Esquites (Mexican Street Corn Salad)

A wooden bowl of Mexican corn salad on a table with a lace table cloth.

5 from 3 votes

This delicious toasted Mexican street corn salad (Esquites) recipe is incredible hot or cold, it can be served as just a salad or like a salsa with chips – it’s crunchy, it’s creamy, it's spiced with smoky, authentic Mexican flavor and it's also gluten free!

Prep Time15

Cook Time10

Total Time25

Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: Mexican

Servings: people

Calories: 158kcal

Author: Genevieve Morrison

Equipment

sharp knife and cutting board
wooden spoon or spatula
medium-size mixing bowl
sauté pan

Ingredients

2 cups corn - kernels from 3 ears
2 tbsp. jalapeño - finely diced
⅓ cup red onion - finely diced
⅓ cup red bell pepper - finely diced
¼ cup cilantro - finely chopped
2 tbsp. garlic - minced
½ lime - juiced
2 tbsp. butter - and a little extra for sautéed garlic
2 tbsp. mayonnaise
2 tbsp. sour cream - or Mexican crema
2 tbsp. cotija cheese
chili powder - just a sprinkle
cayenne pepper - just a sprinkle
smoked paprika - just a sprinkle

Instructions

Shuck 3 ears of corn and slice the kernels off the cob into a bowl. Finely dice 1 jalapeño, ⅓ cup red onion and ⅓ cup red bell pepper. Finely chop ¼ cup cilantro, mince 2 cloves of garlic and slice 1 lime in half.
Add 2 tbsp. butter to a pan and melt. Gently toss the corn, making sure it’s nicely coated. Sauté corn on HIGH, allowing it to deeply brown. It should take about 10 minutes to brown nicely.
Reduce heat and move corn to one side of the pan. Add ½ tsp. butter to the pan and sauté minced garlic until brown, about 2 minutes. Combine with sautéed corn. Remove from heat.
NOTE: If you intend to serve this recipe cold, place corn in a sealed container and refrigerate separately from the other diced/chopped vegetables. Once cold, go to the next step.
Mix browned corn and diced/chopped vegetables with 2 tbsp. mayo, 2 tbsp. sour cream, juice from ½ lime and a sprinkle of cayenne pepper, chili powder and smoked paprika. Sprinkle with 2 tbsp. cotija cheese and serve.

Notes

This recipe will stay delicious and fresh in a refrigerated container for 24 hours.

A Few Tips!

1. Careful! That corn might POP!

You’re going to be cooking the corn over high heat, and after about 4 minutes, the corn is not only hot, but some of them might be EXPLOSIVE and pop right out of the pan! So either use a screen to cover your pan, or a lid that is not sealed shut, but tilted to allow heat to escape while it browns.

2. If you intend to serve it cold like a salsa…

Traditionally, esquites are served hot, but if you intend to serve it cold, wait until the corn has cooled before adding the mayo and sour cream, otherwise the oils from the mayo will separate and it won’t look very nice when cooled.

Nutrition