Mexican Street Corn Salad Recipe is deconstructed Elote or Mexican Street Corn, a popular Mexican street food, sold by street vendors, and served in a bowl, instead of as corn on the cob, and covered with a fantastic chili lime cream sauce and cotija cheese.
It is one of those delicious recipes with fresh corn, often cooked on an outdoor grill with a little bit of chile powder. If you love my Frito Crack Corn Salad or my Corn And Black Bean Salad, then you’ll love this Mexican Street Corn Salad!
I am blessed to live in a city in South Texas with lots of Mexican food, both Tex-Mex and Mexican as well as Mexican Street Food, which is becoming more popular as we have more food trucks.
However, sometimes I like to make some of my favorite dishes at home and save the money.
Jump to:
- What is Elote or Mexican Street Corn?
- Why is Elote Considered Street Food?
- How is Mexican Street Corn Salad Different Than Elote?
- Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Equipment
- Ingredients
- How To Make Mexican Street Corn Salad
- When to Serve This Recipe?
- What To Serve With Mexican Street Corn Salad
- Variations
- Recipe Tips
- How To Store Street Corn Salad?
- Other Corn Recipes You May Like
- More Mexican Salads and Side Dishes
- Recipe
- ⭐ Reviews
What is Elote or Mexican Street Corn?
Elote is corn on the cob that is a popular street food in Mexico. It is often grilled or boiled and served with salt, chili powder, lime juice, Mexican Cheese, and mayonnaise.
Why is Elote Considered Street Food?
It is considered street food because people eat it as corn on the cob, pulling down the husk and using it to hold the corn on the cob. So they don’t need a knife and fork to eat it. They can hold the corn and eat it while walking down the street.
How is Mexican Street Corn Salad Different Than Elote?
Instead of serving this dish as corn on the cob, like my Instant Pot Corn On The Cob recipe. The corn kernels are cut from the ears of corn and served in a bowl. In Mexico, they call this Mexican Corn Salad esquites.
This makes an excellent side dish for a weeknight dinner or for any occasion. This also allows you to customize the salad with your favorite ingredients.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Flavor – It is a super flavorful street corn salad with a creamy sauce made with mayonnaise, Mexican crema, or sour cream. It is one of my favorite ways to make corn.
- Easy Side dish – It makes a perfect side dish for your favorite Mexican foods like Fajitas, tacos, or empanadas.
Equipment
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- large bowl
- Small bowl
- sharp knife
Ingredients
Below I discuss the ingredients and possible substitutions in case you don’t have a specific ingredient on hand. However, if you are looking for the specific measurements of each ingredient, be sure to scroll down to the bottom of this article, just above the comments, for the printable recipe card, which includes all the ingredients and the specific amounts of each one.
These are the ingredients you will need to make Mexican Street Corn Salad. Please see the printable recipe below for the specific amounts of each ingredient.
- Corn (can be fresh corn on the cob or frozen corn) – If possible, I recommend using fresh corn. You can cut the corn kernels off the corn cobs.
- Mayonnaise
- Mexican Crema or sour cream
- Lime Juice – I recommend buying limes and using fresh lime juice. Then you can also serve with fresh limes if people would like to squeeze additional lime juice on their corn salad.
- Cheese – I recommend using Cotija Cheese or other Mexican cheese, such as Queso Fresco. You could use parmesan cheese or feta cheese if you have no Mexican cheese.
- Minced Garlic – If you don’t have minced garlic, you could use garlic powder instead.
- Chopped Red Onion
- Chopped Red Bell Peppers or Chopped Tomatoes
- Chopped Fresh Cilantro – If you don’t have fresh cilantro, you could use green onions instead.
- Seeded and Diced Jalapenos (optional)
- Salt and Pepper
- Chili Powder
- Hot sauce – Optional
How To Make Mexican Street Corn Salad
It is really easy to make this Mexican Street Corn Salad. Below is a summary of the basic steps on how to make it. Please see the printable recipe below for more detailed instructions.
- If you are using fresh corn on the cob, you can remove the husks and cut off the kernels.
- Saute in the corn oil in a hot skillet. You can use this method if you are using frozen corn as well. Just be sure to thaw and drain the corn before sauteing in the skillet. When slightly charred, about 5 minutes, then place in a bowl.
- Add all remaining ingredients to the bowl and stir well.
- Refrigerate until you are ready to serve!
See the video above showing how to assemble the Mexican Street Corn Salad.
When to Serve This Recipe?
Mexican Street Corn Salad makes a delicious, spicy side dish for a Cinco De Mayo party or for a Mother’s Day dinner, or for a holiday dinner.
It is especially popular in the summer when fresh corn is available, but can be served all year long by using frozen corn when fresh corn may not be available.
In addition, it is very popular for a summer picnic or potluck dinner.
What To Serve With Mexican Street Corn Salad
Mexican Street Corn Salad can be served with just about anything. Some of my favorites are:
- Pico De Gallo – fresh tomatoes, onions, chilies, garlic, and lime juice make an excellent dip or topping.
- Guacamole – made with fresh avocados, makes a creamy spicy Mexican dip.
- Mango Habanero Wings – sweet and spicy wings spice up any meal.
