Mexican Street Corn Salad

This Mexican Street Corn Salad, also known as Esquites, is so very simple to make and such a delicious summer side dish! It’s my take on the original recipe and one that I know you’re going to absolutely fall in love with!

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My Mexican Street Corn recipe is one of THE most popular recipes on my blog, week after week. And as the summer is drawing near, even more people have been making it.

So, I figured that it was finally time to share my OFF THE COB version of it! IT’S SO GOOD and maybe I even like it better than the original!? I dunno, they’re both VERY great :D

First off…

Difference between Elotes and Esquites?

“Elote” quite simply means ‘corn on the cob’ in Spanish and it’s a term often used to refer to Mexican Street Corn that is served ON the cobb. It’s either on a stick or eaten by holding on to the still attached knob of the corn.

“Equites”, on the other hand, refers to the same dish OFF of the cob and is most often served on the street out of little cups. Many people refer to it as little corn cups.

In my case, the recipes are VERY similar except that one is on the cob and one is off. For this particular “salad” I added in bell pepper and jalapeno which is not traditional to Mexican Street Corn but still VERY delicious! As desired, you could totally leave out the extra veggies for a more authentic dish!

I really really love making this with freshly grilled corn HOWEVER, you could most certainly just use canned corn making the whole thing so much easier to make. If you’re doing that, I highly suggest getting fire-roasted canned corn if you can find it.

Ingredients for this Street Corn Salad:

• Grilled corn
• Yummy sauce that includes mayo, sour cream, chili powder, lime juice and zest and garlic. It’s simple but SO so good! I have some vegan alternatives in the recipe card for you!
• Bell pepper
• Jalapeno
• Cotija cheese
• Cilantro

How to make this corn salad:

1) Make the sauce by whisking together all of the ingredients

2) Grill the corn, let it cool, and then cut it off of the cob.

3) Place the corn in a large bowl along with the bell pepper, jalapeno, cilantro, and cotija cheese.

4) The the sauce over the veggies and toss to combine

AND that’s it! Garnish with additional cheese and cilantro and ENJOY!

As usual, if you end up making this recipe, please come back and let me know how you like it. Or tag me on Instagram @foodwithfeeling! I always love to see what y’all are cooking from the blog.

More delicious Mexican inspired recipes to try:

• Portobello Fajitas
• Mexican Street Corn
• Baked Tortilla Chips
• Sheet Pan Quesadillas
• Tempeh Tacos
• Spicy Tofu Burritos
• Easy Sofritas recipe

5 from 3 votes

Mexican Street Corn Salad Esquites

By Brita Britnell

Prep: 10 minutes mins

Cook: 15 minutes mins

Total: 25 minutes mins

Servings: 4 servings

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This Mexican Street Corn Salad, also known as Esquites, is SO simple to make and SUCH a delicious summer side dish!

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Ingredients 

1x2x3x

• ▢ 4 ears of corn*
• ▢ 2 tablespoons of Crema Mexican Agria Sour Cream*
• ▢ 2 tablespoons of mayonnaise
• ▢ 2 cloves of garlic, finely minced
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon of fine sea salt
• ▢ Juice and zest of 1 lime
• ▢ ½ teaspoon of chipotle chili powder, regular works as well
• ▢ 1 small bell pepper, finely diced
• ▢ 1 medium jalapeno, finely diced (remove the seeds as desired)
• ▢ ⅓ cup of cotija cheese, crumbled
• ▢ ¼ cup of Cilantro, chopped
• ▢ optional for garnish: extra cheese, cilantro, limes

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Instructions 

• Heat your grill to roughly 400 degrees F.
• You can grill the corn with the husks on or off. I took the husks off to ensure that I got some nice grill marks on the corn and because I feel like it gives it a nice grilled flavor. FOR HUSKS ON: let your corn soak in water for 10 minutes before grilling. FOR HUSKS OFF: lightly spray spray each cob with cooking spray.**
• Place the corn on the grill and grill for roughly 12 minutes, turning the cobs 1/4 turn every 3 minutes. Let the corn cool enough to handle and then carefully cut the corn from the cob and place in a large bowl. 
• Make the sauce by stirring together the sour cream, mayonnaise, garlic, salt, lime zest and juice, and chili powder.
• In a large bowl, combine the corn, bell pepper, jalapeno, cilantro, cotija cheese, and cream sauce. Toss to combine so that all of the corn is covered in the sauce.
• Garnish with additional cheese and cilantro and ENJOY!

Notes

For the corn: you can also use 2 cans of corn to make the recipe a little easier. I suggest getting “fire-roasted” canned corn if you can find it!

For the sour cream: Cacique makes a greatMexican sour cream and is my preferred brand that is widely available in the US. It’s a little thinner than regular sour cream HOWEVER regular sour cream will work as well in this recipe if that’s what you have

To cook the corn: You can also make this by cooking the corn in the oven. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Lightly spray the husked corn on the cob with cooking spray and wrap in foil individually. Roast for 20-25 minutes

To store leftovers: store leftovers in an air tight container in the fridge for a few days.

To make this VEGAN: to make this vegan simply swap the mayo and sour cream for vegan versions. For the cheese, I highly suggest using a vegan feta. I’ve made this recipe with Violife’s crumbled feta and it’s SO GOOD!

Tried this recipe?Mention @foodwithfeeling or tag #foodwithfeeling!