Healthy BBQ side dishes don't get much more colourful than this Sweetcorn Salsa. It's chunky, zesty and can be thrown together in less than 5 minutes. Serve it with some homemade burgers and use any leftovers in a grilled fish taco. This is a salsa that you need to make this summer.
This Sweetcorn Salsa was made out of ingredients I already had in the cupboard, fridge and vegetable rack and I just threw together in under 5 minutes. The ultimate fridge raid side dish!
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Why you will love it
- A great BBQ side dish
- Ready in less than 5 minutes
- Uses ingredients you probably already have in your cupboard
- A new way to enjoy sweetcorn
Step by step
One: In a bowl, add the sweetcorn, red pepper, tomatoes and red onion and mix well.
Two: Add the coriander (cilantro), jalapenos, lime juice, olive oil, cider vinegar, garlic and salt and pepper and mix well.
Three: Add the feta just before serving and mix well.
Is it healthy?
We are all about simple, seasonal food and this sweetcorn salsa definitely ticks those boxes. The star of the dish is of course the corn, but there is also chunks of tomato and bell pepper, finely chopped jalapeno, a ton of herbs, a citrus dressing to bring it all together and then feta crumbled on top.
BBQs are definitely a time to relax and indulge and whilst nobody is going to try to take that cheese burger out of your hand, trying to keep the side dishes as healthy and as veggie packed as possible is a good way to balance things out.
We try and make sure there are at least 2 different fruit and vegetables in every side dish we put on the table at our BBQs. Not only does it keep things balanced, but BBQ food can tend to look a bit dull, so this adds plenty of colour.
This salsa ticks all those boxes with the corn, peppers, tomatoes and onion. You could add some chopped avocado for an extra nutritional boost too.
Sweetcorn is rich is in Vitamin B12, folic acid and iron and it feeds good bacteria in your gut, which aids in digestion and helps keep you regular.
Dressing
This is just a side dish, rather than the main event, so you don't want the flavours to be too over powering. We just mixed the vegetables with oil, vinegar, lime juice and garlic and then seasoned it. You could add some chilli flakes for a bit of a kick.
You can keep this dish vegan, but we topped it with some crumbled goats cheese for extra creaminess.
What to serve it with
This salsa is a must at any BBQ and goes great with burgers, hot dogs and grilled chicken. However, if you have any leftover, keep it to add to grilled fish tacos. It makes them wonderfully light and zesty.
Can you use grilled corn?
To make this corn salsa recipe a really easy BBQ side dish, we have just used tinned sweetcorn, so it can just be thrown together, but if you want to take this healthy sweetcorn salsa to the next level, then use grilled corn to make this.
It will take a little bit of extra time, but it's totally worth it.
I would recommend putting all the other ingredients in a bowl and then slicing the grilled corn off the cob at the table straight in to the bowl and then mix it up before serving. Have you tried our Grilled Corn with Herb Butter recipe?
More BBQ side dishes
If you’ve tried this sweetcorn salsa, or any other recipe on the blog, then let us know how you got on in the comments below, we love hearing from you!
Tag us in your creations on Instagram @hungryhealthyhappy - we love sharing photos when people make our recipes. You can use the hashtag #hungryhealthyhappy too.
Recipe
Sweetcorn Salsa
Ingredients
- 300 g tinned sweetcorn - drained
- 1 red bell pepper - diced
- 6 tomatoes - diced
- 0.5 red onion - diced
- 10 g coriander - finely chopped (you can use parsley instead)
- 2 jalapeno peppers - diced (less if you don't like spicy)
- 1 lime - (juice only)
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 2 garlic cloves - crushed
- 40 g feta cheese - crumbled
- 1 Pinch sea salt and black pepper
Instructions
- In a bowl, add the sweetcorn, red pepper, tomatoes and red onion and mix well.
- Add the coriander, jalapeños, lime juice, olive oil, cider vinegar, garlic and salt and pepper and mix well.
- Add the feta just before serving and mix well.
Notes
- You could leave the jalapenos out if you don't like anything spicy and add some chopped up gherkin pickles instead.
- Add a bit of extra sweetness to this by throwing in some chunks of pineapple (use tinned to keep it simple). Sweetcorn and pineapple are a delicious combination.
- This doesn't just have to be a side dish. Grill a couple of chicken breasts and cut them in to chunks before mixing them in to the sweetcorn salsa.
- If you have any of it left over, then it works really well in tacos to bulk them out a bit.
Ahaan
Big thanks for sharing this yummy and healthy salad recipe, as I had so many corns at my place and was confused what to do with it ;) . Keep sharing such recipes.
nagesh lingayat
Nice recipe shared! Thanks for sharing it.