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With dozens of five-star reviews, you can see why this famous Mexican bean salad is a family staple! It’s packed with fresh and simple ingredients, can be made in advance, and gets better with time (hello, meal prep!).
save this recipe!This salad will be the only bean salad you ever need to bring to a potluck. Ever since I can remember, my mom has always made this Mexican Bean Salad recipe for any sort of neighborhood party or cookout (and that’s before dense bean salads were cool).
So if you, too, want to be the hit of the party, this bean salad is your ticket. (Enjoy any leftovers, if you have them, with bean and cheese tacos.)
Reader rating
“OMG! I made this as a side dish with burgers and hotdogs, needless to say it went real fast! Made this with pinto beans. It was so good and very easy. I’ll be making this again!” —Samantha
Dense bean salad…more than just beans!
Jump to the recipe card for all of he measurements and printable instructions!
- Beans: We’ll use a combination of red beans (either pinto beans or red kidney beans) and black beans. You could also use cannellini beans or chickpeas here!
- Pepper: All the peppers! Jalapeno brings zing while red bell pepper adds crunch. Feel free to add your favorite type of pepper for extra spice!
- Corn: Fresh, from a can, or even frozen. Anything goes!
- Onion: We’ll use red onions, but you could also use shallots for a milder flavor.
- Cilantro: Negotiably the most important ingredient. Don’t skimp on this one! I don’t recommend using parsley in its place, but if you despise cilantro and want a fresh herbs element, that’s your best bet!
- Bean Salad Dressing: Tying everything together with a quick spiced vinegar dressing with a bit of sugar, cumin, and pepper.
Meal Prep It
Combine this Bean Salad with your favorite grain for a flavorful meal prep idea!
Mexican Dense Bean Salad (10 Minutes)
Ingredients
Dressing
- ½ cup white vinegar, 120 mL
- ¼ cup vegetable oil, 60 mL
- 1 Tbsp sugar
- 2 tsp ground cumin
- ½ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp ground black pepper
Salad
- 2 15-oz cans pinto or kidney beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 15-oz can black beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 15-oz can corn, drained
- 1 red bell pepper, diced
- ½ medium red onion, finely diced
- 2 jalapenos, seeded and finely chopped
- ¼ cup fresh cilantro
Instructions
- Dressing: Whisk together the Dressing ingredients. Set aside.
- Salad: Toss together the Salad ingredients.
- Combine: Mix the dressing into the salad mixture. Cover and refrigerate for an hour to allow flavors to mix (can skip this step if necessary). Keep in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5-7 days.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information calculated by Sarah Bond, degreed nutritionist.
did you make this?Leave a comment below and tag @liveeatlearn on social media! I love seeing what you’ve made!
Tastes like Costco cowboy caviar—/- very good! EAsy! My adult kids and spouse compliment this ( thanks so much for sharing)
This is absolutely delicious and so healthy!! I didn’t have kidney beans and used Chickpea’s and don’t like jalapenos – it was really good. Gonna make this again. Thank you!
This was easy and delicious! I didn’t have red bell peppers on hand nor jalpenos peppers. I used a can of diced tomatoes with green chilies instead. It was delicious!
Thanks for sharing!
I’m so happy to hear it, Judi!
Delicious and easy!
Hi, this recipe looks great! Do you know about how long it will stay good for?
It’s on of our fav’s! About 1 week in the fridge!
So I absolutely had my reservations on this one as the only time I use cumin is in Indian recipes. I used rice vinegar and didn’t have fresh jalapeños so I used pickled jalapeños and omg…so good!!!
I’m so happy to hear it, Veronica! Thanks so much for letting us know how it went! 😀
This was delicious. I thought the cumin would spoil it for me. No way. I used navy beans instead of second can of kidney, still have to get the corn but we are eating it now. Yummy
OMG! I made this as a side dish with burgers and hotdogs, needless to say it went real fast! Made this with pinto beans. It was so good and very easy. I’ll be making this again!
Thank you
GREAT Summer time salad, pairs well with any grilled item too.
Would the dressing taste the same if I substitute olive oil instead of the vegetable oil?
It would be about the same! 😀
This recipe is less oil and sugar than my previous recipe but I don’t miss it. Yum