Another vote for the Mexican Street Corn Salad. Made some last night and it's gone!

M

michael-in-phoenix

Well-known member
I buttered and grilled 4 cobs of corn over charcoal until roasted, with flecks of brown and black. Cut the corn away from the cob as soon as it was cool enough to handle.

I used Tejin, which is a chile/lime/salt mixture popular with street vendors in place of the chili powder. I backed off on the kosher salt so it didn't get too salty. I did add some red pepper flakes.

Next time I will leave the jalapeno seeds in the mix.

I used cotija cheese, and I highly recommend doing so, if you have it in your area. The good stuff crumbles by hand. It is salty like parmesan or feta, but it has a whole milk taste that reminds me of cream.

GOOD RECIPE! Can't wait to make it for my family in San Diego.

Michael

 
We first had it in Denver at a cute family Latino grill on Federal Ave. It was during the green

chile roasting season also. They roasted the corn in a BIG corn roaster, as Michael said and then sprinkled with chile powder (not green chile), lime juice and cheese. I have made it for tail gates just using frozen corn without the roasting and using parmesan. And it doesn't have to be real real hot. Just good

 
I made it for a crowd yesterday too - BIG hit!

I made it in the morning (charred in a pan on the stove), let the corn come to room temp and then added the rest of the ingredients. I chilled it until an hour before serving. I will be making this again and again!!

 
It's a riff on Elotes, which are sold from carts all over here

Little carts have a steamer box. They grab an ear of corn, shuck it, cut the kernels and layer in a styrofoam cup with mayo or crema, fiery red hot sauce and just a little garnish on the top of cheese. Elotes don't have peppers, cilantro, lime or onion here. I think places that sell roasted whole ears of corn roll them in mayo or crema and garnish them with more ingredients.

 
Elote is spanish for "corn cob". It is a little different here in Phoenix. Vendor carts have...

...the same insulated steam box (usually a converted ice cream box) filled with corn that has been roasted in the husk. Sometimes the corn is already shucked, sometimes not, and the vendor peels back the husk for you (see the link at my post above. The corn in that picture has the husks peeled back).

He then brushes the corn on the cob with mayo and rolls it in crumbled cotija. He either puts hot sauce on it, or sprinkles it with chile powder and green onion slices.

Wa la!

M

 
Michael, I noticed Trader Joe's has a chilie/lime blend that has good reviews

Have you tried it?

I read the reviews on Amazon about the Tajin and some are so weird. One person said, this is only good on fruit but makes everything else taste like horse manure! Many did say it was used mainly on fruit, do you use it on anything else besides the corn?

 
My son loves it on watermelon. I'm a purist though. Watermelon needs no embellisment.

It's not super important to use tejin. The TJ thing would be fine.

I think even a commercial chili powder would work fine.

Michael

 
The watermelon I've gotten has no taste. Even adding mint, lime juice & simple syrup, all I taste

is mint, lime juice and simple syrup.

How do they manage to extract all flavor???

 
Watermelons just came into season at our Farmer's Markets, however they are all the ones with seeds

and I prefer the seedless, which I have to purchase at the grocery stores and so far, they have no taste. Hoping they will get better as they are usually quite delicious

 
Funny---I've been looking for the melons with seeds--I don't think that the seedless have as much...

depth of flavor.

OR---is my aged taste buds the culprit.

 
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