Sweet Corn & Black Bean Tacos
These hearty summer tacos feature lime-marinated fresh corn, jalapeño and radishes on top of warm black beans. Feta and avocado make these complete!
Updated by Kathryne Taylor on September 5, 2024
August is slipping through my fingers. Time is slipping through my fingers. I celebrated my favorite tiny person’s second birthday this weekend and I remember the day I visited her in the hospital like it was yesterday. Now she calls me “Ka-Ka” like my little brother did and glides through the house wearing my ballet flats, which are about ten sizes too big.
These sweet corn tacos seem to be a perfectly appropriate way to commemorate mid-August. I opted not to cook or grill the corn—it’s so creamy and sweet when it’s fresh—and instead marinate it in lime juice, with some lime zest to really set it off. (You could grill it, though, if you prefer!) Finely sliced radishes and jalapeño lend a bit of crunch and heat, while sliced avocado and feta finish it off.
Sometimes I find corn to be a little too sweet, so if you’re like me, you might want to add some pickled jalapeños on top. This recipe yields quite a lot of tacos (about 10 well-filled tacos), so you could probably halve it if need be. The individual components should keep well in the fridge if you want to assemble more tacos later. Oh summer, please don’t end!
More Fresh Corn Recipes to Try
- The Best Grilled Corn on the Cob
- Elote (Mexican Street Corn)
- Fresh Corn Salsa
- Garden-Fresh Corn Salad
- Southwestern Corn Chowder
- Vegetarian Succotash
Sweet Corn and Black Bean Tacos
These hearty summer tacos feature lime-marinated fresh corn, jalapeño and radishes on top of warm black beans. Feta and avocado make these complete! Recipe yields 10 tacos (a lot!).
Ingredients
Corn and feta salad
- 2 ears of corn, shucked (about 2 cups fresh corn kernels)
- ¼ cup chopped cilantro
- 3 medium red radishes, thinly sliced into small strips
- 1 medium lime, zested and juiced (to yield about 1 teaspoon zest and 2 tablespoons lime juice)
- 1 medium jalapeño pepper, seeded and minced
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- ½ to ⅔ cup crumbled feta, to taste (optional)
Black beans
- 2 cans black black beans, rinsed and drained (or 3 cups cooked black beans)
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 small yellow or white onion, chopped
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- ⅓ cup water
- Salt and black pepper, to taste
Everything else
- 10 small round corn tortillas (gluten free for gluten-free tacos)
- 1 large avocado, sliced into thin strips
- Optional garnishes: pickled jalapeños, salsa verde and/or hot sauce
Instructions
- To prepare the corn salad: Use a sharp chef’s knife to slice the kernels off all four sides of the corn cobs. Transfer the kernels to a medium-sized mixing bowl and add the chopped cilantro, radishes, lime zest and juice, jalapeño, olive oil and sea salt. Mix well. Stir in ½ cup crumbled feta, taste, and add a little more if you’d like. Set the bowl aside to marinate while your prepare the beans.
- To prepare the black beans: Warm the olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the onions and a sprinkle of salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions have softened and are turning translucent, about 5 to 8 minutes. Add the cumin and cook for about 30 seconds while stirring. Pour in the beans and ⅓ cup water. Stir, cover and reduce heat to simmer. Cook for 5 minutes, then remove the lid and use the back of a fork to mash up at least half of the beans. Remove from heat, season generously with salt and pepper, to taste, and cover until you’re ready to serve.
- To warm the tortillas: Heat a cast iron or non-stick skillet over medium heat and warm each tortilla individually, flipping occasionally. Alternatively, you can warm them directly over a low flame on a gas range. Fold a tea towel over the warmed tortillas to keep them warm.
- Put it all together: Spread black beans down the middle of each tortilla. Top the beans with corn salad. Place a slice of avocado to the side of the beans and serve with optional pickled jalapeños, salsa or hot sauce on the side.
Notes
Corn salad adapted from Sprouted Kitchen’s sweet corn ceviche. Black beans adapted from my arugula and pickled radish tacos.
Make it vegan/dairy free: Skip the feta and add pickled jalapeños or pickled radishes to make up for the feta’s salty punch.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
Hi,
Looks great and planning to prepare this for dinner with friends tomorrow night. Can I prepare the Corn salad tonight and leave it with cling film cover in the fridge overnight without it going bad?
