Mexican Street Corn Salad

This tangy, creamy and crunchy Mexican Street Corn Salad is always a party! Grilled corn and tons of veggies tossed with a creamy, flavorful dressing, topped with crumbled Cotija cheese!

This corn salad is the perfect addition to most any meal! Try it with our Fiesta Steak Tips or juicy, marinated Grilled Chicken!

mexican street corn salad in a bowl with grilled corn on the side

Crunchy, Sweet, Tangy Mexican Street Corn Salad

This Mexican Street Corn Salad is one of my favorite ways to eat sweet summer corn on the cob. Usually, as a side dish to dinner, we Oven Roast our corn on the cob or when the weather is nice, we make Grilled Corn on the Cob.

When we have extra grilled corn we bust out this corn salad and the crowd goes wild. It’s perfect for parties and BBQ’s, or as a take along dish to a potluck.

This corn salad can be completely made ahead of time, and even gets better as it sits in the fridge!

Ingredients You’ll Need

We’ll start with the basic ingredients here, but you can always add or adjust the vegetables to your liking! You can prepare and toss the salad ingredients together in a bowl and chill ahead of time. Then mix up the dressing ingredients, toss and serve.

mexican street corn salad on a black bowl with napkin

For The Salad Base:

  • Grilled Corn: You can make this salad with regular, boiled or roasted corn, but the grilled flavor really makes this corn salad extra delicious.
  • Bell Pepper: Any color will do, or a mix of colors will work.
  • Jalapeño Pepper: Jalapeños are mildly spicy, so add as much or as little as you like for the heat. We like one medium pepper for this salad.
  • Red Onion: Red onions are a little spicier then yellow or white, which makes it the perfect onion for this salad. However, if you only have white or yellow on hand those will both work fine as well.
  • Cotija Cheese: A mild cow’s milk cheese.
ingredients to make a corn salad

For The Dressing

  • Mayonnaise: Full fat is preferred, your favorite brand will do.
  • Sour Cream: Again, we like using regular instead of low fat or fat free for the best flavor.
  • Fresh Lime Juice: Fresh is best!
  • Salt & Fresh Ground Black Pepper, Cumin, Garlic Powder
  • Chili Powder OR Trader Joe’s Everything But The Elote Seasoning: If you have a Trader Joe’s by you, definitely grab this seasoning. We use it on everything including this Mexican Street Corn Salad!
dressing being poured onto a vegetable salad

Can You Make This Corn Salad Ahead Of Time?

This salad gets even better as it sits! You can even make it a day ahead of time if you need to. But if you prefer it freshly tossed…

Prep all of the veggies for the salad base and get them into a bowl. Make the dressing and keep it in a separate container. Toss 30 minutes before serving to let the flavors blend together!

Mexican street corn salad in a white bowl

What Main Courses Goes With Mexican Street Corn Salad?

This corn salad is so delicious, it can honestly be eaten all on its own! But it also pairs wonderfully with many main course recipes. Head over to our Dinner Ideas menu for more ideas, but we’ll list a few good ones here:

Of course any main course that goes well with corn is going to work perfectly with this salad recipe. However, we love the flavors is this recipe so much, it often turns into a main course for light lunches or dinners.

mexican street corn salad in black bowl with limes

What’s The Difference Between Elote and Esquites?

Elotes is the name for Mexican Street Corn that’s on the cob and slathered with mayonnaise and other toppings such as Tajin. When a similar dish is prepared, like this one, and cut off the cob it’s referred to as esquites. So basically esquites is a salad version of elotes served in a bowl.

On that note, this salad can be served warm as well. If you’re corn has come right off the grill, you can add it to this salad and toss with the rest of the ingredients instead of chilling it first.

corn salad on a wooden spoon in a bowl

Variations

This party-worthy corn and vegetable salad is absolutely one of our favorites. BONUS: you can adjust this recipe for all seasons!

No corn on the cob? Grab a frozen bag of corn, let it defrost and pat the water dry. Add the corn to a hot skillet with a drizzle of oil and cook it for a few minutes so that it gets a nice char, then add it to the salad bowl.

OR if you have made some delicious, Mexican Street Corn and happen to have leftovers? Cut the kernels and all the toppings off the cob and get it right into the bowl!

Swap out the cheese: Cotija is a classic Mexican cheese, with a mild flavor that is a wonderful addition to this salad. But if you need to swap out another kind, parmesan cheese or feta cheese would be good choices.

Looking For More Party-Worthy Side Dishes?

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mexican street corn salad in black bowl with limes

Mexican Street Corn Salad

  • Author: Dan
  • Prep Time: 15 minutes
  • Cook Time: 0 minutes
  • Total Time: 15 minutes
  • Yield: 6 servings 1x

Make this festive Mexican Street Corn Salad for your next party! Tons of veggies and fresh grilled corn tossed with the most creamy, delicious dressing. Make in advance and toss right before serving!

Scale

Ingredients

  • 10 ears of grilled corn, corn removed from the cob
  • 1 cup diced bell pepper
  • 1 medium jalapeño, diced
  • 1/2 cup diced red onion
  • 2/3 cup crumbled cotija cheese
  • 1/4 cup chopped, fresh cilantro (plus more for garnish)
  • Tajin seasoning for garnish

For The Dressing:

  • 1/2 cup regular mayonnaise
  • 2 tablespoons sour cream
  • 1 lime, juiced
  • 1/2 teaspoon cumin
  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon chili powder or Tajin seasoning
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
  • Fresh black pepper to taste

Instructions

  1. Add the corn, bell peppers, jalapeño pepper, onion, Cotija cheese and cilantro to a large bowl and toss together to combine.
  2. Whisk the ingredients for the dressing together in a small bowl. Pour about half of the dressing over the vegetables and toss. Add more dressing if needed, reserve any remaining dressing for another use.
  3. Mix to combine the dressing with the vegetables, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes or up to a day before serving. Toss again before serving.

Recipe Notes

Store: This salad will keep up to 4 days in the refrigerator, covered.

If corn on the cob isn’t an option, you can substitute frozen corn, defrosted. PRO TIP: Add frozen, defrosted corn to a hot skillet with a drizzle of oil to slightly char the kernels before adding to the salad.

  • Category: Side Dish
  • Method: No Cook
  • Cuisine: American / Tex-Mex

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