Easy Mexican Street Corn Salad Recipe (Ensalada de Elote)

An old fashioned white bowl filled with creamy Mexican Street Corn salad.

5 from 1 vote

Easy Mexican Street Corn Salad Recipe (Ensalada de Elote)

This easy side dish turns the popular street food, Mexican street corn, into an addictive, delicious salad. Lightly creamy and spicy with a little tang, it's a recipe you'll make again and again.

Prep Time20

Cook Time10

Total Time30

Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: Mexican

Keyword: Mexican Street Corn Salad

Servings:

Calories: 170.6kcal

Author: Susan Pridmore

Equipment

Outside grill or large nonstick skillet
Chef's knife
Large bowl
small bowl
Whisk

Ingredients

4 ears fresh corn, husked or 8 cups frozen corn
1 teaspoon avocado oil or other high heat cooking oil
¼ cup mayonnaise
¼ cup sour cream or Mexican Crema
3 cloves garlic, minced
4 tablespoons lime juice
¼ teaspoon smoked paprika
¼ teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt or ½ teaspoon sea salt
⅓ cup thinly sliced scallions also called green onions and spring onions
⅓ cup crumbled Cotija cheese or queso fresco or feta cheese
⅓ cup finely chopped cilantro the leaves and tender stems
1 medium jalapeño pepper, seeded and diced

Instructions

Grill method: Preheat your grill to medium-high heat. Brush the corn with olive oil and grill for 2 minutes per side, or until you see char marks.
Remove from grill and set aside until cool enough to handle.
Stove top method: Slice the corn kernels from the cobs using a chef's knife. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium high heat and add half of the olive oil. When the oil is hot, add half of the corn kernels and sauté until lightly charred.
Transfer to a large bowl. Repeat with the remaining olive oil and corn kernels. Set aside to slightly cool while you make the dressing.
Whisk together the mayo, sour cream, garlic, lime juice, smoked paprika, chili powder, and salt in a small bowl to make a creamy dressing.
Stir half of the dressing into the charred corn kernels and toss to coat using a wooden spoon.
Add the scallions, Cotija cheese, cilantro, and jalapeño pepper and stir well to coat. Add more dressing as desired. This is a creamy side dish but don't worry if you don't need all of the dressing.
Season to taste.
Serve immediately or cover with plastic and refrigerate for up to 4 hours for the best results.

Notes

🧅 Main Ingredients + Notes

Sweet corn - I use fresh sweet corn (white corn) in this recipe but frozen white corn will work fine. This recipe calls for 8 ears of corn which equates to 8 cups of corn kernels.
Cotija cheese - Salty cotija cheese keeps the recipe true to Mexican street corn sold by vendors in Mexico, but you can also use feta cheese. You need the saltiness of cheese to make this recipe work.
Fresh cilantro - For those of you who don't like cilantro, use flat leaf parsley instead.
Scallions - These can also called be called green onions or spring onions in your grocery stores. White onions also work well. An alternative that I haven't tried, but should work fine, is red onion. Do not use yellow onions.
Lime juice - It may initially feel like a lot of lime juice, but once the salad is dressed, it's the perfect balance.

Nutrition