One Pot 30 minute Mexican Quinoa Salad with seared corn, black beans, red onions, jalapeno and cilantro. A vegan and gluten-free dinner doesn’t get easier than this!
I spent January and February of this year living in Mexico; split between San Miguel de Allende and Playa del Carmen. So, it’s safe to say I’ve had enough Mexican food and Mexican flavors to last a lifetime.
And trust me, it wasn’t all tacos, though I can’t deny I had my fair share of those too.
This Mexican quinoa salad I made while D and I were renting an adorable Airbnb decorated and built in gorgeous Mexican style in the hillside mountain city of San Miguel de Allende.
While there was no shortage of Mexican eateries in the area, I was craving quinoa and I had all the other Mexican themed ingredients, so that’s how this Mexican quinoa came to be.
You’ll only need a handful of ingredients, namely; canned black beans, quinoa, corn on the cob, limes, cilantro, red onions and jalapenos.
These are the star ingredients for this vegan Mexican quinoa salad and they all in a burst of flavor. The quinoa needs to be boiled and cooked, while the corn can be cut off the cob and lightly pan fried in a bit of olive oil. I love to cook the quinoa in broth instead of water for additional flavor, but if you don’t have any on hand, just use water.
The cilantro, jalapenos and red onions just need a bit of chopping.
Once that is done, assemble all the ingredients in one large bowl.
For the dressing just whisk together olive oil, red wine vinegar, cumin and lime juice. This zesty, tangy dressing is light and perfect for this Mexican quinoa salad.
This 30 minute recipe comes together in no time and makes for an easy weeknight dinner. Can be served both hot or cold!
Let me know what you think of this Mexican quinoa salad with corn and black beans in the comments below!
If you love quinoa be sure to try my quinoa black bean pumpkin soup and my Thai veggie quinoa bowls.
Mexican Quinoa Salad with black beans, corn and cilantro makes for the perfect 30 minute weeknight dinner!
- 1 cup uncooked organic pre-rinsed quinoa
- 2 cups vegetable broth
- 2 limes zested and juiced
- 15 oz black beans rinsed and drained. (1 can)
- 2 ears of corn cut off the cob
- 1 bunch of cilantro chopped
- 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- salt pepper to taste
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Combine quinoa and broth in a pot. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and cook, covered for 12-15 minutes. Remove from heat, fluff with a fork, cover and let sit for another 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork once more.
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Cook corn in 1 tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat until lightly caramelized.
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To large bowl add black beans, lime juice, zest, salt pepper, cilantro, cumin and red wine vinegar. Add cooked quinoa and olive oi. Stir until combined. Serve hot or cold.
chefconnie says
Corn and black beans are one of my favorite combos. With quinoa you just made it better.
AvocadoPesto says
I’m thinking of adding avocado next time to make it even better!
ohkeeka says
Ooh, I love quinoa–this sounds so good! And soon fresh corn will be in season again too, so this is perfect for summer. 🙂
Ana Ltdp says
Yum! I can’t help it, I am in love with quinoa! You’re giving me a lot of ideas, thanks 😀
You have here a voluntary new tester 😉
AvocadoPesto says
Perfect! Too bad you live so far away!
TastefullyJulie says
I saw this on Tastespotting and it looks delicious. I love corn and black bean salsa and I love quinoa. This is the perfect mix!
AvocadoPesto says
With the lime juice and zest it makes for a light refreshing combination of flavors!
Sadie says
This looks yummy! (Oh, BTW in the ingredients list it calls for black corn not black beans :P)
Vicky says
Thanks for catching the typo haha it certainly is NOT black corn! : )
Sheryl says
Thought you should know this website is using your picture as their own!
http://www.recipepunch.com/quinoa-and-black-beans/
Vicky says
Thanks so much for letting me know – seriously unacceptable.
Nancy says
This looks so good!
danielle wolter says
This is a perfect healthy dinner idea! I love the flavors and that you can make it ahead.
Vicky says
Thanks!
Michelle @ Sunkissed Kitchen says
So much freshness here! Exactly what I want to eat ALL summer long.
Vicky says
Me too!
Linda says
I absolutely love quinoa and this salad sounds like my kind of light lunch. I often make quinoa salads and, just like you, love cooking it in broth vs water. You added every ingredient I like to this recipe and I am just dying to try it. I’ve made something similar and grilled the corn first before taking off the cob and it adds another dimension to a salad. Fantastic recipe!
Vicky says
Yes grilling the corn is even better! If I had had access to a grill at the time I would have totally made it on the grill! Doesn’t broth make the quinoa so much richer and more flavorful?! I LOOOVe it!
Edyta at Innocent Delight says
This looks super delicious. So easy and full of protein. It’s a keeper.
Vicky says
Thanks!
Cathleen @ A Taste of Madness says
One pot?? Yes please, count me in! Also, the dressing sounds amazing!!
Vicky says
Thanks!
Julia says
Hi! Just one small comment… is this recipe complete? In the descriptions above it, you mention purple onion and jalapeño, but those weren’t in the ingredients list. Also, in the last step, there are some typos and there’s never a point where you say to add the corn. I skipped down to the recipe to get the ingredients written down before I left work last night, so I could stop on the way home, but didn’t realize till I got home and started cooking that purple onion and jalapeño were meant to be used as well.
Nonetheless, this was a good recipe and even though I only had yellow onion in my fridge and no jalapeño, I was able to make it delicious with a few extra spices! It turned out very yummy and is great served hot.
Vicky says
Sorry about the typos in the recipe – thanks for pointing those out and I’ll get them fixed now! Either way happy to hear you enjoyed the recipe!!