No Cook Dinner: Black Bean Salad

When the weather starts to get warm around here, I like to take the occasional night off from using the oven/stove. Here are some of my previous no cook dinner recipes: Cobb Salad; Lentil Salad with Strawberries and Asparagus; Tortellini and Asparagus Salad; Quinoa Salad; Red Pepper Gazpacho; and Tomato-Corn Soup.

This is a super easy tex-mex inspired cold salad. It is easy to customize to whatever you have in your fridge and pantry. I served it with store-bought multi-grain tortilla chips, but if you don't mind using the stove a bit, you could make your own.

Ingredients:

• 1 can of corn, drained and rinsed (or use 1 C. frozen corn, defrosted, or fresh corn, if it's in season)
• 1 can of black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 can of diced tomatoes, drained and rinsed (or use 1 C. chopped fresh tomatoes, if in season)
• 1 can of diced green chiles, mild or spicy (or use 1 jalapeno, seeded and diced, or use a bell pepper)
• 1 shallot, finely diced
• 1 tsp. cumin
• juice of 1 lime (about 1 Tbsp.)
• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• salt and pepper, to taste
• hot sauce, to taste
• sour cream or yogurt, for serving

In a large bowl, combine the corn, beans, tomatoes, chiles, and shallot. Add the cumin, lime juice, and olive oil, and stir to combine. Taste and add salt, pepper, and hot sauce, as desired. If you have some fresh herbs, like cilantro, that would be an excellent addition. Chill until ready to serve.