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Mexican Corn Quinoa Salad Recipe

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This Mexican Corn Quinoa Salad is a festive warm weather salad, perfect for a crowd. I love fresh corn, and although I enjoy it on the cob, I find it makes a great side dish when used in salads.
Mexican Corn Quinoa Salad - this festive summer salad is perfect for picnics and large gatherings. It's inspired by esquites, Mexican street corn

I think warm weather is finally here to stay, so I have been trying to take long walks outside, and visiting our local farmer’s market as much as possible.

I made this Mexican Corn Quinoa Salad for a large gathering of women for one of our Bible study celebrations. I’m always trying to concoct something new for this group of ladies, while keeping it on the healthier side.

Mexican Corn Quinoa Salad - this festive summer salad is perfect for picnics and large gatherings. It's inspired by esquites, Mexican street corn

The idea behind this salad comes from the Mexican street food called Esquites, which is served in little cups. It’s a mixture of boiled or sautéed corn, mayonnaise, Cojita cheese, cilantro and chili powder. Sometimes jalapeño peppers are added too. What I love about Esquites is the combination of sweet (from the corn), spicy (chili powder), and salty (Cojita cheese).

I find pan roasting the corn brings out the natural sugars and makes it taste even sweeter.

Pan Roasted Corn

Mexican Corn Quinoa Salad Ingredients

Mexican Corn Quinoa Salad

Let’s talk a little about the health benefits of corn – whole corn that is, not processed. I have to be honest – for years, I didn’t consider corn a healthy vegetable. It wasn’t until I picked up a copy of The World’s Healthiest Foods a few years ago, that I started paying more attention to the unique nutritional profile that different fruits and vegetables have.

Here are a couple of fun facts about corn you might be interested in:

  • Corn is high in both soluble and insoluble fiber. We need both kinds of fiber in our diets. Dietary fiber helps reduce blood cholesterol levels and may lower our risk of heart disease.
  • Corn contains two important carotenoids (lutein and zeaxanthin), which are relatives of vitamin A that support eye health and may have other disease-preventing properties.
  • Corn is a good source of B vitamins (folate, B1, B3, B5, B6) which are essential for energy production and making red blood cells

The important thing to remember here is to eat corn in its whole form.

Mexican Corn Quinoa Salad - this festive summer salad is perfect for picnics and large gatherings. It's inspired by esquites, Mexican street corn

Mexican Corn Quinoa Salad © Jeanette's Healthy Living
5 from 2 votes
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Mexican Corn Quinoa Salad

This makes a big batch. This recipe is on the milder side because I made it for a large crowd and wanted to make sure it had broad appeal. Spice things up even more with additional cayenne pepper or chili powder.
Course Side Dish
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Total Time 25 minutes
Servings 20 as part of a buffet
Calories 120 kcal

Ingredients

  • 2 teaspoons olive oil
  • 3 cups corn
  • 2 cloves garlic minced
  • 4 cups cooked quinoa
  • 2 1/2 cups cherry tomatoes halved
  • 1 1/2 cups cooked black beans
  • 1 cup cojita cheese feta or romano cheese would also work, crumbled
  • 3 tablespoons fresh cilantro minced
  • 3 tablespoons scallions minced
  • 2 limes juiced
  • 1 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
  • a few dashes of cayenne pepper
  • 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • sea salt to taste
  • fresh ground pepper to taste

Instructions

  1. Heat olive oil in a large skillet. Saute corn and garlic until corn has some brown spots (that's the caramelization that makes the corn even sweeter). Transfer to a large bowl and toss in the rest of the ingredients. Season to your liking with additional chili powder, cayenne pepper, salt and pepper.

Recipe Notes

Cut recipe in half for a smaller group.

Nutrition Facts
Mexican Corn Quinoa Salad
Amount Per Serving
Calories 120 Calories from Fat 36
% Daily Value*
Fat 4g6%
Saturated Fat 1g6%
Cholesterol 6mg2%
Sodium 140mg6%
Potassium 211mg6%
Carbohydrates 16g5%
Fiber 2g8%
Sugar 2g2%
Protein 4g8%
Vitamin A 245IU5%
Vitamin C 8.1mg10%
Calcium 54mg5%
Iron 1.2mg7%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

If you like this recipe, you might like:

Chipotle Black Bean Corn Tomato Avocado Salad

Chipotle Black Bean Corn Tomato Avocado Salad - this can be eaten as a dip or a salad - perfect for summer barbecues and picnics!

Quinoa Corn Kale Tomato Salad

Kale Quinoa Tomato Corn Salad © Jeanette's Healthy Living

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Corn Avocado Tomato Salad © Jeanette's Healthy Living

Mexican Corn Tomato Feta Salad

Mexican Corn Tomato Feta Salad - you'll find all the flavors of Mexican street corn are in this creamy summer salad

Disclosure: This is a sponsored post by Kitchen PLAY in partnership with the Florida Sweet Corn Exchange for their “Put a Little Sweet in Your Step” event.

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Comments

    • Jeanette says

      Thanks Sara – just sent you an invite to pin to our Sweet Corn Love board. Thanks for participating – can’t wait to see what you pin!

      Reply

    • Jeanette says

      Hi Sara – just sent you an email to invite you to our Pinterest pin party. Thanks and happy pinning!

      Reply

  5. Margot C says

    Marvelous, please invite me to your pin board. I assume that I should take a picture of what I make (sort of a duh question I guess) and put it on your board. Ok, we LOVE corn!

    Reply

    • Jeanette says

      Hi Margot – I just sent you an invite to the Sweet Corn Pinterest Board. You can pin a picture of a corn recipe you make or pin any other fresh corn recipes to the board. Thanks for playing!

      Reply

      • Margot C says

        Hi Jeanette, thanks for the invitation, For some reason when I click on it it just takes me to a Pinterest log-in page (even though I’m already logged in), it hiccups then takes me to the main Pinterest page. This all happens really fast. When I found your corn board by searching I found that I was not on the list of participants. Maybe it’s a Mac thing, but it doesn’t work for me.

        Reply

        • Jeanette says

          Hi Margot, I think you have to follow all my boards to join my group board. Let me know if you are still having trouble after you do that. Thanks for letting me know.

          Reply

  15. Terra says

    I just pinned a few of your quinoa recipes, love all the different ways to enjoy quinoa!!! This salad would be perfect for my lunches, hearty, full of nutrients, and holy cats delicious! Hugs, Terra

    Reply

  17. Toni says

    This looks great! I think we are going to try it for dinner tonight. I’ve been looking for a good recipe to get us to like quinoa. Hopefully this is it!
    Pinterest name is Roxygirli05 🙂

    Reply

    • Jeanette says

      Hi Carolsue, so sorry it was an oversight. Please check your email – just sent you instructions. Happy pinning!

      Reply

  32. Toni says

    We made this and loved it! Finally enjoyed quinoa. We did add chicken and ate it over squash (to meet our dietary needs).
    With make quinoa again and look forward to trying more recipes on your 🙂

    Reply

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