Thanks,
Johnnie
Yes, that should work well! Maybe add another squeeze of lime juice to the salad to freshen it up before serving.
Hi, one more question: i bought all of the ingredients last night. I have never bought radishes before and they look pretty hard. Do they need cooking before being sliced and added to the corn salad?
Thanks a lot!
Johnnie
Hey Johnnie! No, just slice them thin. I often add radishes for their crunch.
I made these tonight and my hubby and I loved them! Even without the radishes and avocado, they were so fresh and delicious. A definite hit! Thank you so much Kate!
Made it again tonight. Definitely a family favorite. I didn’t have to bribe anyone with sweets to finish their dinner
Thank you for letting me know! That’s great to hear.
Wow! Made these tonight and they were absolutely amazing. What a keeper- inexpensive, easy and delicious. I made them exactly as written plus I added homemade salsa Verde and homemade picked onions. Will definitely make again. Thanks for a great recipe!
Thank you, Fran! Happy to hear it!
I loved it! It turned out very well. The only thing I didn’t add was the radish, but that’s only because the grocery didn’t have any available. I think it’s the perfect summer dish!!
Thank you, Ashley!
I made this recipe last night and we LOVED it! No fresh corn was available so I used one can of sweet corn. I also used cotija instead of feta. I put a dollop of sour cream on top as well. Can’t wait to make them again!
Yum! Sounds great, Janell.
Made this last night for dinner and…AMAZING! Everybody loved it, even the teenager who was like “ew radishes” and then took the corn salad leftovers for lunch today. Thanks, Kate!
I hope that turned into a “yum, radishes!” by the end of the meal. Thanks, Rebecca!
Made these for dinner for my boyfriend and I tonight and we LOVED them. We also added shrimp to them and they were delicious. Thank you for one of the best taco recipes I’ve ever tried!!
So great to hear this, Lindsay! Thanks so much.
Simple, fresh, tasty and healthy. This was a big hit with my family, both from my vegetarian daughter and the meat eaters alike. The grocery was out of radishes but it still tasted great.
Thank you!
Perfect! Thanks so much for commenting.
Another delicious recipe! These were so good, will definitely make again. Served with guac and shredded cheese as toppings (omitted feta).
Yum! That sounds great, Halley. Thanks for reading!
Happy 4th of July Kate! I just made these tacos and we all loved them! I subbed celery for the radishes, topped with a little salsa and some asiago. Amazing!
Thanks, Brenda! I’m so glad you loved these.
I guess I’m just one of those people who goes cooky for sweet corn :) So, even though corn wasn’t quite in season when I made this about a week and a half ago, this is yummyyyyy!! I’ll definitely be making it again and again because it’s so easy and it’s delicious! Thanks, Kate!!
I have been trying to comment on all of the dishes I try, Kate, and I’m behind! Beeeeezy beezy life right now, but just to say, Kate, your recipes are FANTASTICALLY DELICIOUS! I transitioned to being plant-based about a month ago, and it’s been your recipes that have helped myself and my husband welcome this lifestyle with open arms! <3
YES I’m such a fan of sweet corn, too! I don’t blame you for rushing it. :) I’m so glad you’ve been enjoying the recipes!
Yum! I made these this week and they were delish and filling! I can’t believe that this is veg only.
Right? These are nice and hearty.
Kate
I just wanted to tell you how much I love your blog and recipes. I have bought your book on pre-order and enjoy cooking from it. I have not had a recipe from you that disappointed me yet. I always tell my friends and co-workers who compliment me on my lunches about your book and blog. I am a pescaterian but mainly vegetarian. Keep up the delicious work.
Thank you so much, Hiba! I’m so glad you found the blog and enjoy the book so much. Thank you for sharing with your friends, too!
I cheated and used a good can of refried black beans but the corn and feta salad is amazing and the whole thing coming together was very fresh and very easy to make! This is definitely a good recipe to throw in the weekly rotation during the warm summer months!
Thanks, Leslie! I love these during the summer, too.
These were SO good. I could eat bowls of that corn salsa.
Great! And me, too. Just give me a spoon.
My 10 year old son is dying over this recipe! Being newly vegan has been a big change but your delicious recipes are making us excited for the change! Thank you so much and we can’t wait to try more!
Hooray! I’m so glad this is such a hit with everyone!
