Table of Contents
When asked to bring a side dish to share for a summer BBQ, we LOVE bringing this simple, flavorful corn salad. It doesn’t get soggy and can be made ahead of time!
While it doesn’t need to be summer, it’s especially perfect for summertime. It’s light, flavorful, and delicious and usually gone in minutes!!
One of the main reasons we love this salad is that it takes less than 15 minutes to make. It’s full of corn, basil, cucumber, feta, and tomatoes – some of our FAVORITE ingredients.
If you love this salad, you will also enjoy our Frito Corn Salad or Mexican Corn Salad.
Why we think you’ll love it:
- Make ahead! This easy salad can be chilled until you’re ready to serve it – great for planning in advance.
- Just minutes of prep. It’s ready to serve in under 15 minutes, then just chill until you need it! Asparagus Salad and Tomato Cucumber Salad are just as simple.
- Packed with veggies! This salad is full of vegetables and lightly dressed for a hearty, healthy option.
Corn Salad Ingredients And Substitutions
- 3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
- 1 tablespoon lime juice – fresh squeezed or from a bottle
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1½ cups corn fresh or thawed frozen corn – We prefer fresh for the flavor, but frozen works as well. If you’re in a pinch, drain 2 cans of corn.
- 1½ cups cherry tomatoes, halved – or grape tomatoes
- ½ cup cucumber, finely chopped – Peel and chop a regular cucumber or slice up an English cucumber.
- 2 tablespoons fresh basil, minced – You can also add fresh parsley.
- ⅓ cup crumbled feta cheese – Substitute the feta for a cheese with a similar crumbly texture: Ricotta, Halloumi, Queso Fresco, or Goat Cheese.
- 2 tablespoons Italian dressing (optional) – or toss with apple cider vinegar
- optional veggies – bell peppers, avocado, red onion or green onion, or grilled zucchini
How to Make Corn Salad
- DRESSING. Whisk 2 tablespoons of olive oil, lime juice, and salt in a small bowl and set aside.
- VEGGIES. Cook corn in a skillet with remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil until tender.
- Pour corn into a large bowl and cool slightly. Add tomatoes, cucumber, and basil. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
- SERVE. Just before serving, drizzle with the homemade dressing, Italian dressing (optional), and add feta cheese (if desired). ENJOY!
Kristyn’s Recipe Tips
- For added flavor grill the corn cobs before removing the kernels. If you do this, skip cooking the kernels in step 2.
- When we don’t have fresh herbs, we use dried herbs; 1 tablespoon of fresh herbs = 1 teaspoon of dried herbs.
- We prefer using yellow corn because the colors look amazing, but white corn can be used as well.
Corn Salad
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons olive oil divided
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1½ cups corn, fresh or thawed frozen corn
- 1½ cups cherry tomatoes, halved
- ½ cup cucumber, finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons fresh basil, minced
- ⅓ cup crumbled feta cheese
- 2 tablespoons Italian dressing, (optional)
Instructions
- Whisk 2 tablespoons of olive oil, lime juice, and salt in a small bowl and set aside.
- Cook corn in a skillet with remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil until tender.
- Pour corn into a large bowl and cool slightly. Add tomatoes, cucumber, and basil. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
- Right before serving, drizzle on the homemade dressing, Italian dressing (optional), and add feta cheese (if desired). ENJOY!
Video
Notes
- While fresh corn is so delicious, drained canned corn can also be used.
- For added flavor, grill corn cobs before removing the kernels. If you do this, skip cooking the kernels in step 2.
- When we don’t have fresh herbs, we use dried herbs; 1 tablespoon of fresh herbs = 1 teaspoon of dried herbs.
- The color of yellow corn looks amazing, but white corn can be used as well.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Recipe FAQ
Cook up the corn the day before, slice the veggies, and keep them in separate containers in the fridge. Toss everything together and refrigerate for 30-60 minutes before serving.
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 2-3 days.
Hold the cob perpendicular to a cutting board.
Using a paring knife, slice downward, cutting the corn kernels off in a long strip.
Rotate the cob and slice again.
Continue until all the kernels have been removed.
Complete The Meal
Main Dishes
Corn Sides
Collections
This recipe was originally published May 2017.
Recipe adapted from Taste of Home.
I made this for a family reunion and everyone loved it! Family favorite now.
I made the summer corn salad for Easter weekend lunch. It was a big hit! I made a double batch so that everybody could take home leftovers. I will definitely use this recipe again!
Yay! So happy to hear the salad was a success!
This is delicious. It tastes great the next day too. The amounts of veggies and feta are very flexible. I used a can of corn. Also the store was out of basil.
Amazing!! Soo flavorful! Our fam loved it!
This tasted so amazing! Thanks a lot for sharing this super easy to make summer corn salad recipe! Fam really loves it! Will surely have this again! Highly recommended!
We loved this salad! The feta cheese adds so much flavor!!
I used a can of corn. didn’t have the cucumber and skipped the italian dressing. it was fabulous and got so many raves. My only complaint is there wasn’t enough of it!
That’s a good complaint to have 🙂 Glad it was a hit! Thank you!
I can’t ✋ wait to try your recipes
I can’t wait for you to try them! Hope you like them!
Tates like summer!!! I forgot how mucH i love feta!! We added chicKen and ate it for lunch… but no basil- i really don’t like it. Used italian dressing and it was great! Will definitely be part of our summer Rotation!
That sounds yum! Thank you for trying it & for sharing what you did!
I’ve made it twice in one week! I used fresh corn and homegrown cherry tomatoes. So much flavor for so few ingredients. Thank you for sharing this recipe as it’s now one of my favorites! Teri
You are so welcome! I am glad to share 🙂 So happy you like it that much!
We LOved this Recipe. We added shrimp and it was amazing. We had leftovers and it was a little soggy the next day, so we will either make less or refrain from mixing it all the next time we make it.
Yay! I am so glad to hear that! Thank you!