Spring Chopped Salad

This salad is one of my favorites from Martha Stewart — a bright, crunchy medley of chopped veggies perfect for spring and summer. It features sweet, blistered corn, crisp green and wax beans, juicy tomatoes, colorful peppers, cool cucumbers, red onion, and fresh cilantro. Best of all, it comes together in about 30 minutes, is served chilled, and adds a lively, refreshing touch to any warm-weather meal, picnic, or potluck spread.

Fresh, crisp, and bursting with peak-season veggies, Martha Stewart’s chopped vegetable salad is exactly the kind of simple dish you want when the weather warms up. The star here is sweet corn, blistered just right, combined with crunchy green and wax beans, ripe tomatoes, vibrant peppers, cucumber, red onion, and fragrant cilantro, all lightly tossed in an easy oil-and-vinegar dressing.

Plan on just around 30 minutes from start to chilled finish. In this section, I’ll guide you through the easy chopping, quick blanching to preserve those bright colors and great crunch, and the simple dressing that lets the veggies take center stage. Plus, I’ll share ways to prep ahead, store it, and simple swaps to make this salad fit your weeknight dinner, next BBQ, or picnic perfectly.

• Time: About 30 minutes total, served chilled and refreshing.
• Technique: Mostly chopping, with a couple quick blanch steps to lock in color and texture.
• Flavor: Fresh and bright with a light dressing that lets the vegetables shine.
• Flexibility: Easy to make more or less, keep chilled for easy transport, or bulk up with protein for a meal.

What Makes It Special

• Bright, seasonal vegetables bursting with color and crisp texture.
• Quick and simple prep — chopping is the main task, plus a couple fast blanch steps.
• A light, straightforward dressing that highlights the veggies instead of overpowering — similar in spirit to our Fruit Salad with Honey Lime Dressing.
• Super versatile: serve as a side, bring along to gatherings (think a potluck-friendly Broccoli Salad), or add protein to turn it into a crowd-pleasing main dish.

Ingredients and Measurements

• coarse salt (for blanching and seasoning)
• 2 ears fresh corn
• pinch of sugar
• 1/2 pound green beans, trimmed and cut into 1/4-inch pieces
• 1/2 pound wax beans, trimmed and cut into 1/4-inch pieces
• 4 plum tomatoes, seeded and chopped into 1/4-inch pieces
• 1 small red bell pepper, seeded, deveined, and diced into 1/4-inch pieces
• 1 small yellow bell pepper, seeded, deveined, and diced into 1/4-inch pieces
• 1 small red onion, chopped into 1/4-inch pieces
• 1 English cucumber, peeled, seeded, and chopped into 1/4-inch pieces
• 3/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
• about 2 teaspoons salt (for dressing) and 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Step-by-Step Preparation

1. Seed tomatoes and cucumbers and peel the cucumber if desired, then trim green and wax beans.
2. Chop all vegetables and herbs into about 1/4-inch pieces so they are uniform in size.
3. Fill a large bowl with ice water and set aside for blanching.

4. Bring a medium pot of salted water to a rolling boil.

   

5. Add the corn and a pinch of sugar to the boiling water and blanch about 6 minutes until tender.
6. Remove the corn and plunge it into the ice water to stop cooking and chill.
7. When cooled, remove the corn from the ice bath and cut the kernels off the cob into a large mixing bowl.

8. Return the pot of water to a boil and add more salt if needed.

   
9. Toss in the trimmed green and wax beans and blanch about 1 minute until just tender.
10. Scoop the beans into the ice bath, cool, drain thoroughly in a colander, then add the beans to the bowl with the corn.
11. Add the chopped tomatoes, red and yellow peppers, red onion, cucumber, and cilantro to the bowl with the corn and beans and stir gently to combine.

12. Whisk together extra-virgin olive oil, rice wine vinegar, salt, and freshly ground black pepper in a small bowl.

    

13. Pour the dressing over the vegetables and toss gently to coat, then taste and adjust seasoning as needed.

    

Tips for Crisp, Fresh Salad

• Cut all your veggies to a similar size — this way every bite tastes perfect with a little bit of everything.
• Seed your tomatoes and cucumbers before chopping to avoid watery salad. Nobody likes soggy greens!
• Don’t skip the ice bath after blanching — it locks in color and crunch so your salad looks and tastes fresh (Spring Pasta Primavera shows the same quick-chill trick).
• Before adding the final salt touch, taste the salad first. Sometimes the natural sweetness from tomatoes or corn means less salt is needed.
• When removing kernels from the corn cob, stand it upright in a shallow bowl. This way, the kernels catch in the bowl instead of flying everywhere! It’s one of my little kitchen hacks I keep coming back to.

Mix-Ins and Flavor Swaps

• If cilantro isn’t your thing, swap it out with flat-leaf parsley or basil for a softer herb note.
• For a creamy twist, mix in crumbled feta or goat cheese. It pairs so well with these fresh veggies.
• Want a heartier salad? Toss in diced avocado, cooked chickpeas, grilled chicken, cooked quinoa, or roasted sweet potatoes to turn it into a filling meal, and finish with a handful of homemade croutons for crunch.
• Like a little heat? Add a minced jalapeño or sprinkle red pepper flakes for some spice.
• If you want to switch up flavors, try lemon juice or apple cider vinegar instead of rice wine vinegar to give the dressing a different kind of zing.

Storing and Serving

Keep your salad fresh by storing it in an airtight container in the fridge. If you can, keep the dressing separate and add it right before serving — this keeps the veggies crisp and crunchy. Once tossed, it’s best eaten within 1–2 days. You can stretch it to 3 days, but the salad might get a bit softer over time. This is definitely a no-reheat kind of salad — serve it chilled or at cool room temperature for the best taste. For a heartier plate, pair it with warm Garlic Bread.

If you want to save time later, blanch the corn and beans and chop all the veggies a day ahead. Store everything chilled in separate containers, then toss with your dressing just before serving — makes weeknight dinners or picnic prep a breeze! For an easy soup-and-salad night, serve it with Spicy Black Bean Soup.

Common Questions Answered

• Can I use frozen corn? Absolutely! Just thaw it well and drain off extra moisture before adding. Fresh corn has the best texture and sweetness, but frozen works perfectly in a pinch.
• Can I leave out the wax beans? Sure thing! You can just use green beans or swap in another crisp veggie like blanched asparagus or snap peas.
• How do I keep the salad from getting watery? The key is seeding your tomatoes and cucumbers, draining blanched veggies well, and ideally dressing the salad right before serving to keep everything crisp.
• Is this recipe vegan and vegetarian? Yes, it’s naturally vegan and vegetarian as is, since the dressing is olive oil and vinegar. Just leave out any cheese if you add it as a variation. If you’d like another plant-based side, try our Easy Asian Cucumber Salad.
• Can I make this for a crowd? Definitely — just multiply the ingredients and serve in a big bowl or platter. It travels well to picnics or potlucks as long as you keep it chilled. For another picnic-friendly dish, our Cabbage Salad holds up beautifully.