Made these tonight with my first attempt at homemade tortillas. My tortilla technique needs work, but the filling was tasty!
I’ve been following your blog for a couple weeks now, and have been dying to try a few recipes. I made these last night and they were amazing! The sweet, crunchy corn and the lime together were my favorite part! Even the hubby (avid meat eater!) scarfed them down and went back for more!
Thank you for creating vegetarian recipes that aren’t full of crazy ingredients! This blog is the first place I’ll be going when I sit down to make my meal plans.
You’re welcome, Becca! I try to keep things accessible and affordable, so this comment is music to my ears. I’m glad you both enjoyed the tacos!
Oh my goodness! We just finished eating these tacos… There hasn’t been one recipe of yours that I have tried that isn’t phenomenal and this is absolutely one of them!
I was looking in my bookmarked recipes for something to use the wonderful fresh farmers market corn and came across this one I bookmarked long ago. As always, Cookie & Kate recipes do not disappoint. I was a little cautious about using raw corn but if you usenice freshly picked corn, it will be fine. As I said in my Instagram post, no need for the fancy taco truck when you can make this at home. Definitely a keeper for late summer recipes.
Made this last night – delicious! The warm black beans and limey corn/radish topping are perfect together. I didn’t have feta and don’t really like cilantro so I omitted those and melted some shredded Mexican cheese on the corn tortillas. 1 Tbsp. seemed like a lot of cumin for me, so I started with 1.5 tsp. and found that (plus salt and pepper) to be just right. Will be making this again and again. Thanks so much!
Awesome! I’m glad you could adjust the recipe to your tastes, Lauren. Sounds like it came out great!
Wow, this was such a delicious dinner. We added the smoky sweet corn hummus from love&lemons — worth a try if you haven’t had it yet. The corn salad was truly amazing, I am already looking forward to leftovers tomorrow!
That combination sounds absolutely heavenly, Amanda! I’ll have to try it.
Made this tonight, it was really delicious! Didn’t have a jalapeno but had 3 Anaheim chilli’s so I roasted those with the corn on the grill. Deseeded and skinned the chilli’s before adding to the corn salsa. So delicious!!!
Ooh, roasted chilis sound amazing with this, Joey! Yum.
What’s the deal with the cilantro? There was an asterisk but no corresponding footnote. I can’t make this recipe with that hanging over me
Made these tonight. LOVE!!!! Next time I will double the corn salad since I ate half of it straight out of the bowl. So simple and delicious.
So easy to make and yummy!
Thank you, Robyn!
I have noticed recently I can’t get the nutrition link to come up under a recipe. I really need this as I am suposed to be eating limited carbs. Is there a problem with the nutrition link or is it on my end. I have recommended your recipes and book to so many people everywhere and love your recipes. It would just really help me if I could see the nutrition again. Thanks again, Ann High.
Are you clicking the nutrition information header? It’s hidden unless clicked on. Also, make sure you are enabling cookies in your browser as the nutritional information is using a plug-in.
I have always just clicked on the header before and it came down but it just won’t anymore. As far as I know my cookies are enenabled. I will try to check that out further but I could get the nutritaional information until about a week ago. I love all your recipes.
Hi Kate
I live in England. My husband is from Wisconsin. I enjoy your blog and your recipes are great. Tonight I just made your Sweetcorn and Blackbean tacos. They were so delicious. I am also going the ‘almost vegan’ way with my husband. Being from the dairy state he can’t give up all cheese!.
Look forward to more recipes.
Mandy x
Wonderful! Thank you, Mandy.
This recipe is incredibly easy and is a highly addictive, delicious meal. I stuffed myself! I’ve printed it and added it to the back of your Love Real Food cookbook. My most used cookbook, by the way! I don’t know how you do it, but your recipes never disappoint.
Love hearing that, Midori! Thanks for the comment and support.
I made these for dinner last night, and they’re going into my regular rotation! The corn salsa was so good that I’m making a second batch this weekend to eat with chips!
Love hearting that, Stephanie! Thanks so much for your review and comment.
How many calories does 3 tacos have?
You can divide the nutrition information by two, if you like, to get the per taco basis since a serving is two taco. Hope this helps!
That corn. Holy. Yum.
The first time I made it, I only had corn, lime, and cilantro. That was delicious! (And also eye opening… I didn’t realize you could eat corn raw!)
