Kidney Friendly Corn and Black Bean Salsa

This low sodium Black Bean Salsa recipe is a great option to bring to parties or picnics where you want a kidney-friendly option that everyone will enjoy.

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About the Corn and Black Bean Salsa Ingredients:

• Canned Black Beans – If you’re following a predominantly plant-based diet, then beans are an essential food to include to ensure that you get all of the essential amino acids that your body needs. Beans are also an excellent source of fiber. If you’ve taken our course, you know how important fiber can be to maintaining good potassium levels. When buying your beans, be sure to find ‘No Salt Added’ canned beans (they exist!). Canned beans are usually loaded with unnecessary salt – even the ones that claim to be lower in sodium. If you prefer to use dried beans, just know that they will probably be higher in potassium. If you choose to do this, I would recommend switching out the cooking water at least once to encourage more potassium to leach out. So, for example, you would simmer them for 45 minutes, then drain them, add more water, and simmer for another 45 minutes (or until tender), then drain them again.
• Canned Corn – If you want to keep this Black Bean Salsa completely no-cooking-required, then opt for canned corn. Be sure to find a canned corn with no salt added to avoid unnecessary sodium that doesn’t improve the flavor of the dish.
• Red onion – I prefer to use red onion in this recipe because I enjoy the stronger flavor (as well as the added color). If you don’t like the strong flavor, consider chopping it up the day before and storing overnight in the fridge covered in water. The water will mellow out the flavor. Then you can just drain them and add to the salsa mix. A note about chopping – I tend to chop my veggies smaller for this recipe so that they are a similar size to the corn and beans.
• Red Bell Pepper – you can use any color bell pepper, but since I already have yellow corn and green cilantro, I opter to go for the red. Bell peppers are a great choice for people with CKD since they are packed full of vitamins and antioxidants. Again, I tend to chop these on the smaller side with this salsa because I like all my ingredients to be a similar size.
• Cilantro – leafy, green cilantro will add some great color and flavor to our corn and black bean salsa (not to mention the vitamins and antioxidants).
• Avocado – Avocado adds beautiful green color, and creamy, healthy fats to our dip. When choosing an avocado, be sure the skin is dark and slightly soft when pressed. If it is hard, it is not ripe and if it is too soft, then it is probably overripe and will be brown on the inside.
• Lime Juice – the acidity in lime juice does two important things in this recipe. First, it adds flavor! But secondly, the antioxidants in the lime juice help prevent the avocado from oxidizing or turning brown.
• Olive oil – olive adds flavor and healthy fats to our dish. The extra calories from the olive oil help balance out the higher protein corn and black beans, so don’t skimp on the olive oil. Additionally, olive oil will also help prevent avocado from browning by forming a barrier over the avocado and keeping oxygen from getting to it. The avocao will still probably start to brown after a day or so, but it will still taste good for up to three days.
• Cayenne pepper – this adds a little kick to the salsa and really allows you to get away with using less salt, without worrying that your dish will be bland. You can also dice up some jalapeno and add that to the salsa if you want to add some more spice
• Cumin – LIke the cayenne pepper, using cumin adds more flavor without having to use more salt.
• Salt – not pictured, but I do add some salt to the dish. If you prefer to use less, thats fine! Or if you have some discretionary salt in your day from choosing lower sodium foods at other meals and snack and you want your salsa to taste saltier, you can use some of that here. I personally enjoyed the recipe as is, with no additional salt.

How should I serve Corn and Black Bean Salsa?

I personally serve mine with low sodium corn tortilla chips. And the good news about corn chips is that the vast majority of corn chips on the market are considered low sodium foods and do not contain additives. I recommend skipping the flavored tortilla chips because those are most likely to contain phosphorus additives and too much sodium (plus, we don’t need flavored chips because we have this delicious salsa!).

Corn and Black Bean Salsa

Recipe by Lauren Gleason, Registered Dietitian and Certified Specialist in Renal Nutrition

Nutrition:

Calories: 298

Protein: 7g

Carbohydrates: 27g

Fiber: 8g

Sugar: 5g

Fat: 19g

Sodium: 241mg

Potassium: 523mg

Phos: 131mg

Bioavailable Phos: 39mg

Calcium: 33mg

Course: SIdes, MainDiet: CKD Non-DIalysisDifficulty: Easy

Nutrition:

Calories: 298

Protein: 7g

Carbohydrates: 27g

Fiber: 8g

Sugar: 5g

Fat: 19g

Sodium: 241mg

Potassium: 523mg

Phos: 131mg

Bioavailable Phos: 39mg

Calcium: 33mg

Servings

5

servings

Prep time

10

minutes

Cooking time

0

minutes

Total time

10

minutes

Ingredients

• 1 can no salt added black beans, rinsed and drained

• 1 can no salt added corn, rinsed and drained

• 1 red bell pepper, chopped

• 1 red onion, chopped

• 1/3 cup olive oil

• 3 T lime juice

• 1/2 cup cilantro, chopped

• 1/4 t ground cayenne pepper

• 1/2 t ground cumin

• 1/2 t salt

• 1 avocado, cubed

Directions

• Add all ingredients to a large mixing bowl.
• Gently stir to evenly mix all ingredients.
• Serve and enjoy (or cover and store in the fridge for up to 3 days). Note that avocado will start to brown, but can still be eaten.

Notes

• Makes approximately five 1-cup servings.