Mexican Street Corn Salad

4.50 from 18 votes

Spice up your next BBQ with Mexican Street Corn Salad! A crowd-pleasing dish that's easy to make, packed with flavor, and ready in minutes.

Prep Time10

Cook Time12

Total Time22

Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: Mexican

Servings: servings

Author: Jamie Sherman

2 tablespoons vegetable oil
4 - 6 ears fresh corn shucked, kernels removed (about 3-4 cups fresh corn kernels)
salt to taste
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
2 oz. cotija cheese finely crumbled
½ cup green onion finely sliced
½ cup cilantro leaves finely chopped
1 jalapeño pepper seeded and membranes removed, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic minced
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
chili powder to taste

In a large non-stick skillet, heat the oil over high heat until shimmering. Add the corn kernels and season to taste with salt. Stir once and let the corn cook without moving until charred on one side, about 2-3 minutes. Stir corn and repeat until charred on the second side, about 2 minutes longer. Continue stirring and charring until well charred all over, about 10-12 minutes total. Transfer the corn to a large bowl.
To the corn, add mayonnaise, cotija cheese, green onions, cilantro, jalapeño, garlic, lime juice, and chili powder and stir to combine. Taste and adjust the seasoning with salt and more chili powder to taste.
Serve immediately or refrigerate until serving time.

This salad can be served immediately while warm or refrigerated and served later cold. This salad can be made ahead of time and chilled in the fridge until ready to serve. In fact, the flavors will meld together even better if you allow the salad to sit for a few hours or overnight.
Frozen corn that has been thawed and drained can be used in place of fresh corn.