Mexican Street Corn Salad (or Esquites) is one of my absolute favorite side dishes when we have Mexican for dinner! A form of elotes - but shucked off the cob - you simply can't go wrong with this street food classic.
Esquites is a popular side in many Mexican restaurants. The sauce - made from a combination of Mexican crema, cotija cheese, lime juice, and spices - is just so tasty. Grilling the sweet corn gives it that perfect char. And to top it off, the minced jalapeños offer a delicious pop of heat!
The Coined Breakdown
- Total Cost per serving: $0.96
- Total Cost (about 4 servings): $3.84
- Those Other Guys: $6.99 per serving
Ingredients
- Corn Kernels - You can either use frozen corn, drained canned corn, or shuck the cobs yourself. It's super easy to do the latter! Just turn them vertically and then take a knife to the sides, in a downward motion, until your kernels are all off of the cob.
- Vegetable Oil - Use a vegetable oil that stands up to high heat to char the corn. I recommend avocado or grapeseed.
- Jalapeño - A fresh jalapeño, finely minced, gives our corn salad a great kick of spice. You can use pickled jalapeño as well.
- Mexican Crema - Mexican crema is like a smoother, thinner version of sour cream. You can normally find this in the refrigerated section of your grocery store near the cheese!
- Mayonnaise - Adds a little more creaminess to the corn salad.
- Cotija Cheese - This is authentic, aged Mexican cheese made from milk - similar to parmesan cheese. Don't substitute this ingredient!
- Seasonings and Herbs - Fresh cilantro, green onion, a bit of salt, lime juice, cumin, and chili powder all come together to create a beautiful, smoky taste for our esquites. It also mimics the seasonings used on elotes.
Variations and Substitutions
Elotes: This recipe works well for elotes as well! Simply grill and char whole corn cobs, then roll them in the crema mixture (sans cheese), and sprinkle cotija + chili powder on top. So good!
Spicy Esquites: Use tons of jalapeño seeds in your cream sauce, and top with crushed hot Cheetos.
Ingredient Substitutions: Don't have Mexican crema? Thin out sour cream or plain Greek yogurt with a little bit of water. You can also switch out the chili powder for smoked paprika.
How to Make Esquites on the Stovetop
Step 1: Start out by charring your corn in a large cast iron with a little bit of vegetable oil.
Once it's fragrant and has a good color to it, set the pan aside.
Step 2: Meanwhile, add your cream sauce ingredients to a large mixing bowl.
Step 3: Stir well until smooth and well incorporated. It should look like this.
Step 4: Stir your corn in and toss until the corn kernels are coated well. Top with extra cilantro and chili powder!
Recipe Pro Tips
- Grab the right tools. I recommend a cast iron skillet for this recipe because it conducts heat evenly and makes for a really nice char on your corn without burning them.
- Using canned corn? Make sure to fully drain.
- Leave the corn alone! (at first). To get that nice browned color, let the corn rest and sear in the pan for 6 minutes without stirring it around. After that, you can toss the veggies around the pan and let it finish cooking for another 6-8 minutes.
Recipe FAQs
Nope! I've used frozen corn plenty of times. Simply add the frozen corn directly to a hot skillet.
Definitely. Although it's typically made on a grill, my recipe below shows a shortcut way to get that caramelization using a cast-iron skillet and your stovetop. It's so good!
I wouldn't recommend it; you're going to lose out on that salty, savory flavor that makes this recipe pop. Cotija cheese is pretty easy to find as well - take a look in your local grocery's cheese section.
You can eat this by the spoonful honestly.
For a side dish, try serving alongside chimichurri flank steak tacos, refried beans, or use it to top a green leafy salad.
Store in an airtight container for up to 5 days in the refrigerator. You can serve cold, room temperature, or warm.
Other Mexican-Inspired Dishes You'll Love!
If you tried this Mexican Street Corn Salad (Esquites) Recipe, or any other recipe on my website, please leave a star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below. I love hearing from you! Thanks for visiting!
Mexican Street Corn Salad (Esquites)
Equipment
- Chef's Knife
- Mixing Bowl
- Citrus Squeezer
- Cast Iron Skillet
Ingredients
Charred Corn
- 2 tablespoons avocado oil
- 12 ounces sweet corn (fresh or frozen) or about 2 cobs of corn, shucked
Sauce
- 1 count jalapeño finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons fresh cilantro finely chopped
- 1 count green onion finely chopped
- ¼ cup Mexican crema see notes for a substitute
- 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
- 3 tablespoons cotija cheese grated
- ½ count lime juiced
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground cumin
- ¼ teaspoon chili powder
Instructions
- Add the oil to a large cast-iron skillet and heat to medium heat.
- Pour in the corn kernels.
- Cook for 6 minutes - keeping them still, so the bottoms develop a sear - then stir around and sauté for another 6-8 minutes.
- While the corn is searing, add the remaining sauce ingredients to a large bowl. Mix well.
- Add the cooked corn to the crema mixture. Toss thoroughly until the corn is covered well.
- Serve hot or cold with extra cotija crumbles, chili powder, and cilantro. Enjoy!
Steven P. says
I love bringing this to our family cookouts. It's a great side dish that goes well with all types of BBQ but also a bit more unique than the typical salads and beans.
Shani W. says
Thank you for your review Steven! 🙂