Summer Corn Salad
Summer Corn Salad- The best of summer's fresh produce comes together in this super simple, refreshing side dish.
August 6, 2021 by Nicole Collins
I make a lot of recipes that you never see.
Sometimes, it's because they're duds.
Sometimes, it's because I worry that it's too basic to call a recipe.
Actually, the latter happens more that you guys would ever know.
There's a lot of times that I think a recipe is fine for just me. There are so many things that I make for myself that are favorites of mine but that I'm not sure are blog worthy.
But, here's what I've realized. If it's delicious, it's blog worthy...no matter how simple or basic it may be.
In fact, it seems that you guys tend to like the super basic recipes the most. And, that makes total sense. Really, tell me who wouldn't want a fast, simple, basic recipe that tastes abso-freakin-lutely delish? So, I'm not hiding my tried and true “basic” recipes from you anymore. And today, we're making the fastest side dish in history that I've been making for myself for years.
Today, we're making Summer Corn Salad!
This is one of those recipes that's 100% reliant upon the natural flavors of the ingredients we're using. We're not hiding behind loads of spices or dressings or other typical flavoring agents. We're letting the best of summer's fresh produce really shine in this recipe.
So, let's talk corn. There is nothing quite like fresh corn on the cob when it's in season. Those sweet, crunchy corn kernels are practically all the flavor we need in this salad. I like to roast my corn while it's still in the husk before cutting the kernels off the cob to just slightly soften up the corn. But, you can totally skip that step and serve the corn raw in this salad. Or, if you're making this salad outside of the summer season, you can always thaw some frozen corn which is the closest you'll be able to get to sweet summer corn.
To our corn, we're also going to add some fresh tomatoes, some diced cucumber, some sliced red onion, a diced avocado, and some fresh microgreens. When choosing microgreens for this salad, I'll typically use either pea or radish microgreens. Pea microgreens add a sweetness to the salad that mimic sugar snap peas, while radish microgreens add a spicy, peppery note just like a fresh radish. Either way, use whichever you're in the mood for. Or better yet, mix it up and use them both.
Once we have our veggies mixed together, you'd think it'd be time to make a dressing. But, we're not going to do that. We're going to give the salad a squeeze of lime juice along with a pinch of salt and pepper. Then, we're going to add in the secret ingredient of this salad: capers.
The thing about this salad is that we're using enough naturally “wet” ingredients like the juicy tomatoes and cucumbers that we don't actually need a dressing. In fact, when I'm making a small batch of this salad for myself, I don't even add the lime juice. The lime is really just there to help protect the avocado from browning too quickly. It's those magical capers that add that tangy, briny quality that mimics the tanginess you'd get from a vinaigrette without having to weigh down the salad.
It's not only delicious, it's pretty darn genius if I do say so myself.
This salad is the ultimate definition of fresh. Even when it's not prime produce season in the summer, the combination of these fresh veggies mixed with that sharp onion and tangy capers makes for an absolutely divine bite. You have sweet, acidic, crunchy, tangy, and creamy hitting you with every single bite. And, we 100% have nature to thank for that. It's as simple and basic as we can get!
The one thing to note is that this salad is best served fresh. Though we're not officially dressing the salad, we are using those wetter ingredients that we talked about earlier. So, if the salad sits for an extended period of time, those natural juices will extract making things a smidge soggier. Though the flavor isn't impacted, texture is equally as important. So, prep and dice your veggies in advance, but wait until you're ready to serve before you toss everything together.
Okie dokes! That's all I've got for today. I hope you guys love this big ol' bowl of summer sunshine!
Please enjoy! And, let's eat!
Summer Corn Salad
Serves: 4 Print
Ingredients:
2 small corn cobs, husks still on
½ cup tomato (about 1 medium), diced
½ cup cucumber (1 persian cucumber), diced
¼ cup red onion, thinly sliced
1 avocado, peeled, pitted, and diced
½ cup pea or radish microgreens
1 tbsp capers
juice of ½ a lime
¼ tsp salt
¼ tsp pepper
Directions:
Roast the Corn: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place corn cobs in their husks on a baking sheet. Bake for 30 mins. When cool enough to handle, remove the corn cobs from the husks, cut the kernels off the cob, and transfer the corn to a mixing bowl.
To the mixing bowl with the corn, add all remaining ingredients. Toss gently to combine. Serve immediately.
Recipe notes:
*This salad is best served fresh.
*If you're making this outside of the summer season and can't find corn on the cob, you can substitute 1 cup frozen corn that's been thawed.
*The microgreens add a nice brightness to this salad. Pea microgreens will be a little sweeter, while radish microgreens will be a little spicier. Use whichever you like, or even a mix of both! And bonus, if you want to try growing your own microgreens, these are the seeds I use. You can have homegrown microgreens in under 2 weeks!
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