Santa Fe Salad
Santa Fe Salad is a vibrant and flavorful dish that combines crisp, colorful vegetables and black beans with a zesty cilantro lime dressing. This salad is a perfect blend of fresh ingredients like bell peppers, corn, black beans, and red onion, all tossed together with the bold flavors of jalapeño peppers, lime, cilantro, and cumin.
Whether you’re looking for a healthy side dish or a light meal, this Santa Fe Salad recipe is sure to impress. I often make it for a summer salad to serve with Beer Can Chicken or Homemade Burgers. The perfect salad to double up and feed a crowd at your next backyard BBQ or potluck.
What I love about this easy-to-make salad recipe!
- Healthy and Delicious: This recipe pack a ton of flavor and the perfect plant-based recipe for a nutritious side dish or hearty lunch.
- Adjust the Spice Level: If you don’t like spicy food, you can reduce the amount of jalapeño pepper or leave it out completely.
- Make it into an Appetizer: Dice the vegetables into smaller pieces and serve with tortilla chips.
- Make ahead: Prepare the salad ingredients and dressing separately and mix them together just before serving. This will keep the salad fresh and crisp.
Optional Ingredients:
Santa Fe Salad is a tasty blend of fresh ingredients and bold flavors, similar to a Southwest Salad or Mexican Salad, making it a perfect choice for those who enjoy vibrant and zesty dishes. Some optional ingredients could include:
- Avocado – chop into cubes and add before serving.
- Cherry Tomatoes
- Yellow or orange bell peppers
- Crumbled feta cheese
- Cucumbers
- Add some greens like chopped romaine lettuce or arugula
- Grilled chicken turns this salad into a hearty dinner meal.
Summer Salad Recipes
These summer salad recipes are a perfect addition to your backyard barbecue!
Santa Fe Salad
Ingredients
For the Cilantro Lime Dressing
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 2 limes juice extracted
- 1/4 cup fresh cilantro chopped
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/4 teaspoon salt season to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon fresh ground pepper season to taste
Salad Ingredients
- 1 can (19oz) black beans rinsed and drained
- 1 red bell pepper diced
- 1/2 cup red onion chopped
- 1 can (12oz) kernel corn
- 1 medium jalapeño pepper seeded and finely diced
Instructions
Prepare the dressing
- Pour the olive oil and lime juice into a small jar mix or container.
- Add the cilantro, cumin, salt and pepper and shake well.
Salad prep
- Drain and rinse the black beans and place in a medium sized bowl. Stir in the diced red peppers, red onion, corn and jalapeño pepper.
- Pour the dressing over the salad ingredients and toss to combine.
Nutrition
Looks so wonderful ! I am excited to try it. I love your presentation!!! Thanks so much!!!!!
Thanks hope you enjoy the recipe
This is a delicious salad! We’ve had it for years – my wife found the recipe in the “Best of Bridge” cookbook…
It is one of my favs!
Pinned it! What a beautiful salad!
Thank you so much, I think it tastes even better than it looks 🙂
I have made this several times! We love it! Thank you.