Corn & Beans Two Ways (Salad & Heated)
Corn is a bit of a keto no-no. However, if you are strategic, it can be fit into a keto diet when combined with other very low carb ingredients and if not used in too large of quantities. This dish is a touch high in carbs because I've chosen to make corn a main feature. It can be eaten as a full meal for those with a higher carb limit, or divided into 5 servings and enjoyed as a side dish, the macros for the latter option can be found below the recipe. A higher carb soy-free option is also provided below the recipe. In the mood for something chilled and refreshing? Make the salad. Chilly weather have you yearning for for something warm and comforting? Make the heated version. Whatever season it may be, happy eating!
Yield: 3 servings of about 1⅓ cups (215g) each, totaling 4 cups (645g)
Macros (per serving of dressed salad & heated dish): 390 calories | 25g protein | 26g fat | 12g net carbs
Macros (per serving of undressed salad - 195g): 300 calories | 24g protein | 16g fat | 11g net carbs
Macros (per tablespoon dressing): 55 calories |0.5g protein | 5.5g fat | 0.5g net carbs ✎
Prep: 20 minutes for salad and 30 minutes for heated dish
Storage: undressed salad, salad dressing, and heated dish can be stored, refrigerated, for up to 3 days. Dressed salad can be stored for up to 24 hours.
Macros (per serving of dressed salad & heated dish): 390 calories | 25g protein | 26g fat | 12g net carbs
Macros (per serving of undressed salad - 195g): 300 calories | 24g protein | 16g fat | 11g net carbs
Macros (per tablespoon dressing): 55 calories |0.5g protein | 5.5g fat | 0.5g net carbs ✎
Prep: 20 minutes for salad and 30 minutes for heated dish
Storage: undressed salad, salad dressing, and heated dish can be stored, refrigerated, for up to 3 days. Dressed salad can be stored for up to 24 hours.
Salad
Ingredients:
- ⅓ cup (53g) pumpkin seeds, toasted ✎
- 1½ cups (258g) cooked & cooled soybeans
- 1 cup (164g) drained sugar-free canned corn (about ½ of a 15.25-ounce [432g] can) ✎
- ½ medium (59g) red pepper, diced (about ½ cup)
- 1 medium (25g) deseeded jalapeño pepper, diced (about ¼ cup) or ¼ medium (30g) green pepper
- 1 medium (15g) green onion, chopped (about ¼ cup)
- ¼ cup (5g) cilantro leaves, chopped (a decent-sized handful will do the trick)
- 2 tablespoons (30ml) light olive oil or neutral-flavored oil of choice
- 2 tablespoons (30ml) lime juice (about 1 medium lime)
- 2 teaspoons nutritional yeast flakes
- 1 teaspoon chili powder ✎
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- ¼ to ½ teaspoon salt ✎
Directions:
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C), spread the pumpkin seeds out in a single layer on a baking sheet/pan, and toast for 5 to 7 minutes. Monitor carefully to prevent burning. Allow to cool once toasted.
- Meanwhile, prepare the red pepper, jalapeño, green onion, and cilantro as per the ingredient list. Then, put these and the beans and corn in a salad serving bowl or medium-sized mixing bowl.
- Whisk together the remaining ingredients, i.e. the dressing ingredients, in a small bowl.
- Add the pumpkin seeds and dressing the the salad bowl and mix thoroughly.
- Divide into 5 servings and enjoy cold.
Heated
Ingredients:
Overall, the ingredients remain very similar for this variation. Replace the olive oil with vegan butter (unless you prefer to use oil instead), reduce the lime juice to 1 tablespoon (15ml), and increase the nutritional yeast to 2 tablespoons (10g). Salt to taste once cooked.
Directions:
Overall, the ingredients remain very similar for this variation. Replace the olive oil with vegan butter (unless you prefer to use oil instead), reduce the lime juice to 1 tablespoon (15ml), and increase the nutritional yeast to 2 tablespoons (10g). Salt to taste once cooked.