- Tijuana Shrimp Dip Nachos – Tortilla Chips topped with a creamy, cheesy shrimp dip.
- Tex Mex Beef Fajitas – This Tex-Mex Beef Fajitas recipe, made with skirt steak or flank steak, and served with sauteed onions, red and green peppers, makes an easy, delicious, smoky, spicy and flavorful dinner.
- Crockpot Chicken Tacos – Need only 5-ingredients and a crockpot, or slow cooker, to make incredibly moist and tender Mexican style chicken tacos for taco night or any night.
- Mexican Cauliflower Rice – A lower carb version of Mexican Rice.
Variations
The nice thing about making this as a salad is that you can customize to add your favorite ingredients. Here are some ideas for additional ingredients to create variations of the original salad.
- Chopped Avocados – Try adding some chopped avocados to give the salad an extra flavor boost and additional color.
- Black Beans – Make the salad even heartier by adding a can of drained black beans to the salad.
- Pico De Gallo – spice up the salad by adding spicy pico de gallo (diced tomatoes, onions, garlic, and jalapenos) to the salad.
- Different Types of Cheeses – Experiment with different types of cheese. Maybe try feta or cheddar to change it up a little.
- Add different types of chilies. I used jalapenos in this salad, but you could add serranos, habaneros, or your favorite chili pepper.
- Use Greek yogurt instead of mayonnaise. To lighten up and give it a protein boost, you could substitute the Greek yogurt for the mayonnaise.
Recipe Tips
- Fresh Corn. If you have fresh corn available, use it for the freshest salad possible. However, if it is not available you could use frozen corn. Just thaw it out and drain it well first.
- Char the Corn. Cut off the kernels and saute them in oil in a hot skillet until they are slightly charred.
- Make Ahead. One of the nice things about this Mexican Corn Salad is that you can make it a day ahead and let the flavors meld together to become even more flavorful the next day.
How To Store Street Corn Salad?
Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
Other Corn Recipes You May Like
If you like this Mexican Street Corn Salad, you will love these other corn recipes.
- Instant Pot Corn Chowder – an easy corn chowder made in the Instant Pot.
- Corn and Zucchini Salsa – a Mexican corn salsa with corn and zucchini.
- Homemade Creamed Corn with Jalapenos and Bacon
- Spicy Corn Chowder
- Maque Choux Corn – A Cajun Corn Dish.
More Mexican Salads and Side Dishes
- Pico De Gallo
- Mexican Rice
- Guacamole
- Mexican Turkey Garbanzo Bean Salad
- Cucumber Tomato Salad With A Mexican Twist
Now you have all the information you need to make your own Mexican Street Corn Salad at home. It is easy. You will love the spicy, creamy, sweet corn in this salad. Give it a try and come back and leave me a comment and rating to let me know how you liked it.
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Recipe
Mexican Street Corn Salad Recipe (Elote Deconstructed)
Ingredients
- 5 ears corn on the cob (or 2 16-ounce bags frozen corn, thawed and drained)
- 2 Tablespoons olive oil
- 1/2 small red onion diced
- 1 green bell pepper diced
- 1 red bell pepper diced
- 2 jalapenos, seeded and diced (For less heat, use fewer. For more heat, add more.)
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic
- 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
- 2 tablespoons Mexican crema (or sour cream)
- 1/2 cup Cotija Cheese crumbled
- 1/3 cup cilantro chopped
- 1/4 cup lime juice (Juice from about 2 limes)
- 1 dash Chili Powder
Instructions
- Remove kernels of the corn from the cob.
- Add oil to large skillet over medium heat.
- Add corn to skillet and stir. Cook for about 5 – 7 minutes or until the corn starts to char.
- Remove the corn and place in a bowl.
- Add remaining ingredients, except chili powder, in the bowl and stir until everything is combined.
- Refrigerate until ready to serve. Just before serving, garnish with jalapeno slices, chopped cilantro, extra crumbled cotija cheese, and a dash of chili powder.
Vicky Fowler says
This recipe is delicious! I needed something to take to a picnic at the last minute. I didn’t have red onion so I used green onion. I added an avocado as suggested in the notes. I left the jalapenos on the side. It had plenty of flavor with the perfect balance of lime, sour cream and the chili powder. It was a big hit. Thank you Michele!
Michele says
Hi Vicky, I’m so happy you liked it. Be sure to check out some of our other recipes as well, such as the Ramen Noodle Salad at https://flavormosaic.com/ramen-noodle-salad-with-broccoli-slaw/
Joan says
Great recipe! Perfect for all the fresh corn this time of year. I’m so glad I made this and I love the flexibility of ingredients.
Marie says
Oh, this looks interesting. I’ve never heard of corn salad before. It would probably taste a bit different if I made it because we don’t have many Mexican foods, but I’ll have to try a (milder!) Canadian version!
Michele says
Hi Marie, thanks for visiting. That is the wonderful thing about recipes. We can tweak them to suit our taste.
Denay says
Spending three months a year at our second home in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, I am a lover of Mexican street corn! This colorful, flavorful Mexican street corn salad is absolutely delicious!
Sandi says
I would love to try this as a side to Chicken Tacos. It looks amazing.
Gloria says
I would like to know if you can make this as a HOT side dish.