or you can crumble the crisp tortillas over the individual salad servings.
Serves 10.