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This Mexican Chopped Salad is perfect for a summer picnic or bbq and is easy to make with less than 10 ingredients. Grilled corn, black beans, and avocado are tossed together with crunchy romaine and a lime vinaigrette for tons of flavor in every bite.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

Flavorful and ultra-crisp, this salad is anything but boring and pairs wonderfully with our Monterey Chicken.

Use the Grill or a Grill Panfor charring the corn. Both work well, so outdoor limitations don’t keep you from making this!
Side that can double as a main dish. Grill and slice up some top sirloin or dice up pan-seared chicken for a quick weeknight meal.
Great for Meal Prep: With a quick prep time, this salad is perfect to make ahead and take on-the-go for lunch. Grill the corn ahead of time, make a big batch of the vinaigrette, and prep the other salad ingredients (minus the avocado) in separate containers. When you’re ready to eat, simply toss it all of it together.

salt, pepper, cumin, coriander, agave, olive oil, black beans, romaine hearts, two ears of corn, avocados, and scallions set out on the counter.

Mexican Chopped Salad Ingredients

Salad:

Sweet Corn: I love using fresh corn if it’s in season, but if it’s not, frozen or even canned work just as well. You can char it up off the cob in a cast-iron skillet just as easily.
Black Beans: Canned black beans are one of those ingredients you should always have on hand in your pantry. Super versatile and can be added to any kind of salad to make it more satisfying.
Scallions: These add a nice, slightly sharp bite to the salad. They’ve got a mild onion-like flavor and when you slice them on the bias they visually elevate the dish.
Romaine Hearts: The key ingredient and base of this salad—romaine is the workhorse of many salads. It’s crispy, crunchy, light and refreshing. The leaves are sturdy enough to stand up to all mix-ins and any dressing. You can also use iceberg lettuce.
Avocados: Creamy, ripe avocados add a nice richness.

Chopped lettuce, sliced avocado and sliced scallions on a wood cutting board.

Lime Vinaigrette:

Lime Juice: Fresh is best!
Extra Virgin Olive Oil: I like to use a good quality evoo in all of my vinaigrettes. A good olive oil is deeply flavorful, fruity and slightly spicy.
Agave Nectar or Honey: All dressings can use a subtle hint of sweetness to balance tangy acidity. Add a little more or less, based on your personal preference.
Cumin and Coriander: Both are slightly earthy in flavor, but essential to Mexican-inspired dishes. You can find ground versions of both in the spice aisle of your grocery store.

How To Make Mexican Chopped Salad

The key to a great chopped salad is making sure everything is well combined, all ingredients are about the same size, and the whole thing is generously dressed—you don’t want a dry leaf in the house. This is all accomplished in this recipe with these easy ingredients and tangy vinaigrette.

Heat a grill or grill pan over medium then coat the grates (or pan) with oil. Once hot, add your corn and grill until charred. You’ll want to turn the corn occasionally until all sides get a kiss from the grill.

Two ears of corn charring on a grill pan with a set of tongs turning an ear of corn.

Meanwhile, make the lime vinaigrette by whisking together lime juice, oil, agave, cumin, and coriander. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Set this aside.

Lime juice, olive oil, cumin, coriander, agave, salt and pepper in a glass mixing bowl with a whisk set nearby.

Once your corn is off the grill and cool enough to handle, cut the kernels off the cobs.

Charred corn cut from the corn cobs on a wood cutting board with a chefs knife set nearby.

Add your corn kernels to a bowl with the black beans and scallions

Charred corn, black beans and scallions in a glass mixing bowl.

In another bowl, add the romaine, then add in half of the bean and corn mixture, and half of the vinaigrette, and toss everything together until combined.

Chopped romaine lettuce in a large mixing bowl with black beans and corn poured over top.

Before serving, top with your remaining corn and bean mixture and some sliced avocado. Top with a bit more vinaigrette or serve it on the side.

Pro Tips for Recipe Success

Chop Everything Finely: The key to a great chopped salad is to chop everything to about the same size. The lettuce, beans, corn and scallions should all be similar in size—this creates that satisfying crunch and flavor-in-every-bite.
Dress Right Before Serving: There’s nothing worse than a soggy, soft salad. So wait until you’re just about ready to serve to dress the salad with the vinaigrette. This way, everything stays crisp and crunchy.
Use Ripe Avocados: Let avocados ripen at room temperature on the counter for a few days if they aren’t quite there when you bring them home. To quicken the process, add a piece of fruit to the bowl they’re stored in.

Variations & Substitutions

Add Extra Vegetables or Herbs: This recipe is great for using any fresh produce you’ve got in the fridge. Bell peppers, tomatoes, asparagus, red onions and fresh herbs like cilantro or parsley would pair perfectly here.
Top With a Simply Seasoned Protein: To make this light dish more of a main course, but without too much work, top with simply seared shrimp or blackened salmon, or grilled chicken or steak.

Add Cheese or Seeds: Crumbled Cotija, shredded Cheddar, or even a mild feta or goat cheese would be nice here. Add some toasted pepitas for an extra nutty crunch.

Vinaigrette being poured over romaine lettuce in a large mixing bowl with black beans, corn and sliced avocado set on top.

Storage & Meal Prep Instructions

Meal Prep: This salad is great to prep-ahead. Grill your corn ahead of time and prepare the beans, scallions, and lettuce. Keep your ingredients in separate containers and everything is at the ready for you to combine when it’s time to eat. Hold off on the avocado though, don’t slice until right before serving.

Make-Ahead Vinaigrette: Make a batch of the vinaigrette ahead of time and store it in the fridge in an airtight jar or container. It’ll keep for 5 to 7 days. Allow it to come to room temperature for a few minutes before dressing your salad.

For the Fridge: You can store all of the salad ingredients, separate or combined, in airtight containers in the fridge for about a week. Keep the vinaigrette separate of course, and when you’re ready to eat, simple toss everything together.