Directions:
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C), spread the pumpkin seeds out in a single layer on a baking sheet/pan, and toast for 5 to 7 minutes. Monitor carefully to prevent burning.
- Meanwhile, prepare the red pepper and jalapeño as per the ingredient list.
- Put the beans, corn, red pepper, jalapeño, chili powder, and cumin in a small saucepan. Add a splash of water or liquid from the can of corn. Cover with a well-fitted lid and heat on medium-low for 7 to 10 minutes, or until peppers are desired tenderness. Stir occasionally and adjust heat as necessary.
- Meanwhile, prepare the green onion and cilantro as per the ingredient list.
- Add the butter, nutritional yeast, lime juice, and pumpkin seeds to the pan. Cook for an additional 1 to 3 minutes, or until no water remains. Stir often.
- Salt to taste and then divide evenly between 5 small bowls and top with the green onion and cilantro. Enjoy warm.
Make It a Side: divide the recipe into 5 servings of ¾ cup (130g) each.
Macros (dressed salad & heated): 235 calories | 15g protein | 15g fat | 7g net carbs
Macros (undressed salad - 115g): 180 calories | 14g protein | 10g fat | 6.5g net carbs
Macros (dressed salad & heated): 235 calories | 15g protein | 15g fat | 7g net carbs
Macros (undressed salad - 115g): 180 calories | 14g protein | 10g fat | 6.5g net carbs
Soy-Free (Carb-Booster): replace the soybeans with a 15-ounce [425g] can of drained and rinsed black beans (about 1½ cups [258g]).
Macros (per 1 of 3 servings of dressed salad & heated): 360 calories | 16g protein | 19g fat | 24g net carbs
Macros (per 1 of 3 servings of undressed salad): 270 calories | 15g protein | 9g fat | 22g net carbs
Macros (per 1 of 5 servings of dressed salad & heated): 215 calories | 9.5g protein | 12g fat | 14g net carbs
Macros (per 1 of 5 servings of undressed salad): 165 calories | 9g protein | 5.5g fat | 13g net carbs
Macros (per 1 of 3 servings of dressed salad & heated): 360 calories | 16g protein | 19g fat | 24g net carbs
Macros (per 1 of 3 servings of undressed salad): 270 calories | 15g protein | 9g fat | 22g net carbs
Macros (per 1 of 5 servings of dressed salad & heated): 215 calories | 9.5g protein | 12g fat | 14g net carbs
Macros (per 1 of 5 servings of undressed salad): 165 calories | 9g protein | 5.5g fat | 13g net carbs
✎ Notes:
- The recipe makes just under 5 tablespoons of dressing. The macros given here are for a fifth of the dressing. To bring it up to a full 5 tablespoons for portioning purposes, you could add a half tablespoon more or lime juice or water.
- Toasting pumpkin seeds is optional, but I highly recommend the crunch and depth of flavor toasting brings. They can also be bought toasted in some supermarkets or online.
- Be sure to check the ingredients in corn. It's very common for sugar to be added to canned and frozen corn.
- Chili powder is a common North American spice blend. It's not just powdered chilis. Recipes for this blend can be found online or in my first book, Keto for Vegans: Book 1. It can also be replaced with a taco or fajita seasoning blend. Beware of blends with a high starch content.
- The amount of salt you need for this recipe will depend on whether there was salt in your corn and beans. For the heated dish, it will also depend of how salted your butter is.
- Macros for this recipes are calculated with American national nutritional data (i.e. NCCDB & USDA entries in Cronometer) for all ingredients apart from pumpkin seeds (Bob's Redmill) and nutritional yeast flakes (blend of Bob's Redmill and Foods Alive unfortified).
- Macro numbers are rounded. Numbers equal to or greater than 10g are rounded to the nearest whole number (e.g. 10g, 11g, 12g, etc.) and numbers below 10g are rounded to the nearest 0.5g (0.5g, 1g, 1.5g ... 9g, 9.5g). Any numbers below 0.5g are given as is (e.g. 0.1g, 0.2g, etc.). Calories are rounded to the nearest multiple of 5.
