Prep Time: 15 mins
Cook time: 10 mins
Serves 8-10
It is that time of year…..summer…when corn is 6 for a dollar, and our local farmer’s market has stacks and stacks at every booth. If you are at all familiar with our website…you are well aware that I/we cook out…..A LOT. If we are not out at a restaurant……we have our dinner on the grill, egg, or smoker. And Fresh Corn is almost always a side dish. It is easy, everyone loves… or at least likes corn, and it is cheap, like dirt cheap.
I fell in love with Mexican Street Corn years ago while traveling. I instantly adopted the recipe as my own and started using grilled corn as a side dish with everything from steaks, chicken, venison, to pulled pork. Due to a funny sort of bump in the road……I evolved the grilled street corn into a chilled salad (in lieu of “on the cob”). See, my daughter started to lose her teeth…..and corn on the cob lost its rightful place as our lofty wing-man. And….the grilled corn salad swept in and stole the throne.
We hope you like this recipe….it is just as easy as the “on the cob” version, but easier to eat and it affords you the ability to prepare and chill it in the fridge hours or days before you plan to eat. As always, our recipe is just a guide, add more of what you want, delete what you don’t, and please leave a comment telling us how it all turned out.
Thanks, and have a great summer!
What you need:
- 8-10 ears of fresh corn (yellow or white…or you can do a mixture of both). I use about one ear per person that I am serving.
- 1 small can of mild green chilies
- 1 cup of diced bell pepper (use anything color you want here, red or orange peppers are great because of their color, but green peppers will do just fine).
- 1 cup diced Vidalia Onion (or any sweet onion)
- ½ cup of chopped scallions/green onions
- ½ cup of chopped cilantro
- ½ cup of cotija cheese (you will find this in the cold cheese section at your local store), you can use feta in place of cotija cheese if you would like.
- ¼ cup Mayonnaise (use Duke’s Mayo….for real). You can go light on the mayo if you are not a super fan….cutting the mayo in half will still make an awesome salad..)
- 2 tablespoons of fresh squeezed lime juice
- ½ teaspoon of smoked paprika
- Pinch of Garlic Salt
- Salt and fresh ground pepper
Ok, let’s go:
- Fill large pot (about half full) with water and a healthy amount of salt, bring to a boil.
- While the water is coming to a boil, shuck your corn and remove all the silk.
- Boil the corn for about 8 minutes.
- While the corn is boiling, start up your grill and get the grates nice and hot.
- Place all of your ingredients from above (except for the corn) in a large bowl or Tupperware and mix well.
- Save a little of the cheese, cilantro, and scallions/green onions to garnish at the end…
- Next, take your corn out of the boiling water and place on your hot grill. We want a nice “Char” on the corn…you want to see some black here. Keep turning your corn until all sides are nicely grilled/charred.
- Take your corn off the grill and let cool for about 5-10 minutes or until you can safely hold onto the corn.
- Cut your corn of the cob and place into the bowl with all of your above mixed ingredients. Mix well, put in the fridge, and let chill until cold (about an hour). Season with salt and fresh ground pepper and garnish with the left over cilantro, green onions and cheese.
That is it…….There are no hard and fast rules here….you can add anything to this salad that you want……I find that anything you get at the farmer’s market can find a place in this salad. Tomatoes are a great addition, try some grilled okra, cucumbers are a nice way to freshen it all up……don’t be afraid to get a little crazy here.
Good luck and thanks again!
