This Mexican Street Corn recipe is the best way to serve corn on the cob. The cheesy, salty, and spicy topping perfectly balances out the natural sweetness of the corn.
One of my favorite ways to prepare corn is Mexican street corn, or elotes. My first time trying Mexican street corn was from an East Nashville favorite, Mas Tacos Por Favor. As the name implies, their tacos are amazing, but my favorite menu items are elotes and maduros (plantains) with sweetened condensed milk drizzled on top. I got the elotes so many times that I decided it was finally time to make it at home.
How to Make Mexican Street Corn
This is my favorite way to eat corn and it’s so easy to make. Start by cooking the corn. You can microwave it, boil, grill, or even cook it in your Instant Pot!
While the corn is cooking, prepare the topping by mixing crumbled cotija cheese with cilantro, cumin, and chili powders.
Brush the corn with mayonnaise to get the topping to stick and sprinkle the cheese mixture onto the corn, patting down a bit with your fingers.
What is Cotija Cheese?
Cotija cheese is a crumbly Mexican cow’s milk cheese with a strong, salty flavor somewhat like parmesan or feta. It’s perfect for Mexican street corn and other Mexican dishes.
Cotija cheese can usually be found in the cheese section or a refrigerated case in the Hispanic or International section of the grocery store.
If you can’t find cotija cheese, try substituting Romano or Parmesan.
Looking for more corn recipes? Try this Instant Pot corn chowder for a delicious summer or winter dish! Cornbread is always a delicious side dish. And if you’re looking for an Asian twist on corn, check out these shrimp & corn dumplings.
And if you want some other dishes for delicious summer produce, try this tomato zucchini pie or these delicious zucchini muffins.
If you try this recipe, leave a review and comment below to let me know what you think!
Mexican Street Corn
Ingredients
- 4 ears of sweet corn
- 4 oz cotija cheese crumbled
- 1 tablespoon cilantro finely chopped
- 1/2 tablespoon Ancho chili powder
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne chili powder optional
- 1/4 cup mayonnaise
Instructions
- Cook the corn. On the stove you can bring a large pot of water to a boil, then add the corn and boil for about 10 minutes. Or if you’ve got a grill going, then add the corn to the grill. Microwave or Instant Pot can also work!
- While the corn is cooking, mix together the cheese, cilantro, cumin, and chili powders in a small bowl.
- Allow the corn to cool for a few minutes, then brush the mayonnaise on the corn using a pastry brush. Sprinkle the cheese mixture onto the corn, patting down a bit with your fingers to get it to stick.
What a PHENOMENAL way to eat corn! Love the spices that make this recipe super tasty!
This is the perfect side dish for my grilled steak! The blend of spices pair perfectly with my steak!!
Oh my goodness! This looks so delicious and full of flavor! I’m so excited to try this!
Quite possibly the best way to enjoy corn! Loved how easy this was and brought so much flavor to a simple side dish!
Mexican corn is an absolute favorite of mine – so many yummy flavors with each bite!
We made this last night at our BBQ and it was a huge success! Couldn’t find cotijo cheese, so used parmesan and worked fine. Nice burn and fun flavors. Highly recommended!
Thanks, Kristi! I’m glad you enjoyed it and that it worked out with the parmesan substitution!
Now this is a recipe worth trying! This Mexican Street Corn looks ABSOLUTELY delish! Saving!
This is the perfect summer side! So easy and so flavorful!
I can’t even believe I haven’t made this yet… and there are SO many versions too! This one looks spectacular though! As soon as I get more corn…
I also grew up in WI and remember the saying… was there last week and had to check in! 🙂 Recipe looks great – thanks for sharing.
I love street corn and this recipe looks fantastic. And the plantains sound delicious too! Lovely photos!
Well you are talking my love language as I am Mexican and I was used to eat this grilled corn when living in Mexico, many great childhood memories. Your version sounds really yummy with the ancho chile.
AH!! I’ve never had cheese on my corn before. We love making corn at home and my favorite is with sriracha but this sounds like my kinda treat too. Can’t wait to try.
YUM! Looks so delicious and perfect for hosting or BBQ parties!
This looks incredible! I have never tried anything like this, but I really want to now! It is time to up my sweet corn game!