Mexican Street Corn

Mexican Street Corn or “Elote” is covered with a tangy and spicy crema sauce and topped with crumbled cotija cheese. It takes just one bite to realize why Mexican grilled corn on the cob is so popular.

The flavor profile of this Mexican corn is similar to the sauce on our famous Fish Tacos. Make this Elote corn for your next party and you will get recipe requests.

What is an Elote?

Elote, pronounced ‘ee-low-tay’ is a side dish of sweet grilled corn on the cob, smothered with a mixture of crema (or sour cream), mayonnaise, and spices. The combination of sweet and slightly charred corn with the spicy sauce is irresistibly good.

Elote is a popular street vendor food sold during Mexican festivals (especially for Cinco de Mayo) which is why it’s referred to as Mexican Street Corn.

How to Cook Corn for Elote?

You can cook corn using your favorite method, from simple Boiled Corn on the Cob to Instant Pot Corn on the Cob. During grilling season, we love to make Grilled Corn in Foil because it imparts an added smoky flavor.

How to Make Grilled Mexican Street Corn:

Mexican Street corn is really easy to prepare. It’s as simple as cooking the corn then covering it in the sauce, cheese, and cilantro.

1. Grill Corn: Use just enough foil to cover the corn once, overlapping slightly and tucking in the edges. We double wrap for a campfire. See our full tutorial on grilling corn in foil.

2. Partially Unwrap: Once the corn is grilled, let it rest inside the foil 10 minutes then peel back the foil to expose most of the corn, but keep the foil under the cob to use as a dish/ holder to avoid getting sauce on your hands.

3. Make Sauce: Combine sauce ingredients in a small bowl then smother the corn in sauce and sprinkle with chili powder, a generous amount of cotija cheese, and chopped cilantro to serve.

How to Eat Mexican Street Corn

There really is no neat way to eat Mexican street corn. The foil wrapper helps but it is bound to get a little messy. You can take comfort in knowing that everyone else around you will also have sauce on their face. It’s so worth it! You can also skewer it as we did in our Boiled Corn on the Cob.

Serve With

Serve the smothered corn right out of the foil ‘boats’ that you grilled the corn in to keep your hands clean and your guests will appreciate it. Mexican corn is perfect as a side dish and pairs really well with:

Mexican Street Tacos – with Carne asada
Grilled Salmon with garlic lime butter
Pan-Seared Steak – with rosemary butter
Juicy Cheeseburgers with secret sauce
Grilled Shrimp Skewers with cajun butter
Carnitas – Mexican pulled pork

Why Grill Corn in Foil?

This recipe goes from the grill to the table using the same foil. It’s so convenient to make and serve with Heavy-Duty Foil. Here’s why we love it:

Make-ahead – you can pre-wrap the corn in advance and refrigerate until ready to use
No pre-soaking or waiting required, simply wrap and grill the corn
Great for any kind of grill – gas, charcoal, wood, or smoker, and you can even double wrap to grill it over a campfire
Even cooking – the foil protects food over direct heat to evenly cook corn without burning
Serve in Foil – to keep hands clean while enjoying saucy Mexican corn
Easy clean up – no mess and no dishes

Grilling Safety Tip: when removing foil-wrapped corn from the grill, use tongs and please be very careful opening as the packet and steam inside will be extremely hot.

More Authentic Mexican Recipes:

If you love Mexican food, try our top-rated Mexican recipes. These sweet and savory recipes always get rave reviews and you’re sure to find some new favorites in this list.