Mexican Street Corn Salad
Our Mexican Street Corn Salad recipe (also known as Esquites) is packed with fresh flavors and crumbly cotija cheese! This is the perfect side dish that turns the classic Mexican street food into a delicious, easy-to-make salad!
Next, try our Award-winning Roasted Tomato Salsa!
One of our most popular recipes is this elote in a bowl, also known as Esquites, is Our Mexican Street Corn Salad! It’s everything you love about the classic street food, but easier to eat, simple to make, colorful, flavorful, and so fresh. What else could you ask for in a salad?
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
This healthy, nutritious side salad has become one of our most made and reader loved recipes for a few simple reasons.
- It’s easy to make and great to make in advance!
- The flavors are fresh, bright, and complementary.
- This salad is vegetarian and gluten-free, making it a great option to bring to a group gathering or potluck.
- Well over 600 people have made it and rated it 5 stars!
Ingredients Needed
What makes this esquites the ultimate vegetarian veggie-packed side? All of the fresh vegetables!
- Corn – Fresh, Canned, or Frozen Corn will work for this dish. In the summer, fresh off the cob is our choice, but it’s just as delicious with canned or frozen!
- Red Onion – Red is best bc of the color and sharp, sweet flavor, but white or yellow will also work if that’s all you have.
- Jalapeno – This adds just the right amount of heat.
- Red Pepper – This adds great color, a sweet crunch, and just a little more nutrition.
- Fresh Cilantro – Key to adding that fresh herbal finish!
What ties it all together? The creamy flavor-packed dressing.
- Sour Cream – We love the creamy tang this adds.
- Mayonnaise – Did you know you can make your own Mayonnaise From Scratch?
- Salt, Paprika, Cumin, Chili Powder – Just the right amount of seasoning!
- Fresh Lime Juice – The bright acidity to tie it all together.
- Cotija Cheese – A key component to any street corn recipe!
Customizable!
Our Mexican Street Corn Salad is totally customizable. Like it cheesier? Add more cheese. Want a little more heat? Add a touch more chili powder or jalapeno. Want it creamier? Up the mayo and sour cream! It’s easy to work with your (or your guests’) tastes to make it your own.
Recipe Video
Step-by-Step Instructions
A key step that really elevates the flavor of this salad is giving the corn and jalapeno a quick char by pan-frying it. It adds so much great flavor to that corn by mimicking what you would get on the grill from classic Mexican Street Corn. Once the corn and jalapeno are charred, add all your fresh veggies to a large bowl.
Then mix all of your dressing ingredients (except the cheese) in another bowl. This is where you can stop and refrigerate everything for a day or two for an (even easier) side to whip together when needed!
About an hour before you’re ready to serve, 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!
Mexican Street Corn Salad, done! This recipe has been a hit since I first made this on a girls’ trip to the beach for a taco bar and when my then 3 year oldabsolutely inhaled it. Thumbs up from 15 diverse women AND a 3-year-old? Yup; it’s a keeper. Check out all of our other delicious side salads here!
Other Mexican-Inspired Dishes
- Mexican Corn Ribs
- Easy Homemade Mexican Rice
- Crock Pot Chicken Enchilada Tacos
- Elote Skillet Pasta
- Roasted Tomato Salsa
- Corn Tortillas From Scratch
- Turkey Taco Cups
- Sheet Pan Chicken Fajitas
- Mexican Street Corn Chicken Tacos
- Refried Beans From Scratch
Recipe Tips
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 in the flavor.
This salad is great to make ahead. Prep the veggies and the dressing and store them separately and assemble when you’re ready to serve!
Enjoy! As always, if you make this recipe or any of my others, I love to hear what you think! Leave a comment below, email me, or you can find me on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest!
If you want to see more, be sure to sign up for my 5 Easy Ways to Start Cooking From Scratch!
Mexican Street Corn Salad
Equipment
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
- Char corn: Heat olive oil in a saute pan on medium-high and add corn and diced jalapeno. Cook until slightly charred, approximately 7-10 minutes. Add to a large bowl and set aside.
- Add veggies: Add red pepper, onion, and cilantro to a large bowl with charred corn and mix well.
- Make Dressing: In a small bowl, add all dressing ingredients and mix well until smooth.
- Assemble Salad: Add the dressing to the large bowl with the corn and mix well. Add 1/2 cotija cheese and mix well.
- Finish: Add the remaining cheese and some additional cilantro.
- Serve and Enjoy!
A staple in our house now! SO good!
Great to hear, thanks Judy!
Made it twice and it was a hit
Love to hear it, Shabnam! Thanks so much for sharing!
Is there any way I can make this dairy free? Would it be ok if I use Greek yogurt instead of sour cream? And just omit the cheese?
Hi Mindy! You could use Greek yogurt and omit the cheese, but it’ll really change the whole salad without the cheese. It’d be a great salad, but without cheese it will not have a key part of Mexican Street Corn 🙂
Can I use canned corn instead of fresh or frozen? (Wondering if it can get the same char as it’s a bit wet?) Also, can I just use Sour cream OR Mayo instead of both? Thanks! 🙂
Hi Zhen! Yes, you can totally use canned corn. Just be sure before you give it the char that it’s well drained. Also, you can use any combo of mayo and sour cream, although we recommend you don’t use all mayo, you really want at least some sour cream to add the right flavor. Enjoy!
If using frozen corn do you boil the corn to cook it first before charging?
Hi Lindsay! No need to boil, just a thaw is fine!
The recipe states: 10 minutes to prep. I prepped and there’s NO WAY a person can complete all of the necessary tasks in 10 minutes. Prep time is approximately 30 minutes and the recipe should reflect such. Anyway, after an hour of prepping and putting it together it turned out really great. I live in Tucson so as Mexican food goes it’s a really good recipe. Note: do not touch any part of your body after chopping jalapeños!
Hi . I am planning on using this recipe but would like to know if I can use canned corn and char it in a skillet before adding other ingredients.. Has anyone tried making this recipe using canned corn?
You definitely can! Enjoy!
Do I need to make any adjustments to the recipe if I’m using leftover grilled corn? The fall weather here has been stellar so we’re grilling as much as we can!
Hi Carol! Oh you can absolutely use some leftover grilled corn, what a great idea. You can just trim that off of the cob and either skip the step of charring the corn (if you already have a great char from the grilling), or follow the instructions as is and give even more char! Enjoy!
Will this keep if I make the night before and keep it refrigerated?
Hi Josh! If I’m planning to serve it the next day, I usually make everything but keep the dressing and cheese separate overnight and then assemble before serving. It’ll still be delicious the next day after a night in the fridge, though! Enjoy!
Noted. Thanks
Whole family was raving about this! I used fresh corn – the extra step to char it was well worth it!
Love to hear it, Rachel! Thanks so much for sharing!
Do you serve this hot or cold?
Either!