Cool and Fresh Corn Chip Salad

Are you planning a get together for Independence Day or a special family day? Are you tired of taking the same old dish to gatherings? Are you looking for a recipe you can just throw together in the blink of an eye? If you answered “YES” to any of those questions, boy do I have a special treat for you with this Corn Chip Salad recipe.

I shared this recipe several years ago, and I wanted to update it to how I make it now. I found this recipe in a local paper we received when we lived in Montana. Of all the recipes shared that week, this one caught my eye.

I’m warning you now – you WILL have to control yourself when you eat this because it is just so good. The first time I made a trial dish, I was home alone. Can you guess what that means? Before I even realized what happened, I had about 4 tablespoons left. I ate the whole bowl by myself, I’m ashamed to admit it, but I did.

My husband and son loved it so much, I made it three times in 2 days when I first found the recipe. It was that good!

The original recipe called for adding the crushed corn chips to the salad, but I was afraid they would become soggy while sitting in the refrigerator. Who am I kidding? The salad never sat in the refrigerator long enough for the chips to become soggy.

One other change I made is salsa. I added 1/2 cup of salsa and it took the salad up a notch. If you have no salsa on hand or the ingredients to make your own, don’t worry because the salad will still be out of this world. I’ve tried store bought salsa and my homemade salsa in this salad, honestly, homemade salsa gives this salad a better taste. But if you use store bought salsa, you won’t be disappointed.

I don’t know about you, but sometimes I forget to buy corn chips. I only buy them for this recipe, so I have forgotten to grab a bag. Tortilla chips work well in this salad. In fact, my husband and son had rather use them to scoop the salad. I keep a bag of crushed chips so I can added them to the corn mixture when a small serving is being eaten.

Many years ago, I took a class on food safety. Because of that class, any non-cooked recipe that calls for a canned food item, I boil that canned food and let it cool down. You never know if botulism is hanging out in a can. It’s better to be safe than sorry, especially when others are eating what you prepare.

If I take this salad to a church fellowship or family get together, I mix everything and add the crushed chips right before serving. This will keep them from becoming soggy before anyone has a chance to eat this wonderful concoction.

One last yummy note about this salad. I love sweet bell peppers. Red, yellow, and orange bell peppers are perfect for this dish. In my pictures, I used red. I also realize I forgot to add the cheese before I took the pictures. Don’t forget the cheese, because it helps rock this salad.

Corn Chip Salad

Ingredients:2 cans whole kernel corn, drained2 cups shredded cheddar cheese1 cup mayonnaise1 bell pepper, chopped1 medium sweet onion, chopped½ cup of medium or hot salsa1 bag corn chips, crushed

Directions:

In a medium pan, boil the corn as you normally would. Drain, and rinse in cold water.

In a medium bowl, mix everything together except for the crushed corn chips. Refrigerate. Right before serving, stir in the chips.