This Mexican street corn is the perfect crowd pleaser! Elote is a favorite side dish with grilled on the cob topped with a cilantro lime crema sauce and crumbled cotija cheese.
We love this side dish recipe so much we also make elote dip recipe and Mexican street corn salad. For a simple corn side, try my Chipotle corn salsa!
Table of Contents
Easy Mexican Street Corn
During the summer, we love to make lots of easy and delicious grilling recipes. There’s just something about the grill that brings out the fresh flavor and makes veggies taste extra yummy.
This Mexican corn (also known as elote) is charred to perfection and has the most wonderful combination of flavors. It is a game-changer and takes grilled corn to a whole new level! It’s super easy and quickly comes together to serve with all your favorite Mexican food, like tacos, burritos, salads, and more.
Mexican Street Corn Elote Ingredients
The crema sauce is what takes this grilled Mexican street corn up a notch. It gets brushed over the tops of the charred corn and adds a super creamy and flavorful taste.
Find the full printable recipe with specific measurements below.
- Corn: Pick sweet corn that is yellow with a bright green husk. Remove the husk by pulling it from the top down to the bottom.
- Mexican crema: You can either use crema or sour cream. This is a creamy base that adds all the flavor.
- Mayo: Brings a creamy texture to the crema and gives a tangy balance.
- Lime zest: Grate the outside of the lime to get a little zest in the crema mixture.
- Lime juice: Freshly squeezed lime juice is a sweet and tart blend.
- Chili powder: Add in a little spice to the creamy mixture and some color.
- Cilantro: Garnish with some freshly chopped cilantro on top to bring in a pretty green color.
- Cotija cheese: Sprinkle the cheese over top of the corn. It will slightly melt leaving the cheese soft in every bite.
How to Make East Mexican Street Corn
This Mexican street corn is so easy! Simply grill, make the Mexican crema sauce, and cover the corn with it. It will be on your menu all summer long.
- Prepare. Remove the husk from the sweet corn.
- Grill. Preheat the grill to medium-high heat. When the grill is hot, place corn directly on the grates. Flip occasionally until all sides are lightly charred (about 5-10 minutes).
- Combine. Mix together the Mexican crema, mayo, lime zest, lime juice, and chili powder in a small bowl. Set aside.
- Brush. Once cooked, brush the crema sauce all over the top. Sprinkle with cotija cheese and cilantro. Add salt and pepper (plus more chili powder) to taste.
Cooking Tips + Variations
Follow these quick tips and variations for making the best Mexican street corn recipe.
- Picking fresh corn. Look for fresh yellow or white corn that has a bright green husk. It helps to squeeze the corn to make sure it’s firm and there aren’t any soft spots.
- Cooking the corn. Although I highly recommend using the grill (it really enhances the flavor), you could boil, bake or microwave the corn instead if preferred. It will still taste yummy, it just won’t have that fresh, charred flavor that the grill gives it.
- Spice. If you like a little heat, sprinkle with additional chili powder before eating. You could even add some fresh chopped jalapeños.
- Cheese. I prefer cotija cheese, but feta would be fine to use too.
- Turn into a salad. Use a corn scraper to remove the kernels and then combine all ingredients together and then mix. It tastes amazing on top of carnitas or even shredded chicken.
What to Serve with Mexican Street Corn
Just about any Mexican entrée tastes delicious with street corn. Serve as a side dish on Taco Tuesday or alongside your favorite Mexican salad or burrito with cilantro lime rice.
- Skirt steak tacos
- Baked chicken burritos
- Sweet pork tacos
- Green chile chicken enchiladas
- Steak fajitas
- Slow cooker chicken tinga tacos
- Easy taco salad
Recipe FAQs
Street corn is usually served on the streets in a cup that you can hold and eat whereas elote is served on the cob. They both have the same seasonings and crema sauce covering the corn just served in two different ways.
The classic Mexican street corn is charred on the grill, then mixed together with the crema sauce brushed over top, and sprinkled with cotija cheese and chili spice.
Elote has several names but the most known name is Mexican street corn. Esquites, troles or trolelotes is from Northeast Mexico, Chasca in Aguascalientes, elote en vaso means corn in a cup which is common in the USA.
5 star review
“I live in AZ and love finding recipes that don’t heat up my home with the stove or oven. This is a wonderful way to keep your kitchen cool and still enjoy a tasty side of corn!”
-Beth
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Mexican Street Corn
Ingredients
- 4 ears sweet corn , husk removed
- ¼ cup Mexican crema , or sour cream
- ¼ cup mayo
- 1 ½ teaspoons lime zest
- 1 Tablespoon lime juice
- ⅛ teaspoon chili powder
- 3 Tablespoons chopped cilantro
- 3 Tablespoons crumbled cotija cheese , more if desired
S&P, to taste
Instructions
- Preheat the grill to medium-high heat. When the grill is hot, place corn directly on on the grates. Flip occasionally until all sides are lightly charred (about 5-10 minutes).
- Mix together the Mexican crema, mayo, lime zest, lime juice and chili powder in a small bowl. Set aside.
- Once cooked, brush the crema sauce all over the top. Sprinkle with cotija cheese and cilantro. Add salt and pepper (plus more chili powder) to taste.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition provided is an estimate. It will vary based on specific ingredients used.
Did you make this recipe? Don’t forget to give it a star rating below!
Enjoy!
Categorized as: Cinco De Mayo, Gluten-Free, Grilling, Mexican, Nut-Free, Side Dishes, Vegetables, Vegetarian
Jamielyn Nye is the founder and recipe creator at I Heart Naptime. She is the author of the I Heart Naptime Cookbook and shares easy family-friendly recipes and desserts for every occasion.
This has to be the best corn I have ever had, it was so flavorful and I could not stop eating it.
I live in AZ and love finding recipes that don’t heat up my home with the stove or oven. This is a wonderful way to keep your kitchen cool and still enjoy a tasty side of corn!
Such a good recipe! And so easy! Grilled corn is definitely the way to go!
So glad you enjoyed it! :)
Grilling season is in full force over here at our house. We love to grill! One of our favorite sides to grill is corn. My entire family including the picky one loves to eat corn so we have it regularly. I have been wanting to try this Mexican Street Corn for a while now and this was the perfect time to try!
Would love to try this at home, thank you n keep it up :)
Hope you enjoy this Mexican Street Corn! :)
Such a great dish!
My favorite way to eat corn!
This is one side dish that is a show stopper! Looks amazing!
Did someone say Cotija cheese? :)
This looks delicious! I know my family will love this!
I want a big bowl of this! Looks and sounds yummy!
Mexican street corn! I have to make your version!
These are just so adorable! These would disappear in our house!
Delicious! I love street corn!
I NEED to try this corn.
What a perfect way to dress up all this fresh corn that’s in stores now!
I have always loved this and it has been so long! I will be trying this very soon!
They used to sell these at my Farmer’s Market and I always wanted to try it but I never did! I should just make my own now. Thank you!