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Frito Corn Salad is a traditional potluck dish that takes minutes to prep, requires no cooking, and can be made in advance! Sweet kernels of corn, red onion, bell pepper, and crunchy Fritos chips are mixed into a creamy, seasoned sauce with green chilies.
This Frito Corn Salad is the perfect side dish for BBQs and potlucks. Be sure to try my Corn Salad with Tomatoes next!
Table of Contents
Why I Love This Recipe
- 15 Minutes of Prep – Just some quick chopping and mixing, no cooking is needed!
- Make Ahead Friendly – Because this frito salad tastes best after the flavors have had a chance to meld in the fridge for an hour, it’s an awesome option to prep in advance!
- Potluck Favorite – Looking for a crowd pleasing summer side dish to bring to backyard potlucks and barbecues? This Frito Corn Salad is it! Serve with other potluck favorites like a Greek Bean Salad or Bacon Baked Beans.
What you need
Ingredient Notes
The ingredients for this recipe are surprisingly simple.
- Frozen Corn Kernels (thawed) – You can substitute the frozen corn with drained canned corn, or better yet, fresh corn kernels cut from the ear!
- Red Onion – You could substitute chopped green onion or sweet yellow onion for the red onion.
- Red Bell Pepper or Green Pepper
- Shredded Cheddar Cheese – I always recommend grating your own cheese for the best flavor and texture, however, you could use a pre-shredded cheese here since meltabillity isn’t an issue. Other flavors like pepper jack or Monterey jack would be great mix-ins.
- Mayonnaise – You can use a full fat or low fat mayo.
- Sour Cream – You can use regular or light sour cream. You can even swap in plain Greek yogurt to make it a little lighter.
- Canned Chopped Green Chiles
- Garlic Powder and Chili Powder – These are the only spices used and they are so important to the flavor! Taco seasoning or ranch mix would be great swap options.
- Fritos Corn Chips – A bag of plain Fritos to crush up for the salad and I like to also get a bag of Fritos Scoops to eat the salad like a dip. You could also use Chili Cheese Fritos to spice it up with different flavor.
How To Make This Frito Corn Salad Recipe
See the recipe card below for full, detailed instructions
Make Dressing – Whisk up the mayo, sour cream, green chiles, and spices in a small bowl.
Toss Salad – Add the corn, onion, bell pepper, and shredded cheese to a large bowl then add the creamy dressing and toss to coat.
Chill – Store in the fridge for at least 1 hour, so the flavors can meld.
Serve – Right when you’re going to serve, stir in the crushed Fritos and serve with Fritos scoops for dipping.
Serving Suggestions
This recipe is a great addition to any potluck or barbecue! It pairs well with main dishes like Grilled Hamburgers or Grilled Chicken Kabobs and other sides like a Summer Fruit Salad or Cucumber Salad with Blueberries.
Don’t forget a cookout favorite dessert like this Strawberry Pretzel Salad or No-Bake S’Mores Pie.
Storage Tips
Storage
This dish is best when eaten fresh while the Fritos are still crunchy. You can store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 days, but the texture will suffer as the Fritos get mushy. You can always add some more chips to freshen it up.
Recipe Tips
- Salt Level – This recipe does not have any salt added to it, as the Fritos should have more than enough salt in them to season the dish. If you feel the need you can add salt and pepper to taste after you’ve added in the crushed Fritos.
- Additions – Jalapeño and lime juice are great additions to this salad.
- Add Fritos Before Serving – It’s very important to wait to add the crushed Fritos until right before serving so they keep their crunch! If you add them too soon, then they will get soft in the salad. Add a few on top for extra crunch.
More Side Dishes to Try
- Black Beans and Rice
- Macaroni Salad
- Jalapeno Corn Casserole
- Cauliflower Salad
- Tomato Avocado Salad
- Southern Potato Salad
- Mediterranean Green Bean Salad
- 25 Picnic Side Dishes
Frito Corn Salad
Ingredients
- 3 cups Frozen sweet corn kernels thawed
- 1/2 Large red onion minced
- 1 Large red bell pepper chopped small
- 8 ounces Shredded cheddar cheese
- 1/2 cup Mayonnaise
- 1/2 cup Sour cream
- 4 ounces Canned chopped green chilies
- 1/2 teaspoon Garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon Chili powder
- 10 ounces Bag of Fritos (original or chili cheese) crushed
- Fresh chopped cilantro for garnish
- Frito scoops for serving
Instructions
- In a large bowl combine the corn, red onion, bell pepper, and cheddar cheese.
- In a small bowl whisk together the mayonnaise, sour cream, green chilies, garlic powder and chili powder.
- Add the dressing to the vegetables until well combined. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
- Just before serving, stir in the crushed Fritos. Taste for seasoning. Serve with Frito scoops for dipping.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer Kristin Maxwell of “Yellow Bliss Road” is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. For accurate calorie counts and other nutritional values, we recommend running the ingredients through your preferred online nutritional calculator. Calories and other nutritional values can vary depending on which brands were used.
