Walking through a street festival recently I once again couldn’t resist stopping at the grilled corn booth to watch skilled hands cranking out toasted corn Tex Mex style – slathered in mayonnaise, rolled in crumbled Cotija cheese and cilantro, sprinkled with a magic spice mix (paprika, chile powder and a touch of cumin here), then spritzed with a lime quarter.
Apparently this version started down South in Mexico and is still danged popular street fare, though it’s pretty easy to find it scattered across the Southern tier of the country these days (especially in South and Central Texas).
Fresh corn is already starting to consistently show up in our favorite markets these days, and a vision for this grilled corn salad popped into mind walking past a big pile of it in Central Market last Sunday.
Grilled corn, two different peppers, a touch of great mayonnaise (use Duke’s if you can find it to raise your authenticity level), Cotija, cilantro and lime – what’s not to like?
Grilling season is upon us; you’ll want this one in your files. We posted a pretty similar one about a year ago, though the roasted peppers and pimentos really kick this version up a couple of notches.
6 ears of fresh corn, soaked and husked
½ roasted red pepper or 1 small jar roasted chopped pimento
2 Serrano or jalapeño peppers, grilled
4 tbsp (maybe more) good mayonnaise (like Duke’s…)
3 tbsp fresh squeezed lime juice
½ tsp smoked paprika (or more)
¼ to ½ tsp chipotle powder
3 ounces Cotija cheese (Parm works too), crumbled, roughly ? cup + more for garnish
1/3 cup fresh cilantro, chopped + more for garnish
1-2 green onions, white and green, sliced thin
Kosher salt to taste
Fresh ground pepper to tasteGarnish: More Cotija, cilantro
Fire the grill; prep the corn and peppers.
Grill the corn until charred and tender (10 minutes or so), turning now and again. Grill the peppers until lightly charred.
Let the corn cool for 5-6 minutes, then cut from the cobs (use the nifty trick of standing a cob vertically over the hole in a bundt cake pan to catch all kernels) and place in a medium sized bowl.
Drain the roasted red pepper / pimentos, chop if needed and add to the corn. Stem and seed the roasted peppers, chop, and add to the corn.
Combine the mayonnaise, lime juice, paprika, chipotle powder, crumbled cheese, green onions and chopped cilantro; whisk well and then pour over the corn mixture. Stir to coat everything in the bowl.
Season with salt and pepper, garnish and go to it.
Enjoy.
