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Mexican Street Corn Salad is super creamy with tons of flavor – it’s everything you love about the street corner classic roasted corn in a yummy salad. It’s a delicious side dish that just screams summer!
We love to serve this This Mexican Street Corn Salad all the time during the hot summer months. It’s goes perfectly with other Mexican inspired dishes, like Slow Cooker Mexican Beans and it’s great on top of a crisp Chicken Tostada.
MEXICAN STREET CORN SALAD RECIPE
The first time I had Mexican Street Corn I think I was about 17 years old. My friends and I were at the annual street fair in our city, walking around aimlessly like teenagers do, deciding what to eat. After all, these are the types of places to get the good stuff like nachos, fried oreos, ice cream, strawberry shortcake…and Mexican Street Corn.
When my friends suggested the street corn, I thought, sure I like corn. Plain corn on the cob with a little salt and butter. Yeah, that stuff’s good! But that’s not what this was. What came out that window was a giant ear of golden yellow corn, smothered in this white stuff with some kind of red powder and white powder.
Obviously I had no clue what I had gotten myself into.
When my friend told me what was actually on the corn (mayonnaise, chili powder, Mexican cheese and lime juice) I was reluctant to try it. But holy goodness Batman was that THE BEST corn on the cob I’d ever tasted!
HOW TO MAKE MEXICAN STREET CORN SALAD
Mexican Street Corn is typically grilled on the cob. If you have access to a grill, that’s the best way to start this salad. However, if you don’t, you can get that nice charred flavor by cooking the corn kernels in a hot cast iron skillet. I add chili powder and garlic powder, plus a little melted butter to get some nice flavor onto each and every kernel.
- Start by removing the corn from the ears with a sharp knife. For the ultimate shortcut, you could use canned corn or even frozen, but I definitely recommend fresh for the best flavor. You could also grill the corn on the ears using my two step microwave method to get it done in about 20 minutes.
- For grilling indoor, Melt some butter in a screaming hot skillet, then add the corn, garlic powder and chili powder. Let it cook for a few minutes without moving it around so it can begin to char. Stir, and let it sit. Repeat these steps until you’ve lovely charred bits all over those corn kernels.
- Spoon the corn into a large bowl and let it cool completely. This can be done quicker by placing the corn in the fridge, but you can also let it cool just hanging out on the counter.
MEXICAN STREET CORN SALAD DRESSING
- The dressing for the Mexican Corn Salad is crazy easy – mayonnaise, lime juice and zest, chili powder, garlic powder, cilantro and salt. Now, you might notice that I used parsley. If you’re one of the millions of people who is adverse to cilantro (like me!) parsley will give you that freshness without the soapy cilantro taste.
- The final touch is a generous helping of cotija cheese, which is a nice salty cheese, similar to Feta.
- Mix all these things together and refrigerate until ready to serve. I like to add a heaping amount of cheese and herbs on top for garnish but that’s totally optional.
HOW TO SERVE MEXICAN STREET CORN SALAD
If you need a salad that pretty much goes with everything from burgers to steak to tacos, this Creamy Mexican Street Corn Salad will be your new favorite! Try serving it with:
- Slow Cooker Chicken Tacos
- Ground Turkey and Black Bean Baked Tacos
- Easy Slow Cooker Carnitas Recipe
- Buffalo Chicken Taquitos
- Mini Ranch Chicken, Bean & Cheese Quesadillas
- Mexican Meatloaf
HOW LONG DOES STREET CORN SALAD LAST?
Because of the mayonnaise component you do not want to leave it out more than 2 hours before refrigerating. If stored properly in the refrigerator in an airtight container, this salad should last 3-4 days. I do not recommend freezing.
Love this Creamy Mexican Street Corn Salad? Try these other popular summer side dishes:
- Red White and Blue Cheese Potato Salad
- Parmesan Zucchini & Corn Skillet
- Easy Vegetable Pasta Salad
- Balsamic Strawberry Pasta Salad
- Creamy Cornbread Casserole
- Hot Mexican Corn Dip
Creamy Mexican Street Corn Salad
Ingredients
Salad
- 4 cups of grilled or cooked corn kernels for seasoned corn, see below
- 1/4 cup mayonnaise
- ½ teaspoon chili powder
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ cup cotija cheese
- 1 tablespoon fresh chopped cilantro or parsley
- zest of one lime
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- Kosher salt to taste
Seasoned Corn
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- Kosher salt
Instructions
- Cut corn from the ears. (If using grilled corn on the cob, go to step 3).
- To make the seasoned corn: Heat a large, heavy skillet (preferably cast iron) over medium-high heat. Melt a tablespoon of butter, then stir in corn and 1 teaspoon each or garlic and chili powders and a pinch of salt. Cook, stirring every few minutes, until corn is slightly charred and golden; 8-10 minutes. Spoon into a large bowl and cool. (Can be placed in the fridge for quicker cooling time - this too less than 10 minutes for me).
- Stir chopped cilantro or parsley into the cooled corn.
- In a small bowl, combine mayonnaise, chili powder, garlic powder, lime juice, lime zest and a pinch of salt.
- Stir the mayo mixture into the corn mixture. Stir in cotija cheese.
- Chill until ready to serve. Garnish with more Cotija cheese and chopped cilantro/parsley.
- This is also delicious as a dip served with tortilla chips!
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
For all salads go HERE, for all side dishes go HERE and for the Recipe Index go HERE.
I made this just now. I did not use 4 cups of grilled or cooked corn kernels. I followed the seasoned corn instructions in step 2 for 3 (15 oz) cans of corn, which came to a bit over 4 cups. I know, I’m going to burn in hell. Sorry, that was all I had and wanted to make this bad. And I did, and it came out so amazing, I wanted to jump back and kiss myself, except it wasn’t my recipe, it was yours, and it was ay.may.zeeeng. I could have eaten most of it right then and there. I made this in advance for the July 4th holiday weekend coming up, to accompany my soon to be made baked BBQ chicken. Thank you so much for this recipe. It’s definitely a rotating recipe that I will use often. I will eventually try this in the winter months warmed up. I’m sure it will be just as yummy.
hi Kazy, Thanks for your comment – I love that you did what you had to do. You definitely deserve a pat on the back because you made it your own!
Hi, I’m starting with raw corn. Your recipe requires 4 cups of cooked corn. How much raw corn would I need to make 4 cups cooked?
Thanks.
If by “raw corn” you mean on the cob, it’s hard to give an exact amount. 1 ear of corn will yield approximately 1/2-3/4 cup.
An easy way to have Mexican street corn without having to stand over a grill. I could eat this every day, and it adds a. New dimension to cold cucumber. Soup. YUM
So glad you enjoyed it Kathryn! Thanks for stopping by.
Rave reviews!!!! My new favourite!
Thank you Stacia! So glad you enjoyed it!
This is so freaking delicious. I didn’t have Mayo so swapped with full fat Greek yogurt and it was perfect.
That’s awesome Jessica!
The Mexican street salad sounds great, will try.
Hi! This is served room temperature, or chilled, correct? Is it just as good when it’s not warm?
Yes I typically will serve it chilled or room temp. Warm would probably be just as tasty.