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With almost 200 5-star ratings, this Mexican street corn salad is a foolproof side dish for summer barbecues, backyard potlucks, and more! It’s a healthy, simple take on elote, the delicious Mexican street vendor version of corn on the cob!
save this recipe!Your New Summer Salad
Elote is grilled Mexican corn on the cob that’s slathered with a sour cream/mayo sauce and rolled in cotija cheese. It’s basically heaven in food form.
But today we’re recreating this snack perfection in potluck-ready form, throwing in a few add-ins and lightening up the sauce with Greek yogurt! This healthier Mexican street corn salad can be thrown on literally everything.
Eggs, tacos, chips, toast, burritos, salad, spoon…they’re all perfect vessels with which to inhale it. After countless recipe tests, I can’t wait for you to try this hearty, satisfying salad.
Reader rating
“OMG, just had this with dinner and it was FANTASTIC. I’m in love with the dressing! Have only just finished dinner, but have already shared the recipe with a couple of friends.” —Anna
Grab These Ingredients
All in all, this Mexican corn salad is a quick recipe with simple ingredients (some classic, some less traditional) that are easy to find! Jump to the recipe card for exact measurements and substitutions.
- Dressing: Traditional elote is served with mayonnaise, but we’re lightening it up by using plain Greek yogurt for a quick spiced dressing. (Sour cream can also be used.)
- Corn: Use fresh corn on the cob or canned corn kernels, whatever is easiest! We’ll briefly cook it to develop those toasty charred flavors.
- Black Beans: Black beans are great, but you could sub any canned bean you have on hand (kidney and pinto beans also work well).
- Bell Pepper: A diced bell pepper adds freshness and crunch to our salad.
- Red Onion: Finely chopped zingy onion brightens things up. For a milder taste, try sliced green onion.
- Cilantro: Don’t skimp on the cilantro, which adds that distinctly Tex-Mex flair (you cilantro haters can leave it out if need be).
- Cotija Or Feta Cheese: Use crumbly cotija cheese for the perfect taste and texture, though feta is a good substitute for cotija cheese.
- Flavor Makers: Garlic, lime, and salt bring it all together for elote salad bliss. You can even throw in other spices, like chili powder or Tajin, for a kick!
how to make street corn salad
Jump to the recipe for the full printable instructions.
Step 1: Mix The Dressing
Mix up the dressing ingredients first (this can even be done hours or days in advance).
Step 2: Cook The Corn
Heat oil (or butter) over medium/high heat in a large saute pan, and then add your garlic and corn. Cook it for about 15 minutes, flipping frequently, until the corn begins to char a bit. Gently toss the mixture with lime juice and salt.
Step 3: Serve The Salad
In a large bowl, combine the corn mixture, black beans, pepper, onion, cilantro, and cheese. Drizzle the sauce over and enjoy!
Serve It With
This Mexican street corn salad is great on its own or served as a condiment!
- Roasted Cauliflower Street Tacos: Filled with good-for-you ingredients, like chopped roasted cauliflower and crispy baked chickpeas.
- Huevos Rancheros: Your breakfast game has never been so good! You can thank me later.
- Vegetarian Taco Casserole: An easy dump and bake style casserole!
Mexican Street Corn Salad (Esquites Recipe)
Ingredients
Dressing
- ½ cup plain nonfat yogurt*, 80 g
- 1 Tbsp lime juice, 15 mL
- 1 tsp honey, 5 g
- ½ tsp paprika
- ¼ tsp cumin
Salad
- Splash of oil
- 4 ears corn, about 3 cups, 285 g of kernels, shucked and kernels removed
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 2 Tbsp lime juice, 30 mL
- ¼ tsp salt
- 1 cup canned black beans, 200 g, drained and rinsed
- 1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
- ½ cup chopped red onion, 35 g
- ½ cup packed fresh cilantro, chopped
- ½ cup cotija cheese, 88 g, crumbled, can sub feta
Instructions
- Dressing: Mix all dressing ingredients and set aside.
- Cook Corn: Heat oil over medium/high heat in a large saute pan, then add garlic and corn. Cook for about 15 minutes, flipping frequently, until corn begins to char a bit. Gently toss with lime juice and salt.**
- Serve: In a large bowl, combine corn mix, black beans, pepper, onion, cilantro, and cheese. Drizzle sauce over and serve either warm or cold. Perfect over tacos, as a chip dip, or by itself!
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information calculated by Sarah Bond, degreed nutritionist.
did you make this?Leave a comment below and tag @liveeatlearn on social media! I love seeing what you’ve made!
I make this salad often but you’re dressing caught my eye so I was excited to do something different with it. it was the best I have ever tasted! the whole family enjoyed it! I couldn’t stop eating it.
So happy to hear, Liz!! 😀
Made this last night and had it for lunch today. Great stuff! Thanks for sharing. Looking forward to trying more of your posted recipes. Thanks!
So happy to hear, Nike! 😀
Love this recipe. It pairs well with this grilled chicken recipe http://www.pbs.org/food/fresh-tastes/mojo-verde-chicken/
Oh yum! And the sauce in that chicken recipe looks amazing! 😀
love that you have calories per serving, but how much is in a serving?
Hi Angie! Nutrition info is for 1/8 recipe, which comes out to about .5 to .75 cups 😀
Hi! This looks so delicious! I’m wondering how big a serving is?
Hi Lisa! Nutrition info is for 1/8 recipe, which comes out to about .5 to .75 cups 😀
Thanks, Sarah!
Now all we have to know is how big your cups are 🙂
Is it a theekopje or a mok?
Haha, I just had a Dutch friend over and she was surprised to see that the American “cups” are actually a standard measure. So 1 cup = 236 mL. I would call that a…mok? 😉
Yes, I knew that, but just couldn’t let it pass. You also have standard spoons and tea spoons if I remember well. Here in the Netherlands that won’t work, I have at least five different size tea spoons. Oh ,and several different size “mokken”. We’ll stick to the metric system if you don’t mind 🙂
Yes we do! Teaspoons are 5 mL and tablespoons are 15 mL 😀 I’m slowly getting the hang of metric though. Sooo much more precise!
Not sure if someone else already said this, but I added a pablano pepper cut medium fine and one Jalepeno pepper cut very fine for a little extra kick.
Oh that sounds great, Kassiopia!! 😀
Delicious recipe! Loved the texture and flavor. I added a finely diced jalapeno and used feta cheese instead…probably should have just done half of a jalapeno!
Thanks Audrey!! I’m sure the jalapeno was great in it 😀 I also use feta cheese instead quite often (cotija can be hard to come by in some parts)
Doing dairy free. What can I use instead of the yogurt?
Hi Lill! You can use any variation of dairy-free yogurt (like soy, almond, or cashew)
Your dish looks so amazing! What should we do to preserve the leftovers? Can i use ricotta instead of cotija cheese for this recipe?
Thanks so much, Lita! I just keep leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge (though they never last long in our house!) You could certainly use ricotta, but I would recommend feta if you can’t find cotija. Feta and cotija are more fresh and salty and give some nice contrast to the salad!