Alisa InfantiPublished:Updated:
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This Mexican Street Corn Salad is an easy corn salad recipe with black beans, peppers, onions, cheese and a tangy dressing. A sweet and savoury salad that is the perfect side dish to any barbecue fair or as a salsa for dipping with nacho chips!
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You may have noticed if you are a regular to my blog that I seem to post a lot of Mexican-inspired dishes. Clearly, I can’t get enough Mexican food in my life.
This recipe is a play on the famous street corn found in Mexico known as Elote. Elote is a grilled ear of corn that is slathered in butter, sour cream or mayo, spices and cojita cheese.
If you travel often you will know that street food as long as you get it from a busy, clean-looking stall is usually some of the best food in any city!
You can certainly grill up some ears of corn for fun on the barbecue if you like. If this is your plan, simply omit the salad items like the peppers, onions etc. and just make up the dressing. Spread the dressing over the roasted corn like you would butter and sprinkle with cheese!
I prefer to make this salad as a corn salad recipe with some black beans. It makes a great side dish for grilled chicken, beef or fish and can also be used as a salsa for nacho chips or over tacos!
Ingredients you will need:
Substitutions:
- Avocado Oil – can be replaced with any light oil you prefer such as safflower oil, vegetable oil or canola oil. Olive oil will work well too so long as it is not one that carries a lot of flavours.
- Frozen corn kernals – I find frozen corn easier to find all year long and I like the fact that it is harder to overcook when browning and not getting too soft. You can also cook cobs of fresh corn on the barbecue to get the nice char as well. After cooking let the corn cobs cool enough to handle and then use a sharp knife to cut the kernels from the cob.
- Pablano pepper – can easily be substituted for jalapeno peppers. Or if you don’t like spicy (even though neither are too hot) you could also replace it with green peppers.
- Maple Syrup – honey or agave syrup work just as well.
- Sour Cream – you could use plain yogurt or plain Greek yogurt as well. If using Greek yogurt add a tsp or two of milk to thin it out a bit.
- Feta Cheese – cojita cheese is the more authentic way to go if you can find it!
How to make Mexican street corn salad:
To a large pan add the avocado oil and heat over medium-high heat. Add the corn and garlic. cook mixing only occasionally until corn is cooked and charred a bit.
Add the peppers, cilantro, corn, onions and beans to a large bowl.
Toss the peppers, cilantro, corn, onions and beans to a large bowl. Top with the feta or cojita cheese and mix well. Cojita cheese is more traditional but not always the easiest to find where I live.
To make the dressing add the sour cream, lime juice, maple syrup, paprika, cumin, cayenne and salt to a small bowl and mix well. Pour over the salad and mix well to evenly coat the salad ingredients.
Is this corn salad be served hot or cold?
You can serve it either way! I prefer it warm simply because I prefer warm food and love a warm salad but either way is perfect!
serve this Mexican corn salad recipe with…
- Lemon Parmesan Chicken Burgers
- Spicy Oven Baked Chicken Wings
- Lemon Basil Pork Chops
- Baja Fish Tacos
- Cuban Style Pork Tenderloin
- Fall off the Bone Baby Back Ribs
how to store this salad:
Store in an airtight container for up to 4 days in the fridge. As for freezing, I would not recommend it for this recipe.
need more Mexican food in your life? Try these!
- Fresh Pico de Gallo
- Honey-Chipotle Salad Dressing
- Cilantro Lime Steak Burrito Bowl
- Paloma co*cktail
- Mexican Chocolate Sheet Cake
- Sheet Pan Steak Fajitas
- Meyer Lemon Margarita
- Baja Fish Tacos
- Mexican Lime Crema
- Mexican Bean Salad
Easy Mexican Street Corn Recipe
Alisa Infanti | The Delicious Spoon
An easy corn salad recipe that is sweet and savoury and is the perfect side dish to any barbecue fair or as a salsa for dipping with nacho chips!
4.73 from 18 votes
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 20 minutes mins
Cook Time 10 minutes mins
Total Time 30 minutes mins
Course Dinner, Lunch, Salad, Side Dish
Cuisine Mexican
Servings 8 servings
Calories 145 kcal
Equipment
Large pan
Mixing Spoon
Chopping Knife
Measuring Cups
Measuring Spoons
Large Bowl
Small Bowl
Ingredients
Salad
- 2 tsp avocado oil or preferred cooking oil
- 2 ½ cups frozen corn kernels or roasted corn, kernels removed
- 1 clove garlic minced
- ⅔ cup black beans drained and rinsed
- 1 cup red pepper chopped
- ¼ cup pablano pepper chopped
- ¼ cup red onion chopped
- ¼ cup fresh cilantro finely chopped
- ⅓ cup feta cheese or cojita cheese
Dressing
- ¼ cup sour cream
- 2 tbsp lime juice
- 1 tsp maple syrup
- ½ tsp paprika
- ¼ tsp cumin
- ¼ tsp salt
- pinch cayenne pepper or to taste/heat preference
Instructions
Salad
Add 2 tsp of avocado oil to a large pan and bring to medium-high heat. Add in the corn and garlic and cook until some of the corn kernels start to brown. Stir only occasionally so that the kernels have time to brown or char a bit. Remove from heat and place in a large bowl.
Add the red pepper, poblano pepper, red onion, cilantro, and black beans to the large bowl. Top with feta or cojita cheese and mix.
Dressing
In a small bowl add the sour cream, lemon juice, maple syrup, paprika, cumin, salt and cayenne pepper. Mix well. Add to the top of the salad and mix well until combined.
Video
Nutrition
Serving: 0.5cupCalories: 145kcalCarbohydrates: 21.2gProtein: 6.3gFat: 4.8gSaturated Fat: 2.1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 0.6gMonounsaturated Fat: 1.7gTrans Fat: 0gCholesterol: 9mgSodium: 142mgPotassium: 437mgFiber: 4gSugar: 4.8gVitamin A: 849IUVitamin C: 28.7mgCalcium: 64mgIron: 1.3mg
Notes
Storage:
Store in a sealed container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
Using Greek yogurt instead of sour cream?
Make sure to thin it out by adding about 1-2 tsp of milk to the Greek yogurt
21 Day Fix Container Count:
1/2 yellow, 1/4 blue, 2 tsp… there are some veggies in there but less than a 1/4 green.
Please Note:
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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For the step-by-step version of this recipe, check out the How To Make An Easy Mexican Street Corn Salad Story.
