This Mexican Street Corn Salad recipe (also known as Esquites) is packed with fresh flavors and cotija cheese! This is the perfect side dish that turns the classic Mexican street food into a delicious and easy to make salad!
Friends, meet my new FFS... No, not FF Sake. Favorite Freakin' Salad: Mexican Street Corn Salad. Mexican Street Corn Salad, meet your new friends. Colorful. Flavorful. Fresh. What else could you ask for in a salad?
Recipe Video
Ingredients Needed
Fresh, that's the name of this salad. This salad is also known as an Esquites recipe, which is a Mexican corn salad.
Fresh or Frozen Corn? Well, there are benefits to each. You can get frozen any time of the year. Fresh is, well, fresh. Either will work for this dish. The most important piece is to be sure you add a little char to the corn from a nice pan fry. That'll add the necessary flavor to mimic the classic Street Corn.
What ties it all together? The dressing.
Also this is totally customizable. Like it cheesier? Add more cheese? Want a little more heat? Add a touch more chili powder? Want it creamier? Up the mayo and sour cream!
Did you know you can make your own Mayonnaise From Scratch?
Other Great Ways use Mayonnaise From Scratch
Step-by-Step Instructions
- The first thing that really is key to this salad and is what elevates this salad is a giving the corn a quick char by pan frying it.
- Then add all your fresh veggies into a large bowl.
- Mix all of your dressing ingredients (except the cheese) into another bowl.
- And then finally mix the dressing with the veggies and half of the cheese and give a good mix.
- Finally, add the rest of the cheese on top with some more fresh cilantro and serve!
This Mexican Street Corn Salad recipe is such a hit; I recently made this on a girls trip to the beach for a taco bar night and it received rave reviews. Thumbs up from 15 diverse women AND a 3 year old? Yup; this one's a keeper.
Other Favorite Side Salads
Other Mexican Inspired Dishes
Crock Pot Chicken Enchilada Tacos
Fresh Green Salsa From Scratch
Fresh Easy Pico de Gallo From Scratch
Crock Pot Chicken Carnitas Tacos
FAQs
It is a delicious salty, crumbly, Mexican cheese from cow's milk.
Totally! Parmesan, Romano, or feta are great substitutes (but Cotija is definitely the best).
No, not necessarily, but it really does make a difference.
Not only did all the women of my girls' trip love this esquites recipe, but my toddler inhaled it. So if that isn't a glowing review, I'm not sure what else is!
By the way, if you loved this recipe, try out our Mexican Street Corn Chicken Tacos, too!
Enjoy, friends! Don't forget if you make this salad or any other recipes from the site, please be sure to let me know on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, or Twitter. I love hearing from you!
Mexican Street Corn Salad
Ingredients
- 4 cups corn approximately 24 oz frozen
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 red bell pepper diced
- 1 bunch fresh cilantro minced, a few leaves left for garnish.
- 1 jalapeno diced
- 1/2 large red onion diced
- 2/3 cup cotija cheese shredded/crumbled
Dressing
- 3 tablespoons sour cream
- 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
- 4 tablespoons fresh lime juice approximately 2 limes
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon chili powder
Instructions
- Heat olive oil in a saute pan on medium high and add corn. Cook until slightly charred, approximately 7-10 minutes. Add to large bowl and set aside.
- Add pepper, jalapeno, cilantro, and onion to large bowl with corn and mix well.
- In a small bowl, add all dressing ingredients and mix well until smooth.
- Add dressing to large bowl with corn and mix well. Add 1/2 cotija cheese and mix well.
- Add remaining cheese and some cilantro.
- Serve or cover and store in fridge for up to 8 hrs before serving.
Hello! I forgot to buy limes, I have lemon juice. What do you think? Should I make the trip for limes?
Hi Christy! I think you’ll be ok wish lemon juice as it’ll add the acidity, but be just a little different. Still good though!
Can I make this dish a day ahead for a party that I need to take to? We leave Friday morning and the party is on Saturday.
Definitely. You can prep it all the day before and just add the cheese and cilantro before serving. Or sometimes I prep the veggies and dressing separately and just toss it all together right before serving, too. Either way, it'll be delicious!
I used feta since the store didn't have any of the cheese mentioned above. It was so good! Also added tajin since I didn't have paprika or cumin
So glad you enjoyed it, Sarah!
Can I make this and then put it in a crockpot to serve later? I need this for a football banquet.
Hi Chris! This salad is great cold. The only cooked portion is the corn and you want the other veggies raw/crunchy. I would prep all the veggies first and the dressing separate. Just toss it all together with the cheese and cilantro before serving. ☺️
Amazing meal. My daughter dropped corn on the couch, a lot of corn haha. It started smelling bad and I realized I needed to get an upholstery cleaning in penfield to remove the stains and smell. We now eat the meal in the kitchen together, but boy we love it. Thanks for the recipe.
Amazing recipe! I couldn’t find cotija so I used queso fresco and added a touch more salt. Freaking awesome!
Sounds great, Kristen! So great to hear it, thanks so much for taking the time to leave a review!
Hi there. I want to try this but all I have in the house right now is canned corn….yellow sweet and shoepeg. Will canned work?
Yellow sweet definitely will! Enjoy! 😊