This Mexican street corn salad is easy to prepare and packed with delicious fresh flavors. With a healthier dressing that's still full of all the flavors you'd expect, it makes a great side or potluck salad.

Mexican street corn salad in bowl from side

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As I mentioned when I shared my mango habanero sauce, the taco place near us has reminded me or introduced me to a few favorites, and Mexican street corn, or elotes, is one of them.

Delicious grilled corn, a squeeze of lime and topped with a gently spiced crema, cotija cheese, paprika and cilantro is just so good. But let's face it, it's not exactly easy to eat with any kind of grace.

Mexican street corn salad in bowl with lime and sprig of cilantro ti side

There is an off-the-cob equivalent called esquites which is basically the same ingredients but served in a cup. I've added a couple of additions to the basic idea to make this tasty Mexican street corn salad. It's full of all your favorite flavors and makes a great side to almost any meal.

When our Foodie Extravaganza theme this month was salad and it fell during the week we are sharing Mexican recipes, I was sure I must be able to combine both. After all, I've made a Mexican chopped salad and mango jicama slaw before which we both love. However neither are particularly authentic.

Mexican street corn salad in bowl from overhead

My memories or salad in Mexico are a bit vague - I tend to remember simple salads and slaws, but salsas were really king. As I looked into it, this seemed a fair reflection. So, I adapted a traditional snack/relish.

To grill or not to grill?

Having looked at different recipes for esquites, they tend to cook the corn in a pan rather than on the grill. At first I was a little skeptical, as I love that grilled flavor, but I understand it's easier. We grilled the corn as we were grilling anyway, but I've described the pan method as well.

Mexican street corn salad ingredients in bowl ready to mix

Making this Mexican street corn salad

Once you've cooked your corn, you add the black beans, cilantro/coriander and scallions/ spring onions. Mix together the dressing ingredients and stir it through.

See how easy it is to make in the short video!

While your traditional esquites generally has a little cilantro, there's more here plus the other additions to make it a bit more salad-like. Normally you'd top it, as you would elote, with Mexican crema, paprika and cotija cheese. Here, those flavors are incorporated into a delicious dressing.

Here I've used yogurt for the dressing instead of crema to make it a little lighter, but it's still really creamy. Especially with the lime, cumin and smoked paprika mixed in, it's packed with flavor.

Feta works as a good alternative if you can't find cotija (or don't see yourself using it up). Then there's only a little bit of chopping and mixing to put it all together.

Close up side view of Mexican street corn salad garnished with sprig of cilantro

This Mexican street corn salad is easy to prepare and packed with delicious, fresh flavor. It was an instant hit in our house and I can see it being perfect for almost any event, from potluck dinners to picnics. It will definitely be on our summer table often.

Try these other summer salads:

Grilled nectarine salad
Mexican chopped salad
Mango jicama slaw
Plus get more summer recipes, from salads to grilling and more, in the archives.

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5 from 2 votes