The interesting name is pretty straight forward and self explanatory. Mexican street vendors serve this creamy, messy deliciousness on the cob. Creamy, tangy, and a bit spicy, it’s become a favourite in our house, but corn on the cob is a very short season where we live.
Our preferred way to serve corn on the cob is grilled on the barbeque in the husk, and we cook a lot – hoping for leftovers. From those leftovers, I cut the corn off and freeze it in beautiful grilled strips. This is the BEST way to make street corn, but alas, eventually, I’ll run out of that frozen corn. The next best way is to toast your corn in a hot skillet to get that toasty taste and ‘grill’ marks. In that case I always use freeze dried corn because I always have it on hand and never run out.
1/4 cup butter or olive oil or a mixture of both
4-6 garlic cloves minced
1/2 an onion chopped OR cup 1/2 cup freeze dried chopped onion
6 cups fresh grilled corn OR freeze dried corn
3/4 – 1 cup fresh chopped OR freeze dried chili peppers
1 T flour + 1 T cumin + 1 T chili powder + 1 teaspoon salt + 1 t pepper + 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika + – ALL mixed together.
1+ cup of water (if you are using freeze dried corn, keep a few more cups on hand to use as needed)
1/4 cup lime juice or zest and juice of 3 limes
1 cup cotija cheese (found in Mexican / Hispanic grocery stores) OR freeze dried shredded pepper jack cheese
1/2 – 1 cup fresh cilantro lightly chopped
1/2 cup mayonnaise
– sour cream if you have it on hand, to make it a little creamier –
*optional: 1/4 cup fresh chopped mint
*optional: crumbled feta cheese
*optional: toasted pumpkin seeds
Toast onion, garlic and corn in butter in medium hot skillet stirring constantly to prevent burning. It’s ready when it is lightly toasted and aromatic.
Add chili peppers and stir in.
Add 1 cup water to corn mixture in skillet to refresh. Add more water as needed – 1 cup at a time till you decide if you need more.
Add the seasoning mixture in all together and stir to incorporate thoroughly. Remember the dark colours of chili powder and paprika will colour your street corn, so don’t add any more than recommended.
Remove from heat and taste test for seasoning. Add mayonnaise and stir in.
Add lime juice and stir to combine.
When all ready, sprinkle cilantro, mint, feta and pumpkin seeds on top generously.
Serve. Enjoy.
Warmly,
Cindy Suelzle
