Elote (Mexican Street Corn)

This elote recipe (Mexican corn) features fresh sweet corn on the cob, grilled and slathered in a mayonaisse, sour cream, and lime juice mixture topped with spices, and cotija cheese for the best Mexican street corn.

I’ll sing the praises of sweet summer corn until the cows come home. While I love serving my grilled corn on the cob recipe with just butter and salt and pepper, I also like to jazz it up. I have recipes for Mexican corn dip and Mexican corn pasta salad here on the blog, but I hadn’t yet shared my recipe for Mexican corn on the cob. That needed to be remedied, ASAP. Originating in Mexico City, Mexican street corn or “elote” literally translates to “cob” and is a popular street food dish where the husk acts as a handle so it can be eaten on the go without a plate. The warm corn is slathered in a lime-flavored Mexican crema where the creamy sauce warms and softens into the kernels. Seasoned with chili powder and topped with crumbled cotija cheese, it’s an addictive side dish. I add lime and chile-flavored Tajin seasoning to mine for a salty-savory lip-smacking kick. It’s crazy good, and a fun summer side dish.

What’s in Elote aka Mexican Street Corn

The star flavor of this elote is the sweet grilled corn, but there are a few ingredients that really make it sing. Here’s what you’ll need to make it:

• Fresh corn on the cob
• Sour cream
• Mayonnaise—I use Duke’s or Hellman’s but you could use Mexican cream instead of the sour cream mayo combo
• Lime juice
• Cotija cheese (you could also use queso fresca or even Parmesan cheese or feta cheese in a pinch)
• Chili powder—you could use cayenne pepper but not as much
• Tajin Clasico Chile Lime Seasoning—this is a blend of chili peppers, lime, and salt, and you can find this in the international aisle of most grocery stores, or Hispanic supermarkets

How to Make Elote Mexican Street Corn On the Cob

This easy elote recipe comes together in just 15 minutes or so. While the corn is grilling you can prep the spread. Here’s how to make it:

Grill the corn. First, remove the first layer of rough husks from the corn cobs, keeping the more tender husk to protect the kernels. Trim the silk tassels from the corn cobs. Place the cobs directly on the grates. Close the lid and grill for 10-15 minutes or until the corn is fragrant and the husks are browned, turning the cobs every few minutes.

Remove the corn from the grill and pull back the husks. Use a towel to hold the corn and shuck the husks and silk. Pull the husks back from the cob as you would a banana, gather them like a ponytail, and use one husk to tie in a knot to secure.

Make the creamy sauce. The mayo and sour cream mixture act as butter here. Adding sour cream to the mayo gives it just a bit of tang while not making the spread too tart. While the corn is cooking, mix the sour cream, mayonnaise, and lime juice. Crumble the cotija cheese in a small bowl.

TIP: If you’d like, use Mexican crema instead of the mayo and sour cream mixture.

Prep the corn. Slather the ears of corn with the mayonnaise mixture, sprinkle generously with cheese then season with the chile powder and Tajin, adding more or less to taste. Add a final squeeze of fresh lime juice if you’d like.

What’s the Difference Between Esquites and Elote

Esquites is a Mexican dish with the same ingredients used in elote, just in a slightly different format. For esquites, you just cut the corn off the cob and mix all of the ingredients in a bowl, instead of eating it on the cob.

What to Eat Elote With

• The BEST Chicken Fajitas
• Grilled Steak Tacos
• The BEST Carnitas
• Grilled Cilantro Lime Chicken
• The BEST Spanish Rice Recipe (Mexican Rice)

If you make this recipe, please let me know! Leave a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating on this recipe below and leave a comment, take a photo and tag me on Instagram with #foodiecrusheats.

More Corn Recipes You’ll Love

• BLT Corn Salad
• Mexican Corn Dip
• Chilled Corn and Crab Soup
• Zucchini and Fresh Corn Salad
• How to Make the BEST Corn Salsa
• Grilled Corn Salad with Tomato and Avocado

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