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If you love elote, this Mexican Street Corn Salad also known as Esquites, is about to become your go-to summer side! It’s creamy, smoky, tangy, and packed with bold flavor. But, without the mess of eating it off the cob.
In this post…
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve made this Esquites!
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 which makes me so happy to see!
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 good :D
While I love making this with freshly grilled ears of corn, I’ve been turning to cans of fire-roasted corn a lot more lately. Not only does it make the recipes a lot simpler, BUT good fresh corn can be hard to find where I live. Especially when it’s not peak summer months. So, use what you have and it’ll turn out great.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Ready in about 20 minutes!
- All the flavors of elote, way easier to eat
- Perfect balance of creamy, tangy, and smoky
- Great for BBQs, potlucks, and weeknight dinners
- Easy to customize the spice level which we do often for our daughter!
Ingredients needed
The simple ingredients for this recipe are listed fully down in the recipe card but let’s briefly go over the pantry staples needed including a few substitutions you can make as desired!
- Sweet Corn. I love using fresh corn that ‘s grilled for that signature smoky, charred corn flavor; frozen or canned can work in a pinch. I like to get the fire-roasted corn when getting canned corn.
- Mexican crema (or sour cream). Mexican crema can be found at most grocery stores by the sour cream and it’s traditional to Street Corn. It’s sweeter and thinner than regular sour cream. If all else fails, sour cream or Greek yogurt can be substituted!
- Mayonnaise. Gives that classic creamy elote texture!
- Garlic. Fresh minced for the best flavor but garlic powder also works.
- Lime juice + zest. Brightens everything and balances the richness.
- Chipotle chili powder. Adds smoky heat; regular chili powder works too.
- Bell pepper. Adds crunch and a subtle sweetness that I love. You could opt to leave this out as desired.
- Jalapeño. For heat; remove seeds to keep it mild!
- Cotija cheese. Salty and crumbly; feta cheese is a good substitute.
- Cilantro. Fresh, herby finish (skip if you’re not a fan).
- Optional onion. A little bit of either red onion or green onion.
How to Make this Mexican street corn salad recipe
Just a reminder that you can find the FULL written Mexican corn salad recipe down in the recipe card, but I want to quickly go over how to make them with visuals for you :)
- In a large bowl, combine everything except the dressing ingredients including corn kernels, red bell pepper, jalapeno, cilantro, and cotija. Stir to combine.
- In a small bowl or measuring cup, whisk together the creamy dressing ingredients including: Mexican Crema (or sour cream, mayonnaise, chili powder, garlic, lime juice, and zest.
- Pour the creamy sauce over top of the veggies and mix until thoroughly combined. Garnish with additional cilantro, cotija, and lime wedges. Enjoy!
Recipe Tips
- Get a good char on the corn 🌽 → this is where the flavor comes from!
- Don’t skip the lime zest! It truly makes a big difference in this salad.
- Let the corn cool slightly before mixing so the sauce doesn’t get watery. I’ve made this mistake several times.
- Taste and adjust salt after adding cotija because it’s naturally VERY salty. You probably won’t need any additional salt.
- Want it spicier? Add extra jalapeño or a pinch of cayenne.
Frequently Asked Questions
Elote salad (also called esquites) is a Mexican street food-inspired dish made with corn, mayo, crema, lime, chili, and cheese. It’s served off the cob (typically in a small cup) instead of on it.
Yes! Just sauté or roast it first to get some char and deepen the flavor.
It can be either, but it’s most commonly served slightly warm or at room temperature.
Elote is corn on the cob, while esquites (or elote salad) is the same flavor profile served off the cob.
Love a good summer salad? You need to try our Mediterranean Dense Bean Salad recipe as well as our protein packed Edamame Salad and our Avocado Black Bean Salad!
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
Mexican Street Corn Salad Esquites
Video
Ingredients
- 4 ears corn*, or 2 cans of corn (~30oz total)
- 2 tablespoons Crema Mexican Agria Sour Cream*, regular sour cream also works well
- 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
- 2 cloves garlic, finely minced
- ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
- Juice and zest of 1 lime
- ½ teaspoon 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 cotija cheese, crumbled
- ¼ cup Cilantro, chopped
- optional for garnish: extra cheese, cilantro, limes
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
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I made it and substituted Greek yogurt for the mayonnaise. We are not a mayo liking household. It was homerun with everyone!
I made this as a side with slow cooker carnitas and it was DELICIOUS. My boyfriend can be picky but he loves this. It’s perfect as a topping on tacos, a side on its own, or a big spoonful thrown in a salad or burrito bowl. It kept really well for leftovers too!
I love this im trying it tomorrow
Can’t wait to try it.