Then a few days ago, I was at my non-vegan parents’ house and my mom was making tacos. She sent me to the store to pick up some ingredients, so I bought the stuff to make the corn “relish” (for lack of a better word) too. Wow! My whole family gobbled it right up! They put it on their tacos and ate it straight out of the bowl with chips! It’s so light and fresh!
I left out the oil (I’m doing the no oil thing WFPB thing) and the feta (obvs). Still completely fantastic!
Thanks for sharing, Sara!
cant wait to make these! is the corn cooked or raw?
This is raw corn. :)
I’ve made this recipes a four or five now over the past couple of months. It’s definitely a favorite in our house. When I don’t add the feta, I double the amount of lime to make up for the zing that the feta otherwise provides.
I also make my own corn tortillas (if you don’t do this, you should. You will NEVER buy those rubbery Mission ones ever again), which really add a flavor punch. Sometimes I add a little extra red onion to the slaw… to stretch the slaw further and to add some extra bulk.
This recipes makes 10 very, very, very stuffed tacos. My homemade tortillas are a bit bigger than the standard,and they barely fit everything. If you’re concerned this may not be enough for four people (or two people over two meals :) ), don’t be; you can definitely stretch this to more than 10.
Nice, no feta, double the zing with lime juice. I will have to try that! Thanks for your comment and review, Heather.
These were a big hit with my family! Thank you!
Wonderful to hear! Thank you!
We loved this recipe!!! And so easy to make!! I used queso fresco instead of the feta cheese. My 17-year old gladly eat the leftovers for lunch the next day. Yum!
Leftovers are truly delicious! Thanks for your review, Marisa.
We made this tonight and even my picky kids ate it, which I was surprised about. One of them just ate theirs with the beans, but that works for me. We might try the suggested pickled ingredients next time in place of feta for my husband who is dairy free. I am happy that we got a bonus veggie in there – the radishes.
Parent win! I love that. Thanks for sharing, Anni.
Great recipe! I used frozen corn since corn on the Cobb is not in season. It was still delicious! I can only imagine how good it would be with fresh corn!
Great! That sounds like a good solution. Thanks for your review!
This has been my favorite taco recipe for a little bit now. I just prefer to use cotija cheese over feta. Incredibly delicious, thanks for the recipe!
Sounds like a great substitute! Thanks for sharing, Monica.
My picky eater husband LOVED these. My kids LOVED these. And I LOVED these. Pretty easy, super tasty. Very similar to our favorite local taco spot (I used cojita cheese instead of feta and added a little avocado to the corn salsa).
Great, Liz!
Perfect summer weeknight dinner! Super quick to make and very satisfying!
Thanks for your review, Monica!
This was SO GOOD! My husband doesn’t like corn but he really liked this. He had his as tacos but I put the black beans and corn salsa over top of kale.
My corn had gone bad by the time I made this recipe, so I used a cup of frozen corn and rinsed it under running water for a minute until it was thawed. I had a ripe tomato from the garden and added this as well. You could make this as a dip and use tortilla chips to eat it with. To do that, you’d want to go with 1/2 cup of water to the beans so they weren’t too think.
This was so good that I am going to make it a 2nd time later in the week. :)
Thank you for sharing! I’m glad you loved it, Lynda. Thanks for sharing how you made this one work for you.
I made these tacos last night! BEST tacos I have ever had! I also made some pineapple salsa to put on top. I invited my parents over, and they rated them a 5 out of 5! These will be made again, very soon!
Great to hear, Lea!
I didn’t have the radishes and missed them but this was still delish without them!
Thank you for your review, Lindalee!
Absolutely amazing. So delicious. Very easy. New favorite!
Thank you for your review, Kirsten!
Can I use frozen corn?
I prefer fresh corn here, but I know others have tried it and liked it! Let me know what you think, VT.
Delicious! Next time I’ll double the corn — my family thought the corn to bean ratio should be higher. These were so yummy and made great use of our local corn!
Plus, I never knew corn was so delicious raw! You learn something new every day. :D
I’m sorry it wasn’t an immediate hit, but that sounds like a great way to adjust to your taste. Thank you for your feedback, Amy!
These are AMAZING! I’ve been trying to make more vegetarian dinners, and your blog is my go-to. I love every recipe!!
Thanks for sharing such delicious, easy to make dishes! :)
Wonderful, Mary! Thank you for sharing.