Esquites Recipe (Mexican Street Corn Salad)
This esquites recipe, aka "Mexican corn salad", is everything great about elote served in salad form, so creamy and tangy and spicy, the perfect side dish.
Servings: 8
Calories: 223kcal
Ingredients
- 6 ears of corn enough for about 6 cups of corn
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 red bell pepper chopped
- 2-3 jalapeno peppers* chopped (optional – see NOTES)
- 1 small red onion chopped
- 1 avocado chopped
- ¾ cup fresh cilantro chopped
- ¼ cup fresh lime juice
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- Salt and pepper to taste about ½ teaspoon each is good
- 1 teaspoon hot sauce optional
- ¼ cup Mexican crema or sour cream
- ¼ cup mayonnaise
- ¾ cup queso fresco or crumbled cotija cheese
Instructions
- Cut the corn from the cobs. Heat the olive oil in a large pan and cook the corn for 8-9 minutes, stirring, or until the corn browns and chars. Alternatively, you can grill the corn to get the char, then cool and slice off the corn kernels.
- Next, add the charred corn to a large mixing bowl and stir in the remaining ingredients.
- Mix everything together until the corn is nice and creamy and the ingredients are uniformly mixed.
- Top with a bit of extra crumbly cheese and fresh cilantro.
Notes
*For the jalapeno, you can omit for a non-spicy version. Or, core them out for a milder version. If you’re looking for a spicier version, upgrade to serrano peppers, or incorporate a spicy hot sauce, spicy chili flakes, cayenne pepper or a hotter powder.
Nutrition
Calories: 223kcal | Carbohydrates: 18g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 15g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 14mg | Sodium: 188mg | Potassium: 405mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 1015IU | Vitamin C: 34.3mg | Calcium: 86mg | Iron: 0.8mg