This Avocado Corn Salad will turn into your summer and all-year round favourite salad. Ripe avocados, sweet corn and grape tomatoes are the star of this side dish with Mexican flair.
I made the first version of this corn and avocado salad just before summer started for a birthday potluck - and I absolutely fell in love with this combination of ingredients and flavours.
Since then I've made it many more times over this summer and tweaked a few things to perfect it into the absolute best corn salad recipe!
On Father's Day I made it for an impromptu pizza night that we had with a couple of other families. A couple of the guests were into the salad more than the pizza even and insisted I HAD to share it on the blog as well.
Although I didn't take them up on the suggested name of 'Father's Day Pizza Night Salad', I agree that I couldn't keep this awesome recipe for corn tomato avocado salad to myself. You, me, the world - we all need this salad!!
How ripe should the avocados be for Corn and Avocado Salad?
For this summer corn salad I like to use ripe avocados that are already a little soft but not yet mushy. This way during mixing some of the avocado will get incorporated to give the simple olive oil, salt, pepper dressing just a touch of creaminess.
If the avocados are too ripe, they break down too much during mixing and create too much of mushy texture.
Ripe but still fairly firm avocados stay mainly intact. This still makes for a delicious salad, you just won't have that subtle creamy dressing effect.
These are the homegrown tomatoes I've used in my avocado corn tomato salads of this summer. I just really needed to show them off, because this is the first year I have grown something so successfully all by myself
Funny story - I actually just put the seeds of two grape tomatoes from Costco into the ground. I ended up with a few mediocre plants and 3 extraordinary plants that are producing a steady supply of tomatoes since June - and there is no end in sight yet.
Which corn to use in this Corn Tomato Avocado Salad?
The reason I think this salad is so amazing for summer is because of all the seasonal produce you can use at that time. Not just the grape tomatoes that you may also have in your garden, but also the amazing summer sweet corn!
And of course you have options here, especially when out of season:
- fresh cooked corn - this is the way I usually make this fresh corn salad. Just cook the ears for 7-10 minutes in salted water, let cool and cut them off the cob
- grilled corn - grilled corn and avocado salad is absolutely delicious! The slightly smoky, charred flavours give this salad additional depth and intensity. Grill the corn husk-on for 15-20 minutes while turning every 5 minutes
- frozen corn - outside of summer corn season frozen cooked corn will work in a pinch. It won't have the same juicy sweetness, but makes a acceptable substitute.
More tips for making this Corn Avocado Cilantro Salad
- If you need to prep the salad quite a bit in advance, I recommend adding all ingredients to a bowl but holding off on adding avocado until serving time to avoid it turning into an unsightly shade of brown.
Add the avocado dices shortly before serving and only then toss everything together to combine - I've also made this tomato avocado recipe without the cucumber. Feel free to omit, if you don't have one on hand
- The combination of cilantro, corn, lime, and avocado definitely gives this recipe a Mexican flair. For that same reason I like to add a little spice kick - either in form of red chili flakes or finely diced fresh serrano chile
- If you want to turn this into an easy dinner salad, simply add some sliced grilled chicken (thighs) on top for delicious easy protein
How to turn this recipe into Avocado Corn Salsa
There were days this summer when it was just too hot to cook anything for dinner. So we had a version of this salad without the lettuce and scooped it up with tortilla chips.
To balance that avocado corn salsa & chips dinner with more protein, I also added a can of black beans to the mix. No-cook summer dining at it's finest!
Tools/Ingredients I used in this Corn Avocado and Tomato Salad
One of the easiest ways to cut corn kernels off the cob, is by standing it up on a bundt cake pan. The pan holds the corn cob and as you cut off the kernels they get collected inside the pan.
I love the look and durability of my olive wood spoon and spork salad servers. They also make great general kitchen utensils.
Like this? Here are more similar recipes:
- Mexican Quinoa Bowl
- Shrimp Louie Salad
- Mexican Shrimp Avocado Salad
- Cilantro Lime Dressing (if you want to take this or any summer salad up a notch)
Recipe
Avocado Corn Salad
Ingredients
- 1 head butter or curly lettuce, torn (about 6-7 cups) or tender green leaves
- 2 cobs sweet corn grilled or cooked
- 1 pint grape tomatoes halved
- ½-1 long English cucumber halved and sliced
- 2 ripe avocados diced
- ⅓ cup diced red onion
- ½ bunch cilantro chopped
- salt & pepper
- olive oil
- 1 lime juiced
- 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes (or diced fresh serrano chile)
Instructions
- Place the washed, dried and torn lettuce (or greens) at the bottom of a large salad bowl.
- Cut off the kernels of the 2 cobs of cooked or grilled corn and add to the salad bowl. If desired, half the grape tomatoes, then add to the salad.
- Peel the cucumber, if desired. Cut in half lengthwise, then slice. Cut the avocados in half, remove the pit. Cut into dices inside the peel, then use a spoon to scoop out the avocado dices and add everything to the bowl.
- Add the diced red onion and chopped cilantro to the salad bowl.
- Drizzle with olive oil, add salt & pepper to taste, add lime juice and red chili flakes (or diced serrano chile) for a spice kick. Toss everything gently with serving utensils and adjust seasoning or olive oil as needed.
- Serve with any summer dinner. This works especially well for BBQs and even alongside a simple pizza.
Pin Avocado Corn Salad recipe for later?
Random Questions
Avocado can last in a salad for a short period before it starts to turn brown. It is best to add avocado to the salad just before serving to preserve its freshness and prevent it from discoloring.
Avocado is a versatile ingredient that can be used in various recipes such as salads, guacamole, sandwiches, and smoothies. Its creamy texture and mild flavor make it a popular addition to many dishes.
Tomatoes and avocados complement each other well in salads and other dishes. The combination of their contrasting textures and flavors creates a delicious balance, enhancing the overall taste of the dish.
alex
It looks extremely delicious and solid! I'm a major fanatic of solid sustenance particularly of those that incorporate avacado and corn! A debt of gratitude is in order for this exquisite thought!..i love salads and this is iam gonna try