Healthy Mexican Side Dish Recipes

This easy, fresh tomato salsa is delicious on tacos, tostadas or simply served with tortilla chips. Since the heat of jalapeños varies, start with one, taste, then add more if you want it hotter. For a sweet-tangy variation, add about 1 cup diced fresh fruit, such as pineapple, mango or peach.

The combination of whole-grain brown rice and fiber-rich beans makes this a nutritionally super side dish. And because we use instant brown rice and canned beans, it's also super-fast. Try it with pork or chicken, or sprinkle with cheese and wrap in a flour tortilla for lunch or a vegetarian supper.

An easy, tasty way to jazz up canned refried and pinto beans for the perfect side to accompany any Tex-Mex meal. Opt for fat-free refried beans and no-salt-added pinto beans to keep this dish as healthy as possible.

In this easy quinoa recipe, tomatillos work double-duty: some are pureed to flavor the cooking liquid, others are chopped and stirred in raw for color and texture. Serve with grilled chicken, steak or fish, and a dollop of sour cream.

Make this spicy poblano, corn, black bean and quinoa salad recipe to serve with whatever you're grilling, or have a larger portion as a main dish. To use canned beans, skip Step 1 and add about 2 1/2 cups beans in Step 7.

This healthy spinach salad recipe uses one avocado two ways: half goes into a healthy creamy ranch dressing and the other half of the avocado gets chopped to top the spinach salad.

These easy black beans are the perfect accompaniment to any Mexican fiesta.

Freshly harvested corn, charred green chiles and roasted tomatoes make this corn salad recipe a must-make for any summer potluck. Serve with grilled steak or chicken, as a taco topping or with tortilla chips as a dip.

Street vendors across Mexico sell this style of roasted or grilled corn--topped with mayonnaise, chili powder and Cotija cheese. You can serve the unadorned corn on a platter with small bowls of the sauce, cheese and lime on the side so everyone can make their own.

Zesty and cheesy, this casserole is easy to make ahead of time for entertaining.

Eating shishito or Padrón peppers can be a bit of a gamble. Most of them are quite mild, but every once in a while--BAM!--you get a hot one. If you're not up for that game, you can just go for all baby bells in this healthy side dish recipe. Find shishitos, Padróns and baby bells at large supermarkets, specialty stores and farmers' markets.

These spicy pickled vegetables are like a Mexican version of Italian giardiniera and are delicious with tacos and as a condiment for any sandwich or burger. The recipe makes a large batch but it keeps well in the refrigerator. Packed into glass jars, it makes a nice gift.

Serve this salsa as a dip for chips or as a relish to accompany grilled pork tenderloin or chicken.

This hot salsa recipe is typically made in a large molcajete (lava-rock mortar and pestle), but this recipe calls for a food processor or blender to make it easier. If you have a molcajete, feel free to use it instead. If you can't find the bright orange manzano chiles, sold at Mexican grocery stores, double the amount of jalapeño (or for a hotter salsa, double the habanero).

Crunchy jícama and carrots combine with a zesty dressing for a terrific summer side dish. It can be made ahead--perfect for summer potlucks.

This quick broccoli side dish recipe gets heat from your choice of pepper. If you prefer things on the mild side, use a mini red bell pepper instead of the chile pepper. Serve alongside roasted chicken or salmon or toss with pearled barley for a healthy grain salad.

The bright assorted colors of rainbow chard are especially lovely in this spicy, cheesy dish. Make a double batch and enjoy it as a quesadilla filling, as we did often in the Test Kitchen for lunch.

Here we serve roasted pears with arugula and mixed greens and an agave-sweetened pomegranate dressing. The chipotle in the dressing gives a hint of smokiness and just a touch of heat that is wonderful with sweet pear. Apples may be used in place of the pears. Adapted from Cooking with the Seasons at Rancho La Puerta: Recipes from the World-Famous Spa (Stewart, Tabori & Chang, 2008) by Deborah Szekely and Deborah M. Schneider with Chef Jesús González, Chef of La Cocina Que Canta.

Serve topped with salsa. Accompany with warmed flour tortillas and a grated carrot salad.

Quesadillas are a terrific quick snack to feed the family. They're also great served alongside chili or southwestern stews.

Crunchy jicama and apple plus oranges and avocado combine in this crisp and refreshing dairy-free slaw.

Refried beans are always fried in lard or bacon drippings in Mexico and the Southwest. In this recipe their flavor comes from the cumin and chili, which are sauteed with them, and from the garlic, onion and cilantro, which are simmered with them in the boiling water.

To reduce the fat in these tortillas, we added a little flour to canola oil and froze the mixture so it would act like shortening.

This version of tamales, made into a casserole rather than little cornhusk-wrapped bundles, can be whipped up in minutes and has the same great taste and texture of traditional tamales. It's filled with shrimp here, but this is a forgiving recipe that works well stuffed with whatever you like. Quick-cooking seafood, such as scallops, cheese or even some of the mole also make great fillings. Serve the casserole topped with Three Sisters Black Mole or your favorite salsa. Adapted from Chef Jesús González, Chef of La Cocina Que Canta at Rancho La Puerta.