Summer Chopped Salad
This salad tastes as colorful and delicious as it looks! If you are looking for a bright, versatile salad for the summer, or really any time of year, this is the one for you. It does require a bit of chopping, but it gives you great practice and… it does not have to be perfect! It can also be used in SO many different ways, as we talk about below. You can make a big batch in the beginning of the week and use it for meals and snacks throughout the entire week. Grab your ingredients, blast your favorite music, and lets get started!
Ingredients:
Salad:
3 bell peppers (I like to use 2 red and 1 orange)
1 medium jalapeño pepper (you can replace with poblano pepper if you are not a fan of spice)
1 large red onion
8 oz can petite diced tomatoes
8 oz can corn
8 oz can black beans
Dressing:
1/4 cup olive oil
Juice from 1/2 lemon
Splash of vinegar (white or red wine vinegar both work great!)
1/2 teaspoon salt (add to taste)
1/2 teaspoon ground pepper
1 teaspoon oregano
This recipe makes:
About 8-10 servings
1 cup per serving
Lets get cookin’!
Grab your cutting board and knife and chop up the peppers and onion. First, you will want to chop up the bell peppers, jalapeño pepper, and red onion. I have found that the easiest way to cut a pepper is by cutting it in half long-ways, so you are cutting the stem in half, and then scooping out the seeds with your hands or a spoon. But, do whatever makes sense for you! Chop up your vegetables into small pieces. Again, they do not have to be perfect! Note: If you have sensitive skin like me, I would recommend wearing gloves when chopping the jalapeño pepper to prevent any burns.
Drain and rinse the canned tomatoes, corn, and beans. For this step, it is best to use a strainer. Empty each can one at a time into the strainer, rinse it in the sink with cold water until the water draining from the bottom is clear, give it a few shakes to get rid of any extra water, and dump it all into the bowl!
Dressing time! This is a super simple dressing that you can use on almost any salad. Combine all of the ingredients listed above, give it a good mix, and dump it into the bowl full of vegetables. Keep in mind, you may need more or less salt depending on if the canned veg you used already has salt in it; just taste and add as needed!
Mix and enjoy! Now, all you have to do is mix everything up and eat! You can use this salad on tacos or in a burrito, on top of chicken, mixed in as part of a bigger salad, with tortilla chips as a dip, or just on it’s own. There are so many ways to enjoy this salad!