When late summer rolls around, I’m always on the hunt for creative ways to use the abundance of sweet corn that descends upon the supermarket shelves.
Last summer, I developed my charred corn salad with sun-dried tomatoes and it’s still one of my favourites. But this year, I made this corn salad with lentils and I’m absolutely thrilled with the results.
Charred corn is combined with tender green lentils and tossed in a zingy lemon dressing. It’s also packed with Mediterranean spices like za’atar and sumac and plenty of fresh herbs. It’s quick and easy to make and sure to become one of your favourite side dishes.
How to Make Lentil Corn Salad
The first step is cooking your lentils – I like using green lentils here as they hold their shape and retain their texture really well.
Simply rinse them, then add them to a small saucepan covered in cool water. Set the pan over high heat, cover and bring to a boil.
Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook the lentils for about 10 minutes – or until tender but they still retain a bite. Drain them and set them aside.
While the lentils are cooking, you can make the dressing and char the corn.
To make the dressing, add some fresh lemon juice, a squeeze of honey and some Dijon mustard to a large salad bowl. Grate in a couple of cloves of garlic and whisk to combine. Now, whisking constantly, stream in some olive oil.
To char the corn, add a bit of neutral oil to a large skillet – I like using cast iron. Once smoking, add the corn and cook, stirring occasionally, until it begins to char in places – this will take a few minutes.
Off heat, stir in some ground cumin, smoked paprika, za’atar and sumac. Add the corn to the dressing.
To the bowl, also add in your cooked lentils and some chopped fresh parsley, cilantro and oregano. Season generously with salt and pepper and then toss to combine.
You can now serve the salad immediately or it will keep well in the fridge (in an airtight container) for a few days!
Mediterranean Corn & Lentil Salad
Ingredients
- 125 g (⅔ cup) dried green lentils
- 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- ½ tsp honey or agave nectar
- ½ tsp dijon mustard
- 2 cloves garlic grated
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 2-3 ears corn kernels removed from cob
- 1 tbsp za'atar
- ½ tsp ground cumin
- ½ tsp smoked paprika
- ½ tsp sumac
- 3 tbsp flat-leaf parsley chopped
- 1 tbsp cilantro chopped
- 1 tbsp fresh oregano choppped
Instructions
- Add the lentils to a small saucepan and cover with cool water. Cover the pan and set over high heat. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to medium-low and cook for 10 minutes. Drain.
- While the lentils are cooking, add the lemon juice, mustard, honey and garlic to a large salad bowl. Whisk to combine. Whisking constantly, stream in the olive oil.
- Add 2 tbsp of neutral oil to a large skillet (preferably cast iron). Set over high heat. Once the oil is near smoking, add the corn along with a generous pinch of salt. Cook the corn, stirring occasionally, until it begins to turn deep brown and char in parts, about 5-8 minutes.
- Remove the corn from the heat and stir in the cumin, paprika and sumac along with a few generous grinds of black pepper. Add to the salad bowl with the dressing.
- Add the cooked lentils, parsley, cilantro and oregano. Toss to combine. Taste to adjust for seasoning, adding more salt ad pepper if necessary.
Nutrition
Disclaimer: Nutritional information is automatically generated and provided as guidance only. Accuracy is not guaranteed.
And that is all there is to making a delicious corn and lentil salad. It’s great as a side dish, but it also works well as part of a light lunch!
Are you looking for a salad with corn and lentils? Have any questions? Let me know in the comments!
