Well, September is here and kids are back to school. Summer is pretty much over, but I’m still holding on. In fact, we decided to book one last summer road trip and head to Minneapolis-St. Paul over Labor Day weekend We’d been humming and hawing over whether to do this trip for some time now, but when we found out the State Fair is on, it sealed the deal. It was my first State Fair ever, complete with eating deep fried food on a stick! Something you can be making on your own — like this Mexican Street Corn.
This is one of my hubby’s favorite dishes, and he has been politely bugging me to put the recipe on the blog for some time now. I didn’t do it earlier because I make it slightly different every time, trying to perfect the recipe. The good news is that this corn is versatile. You can make it either in the oven or on the grill with equally appealing results. 
So apartment dwellers can make this just as easily as those with a backyard grill. And grill lovers don’t have to worry about turning on the oven when it’s hot.
It’s pretty fast and very easy to make this corn, too. If you think you’ll be in a rush at dinner time, and you need to make it even quicker, you can make the mayonnaise mixture that you brush on the cooked corn ahead of time and store it in the fridge. You can also go ahead and get the corn shucked and ready to go. I have tried pre-cooking the corn, and then brushing with the mayo mixture and reheating under the broiler at mealtime, but ended up with dried out corn. Not worth it.
If you’re looking at the ingredient list and wondering about the queso fresco or cotija, they are both Mexican cheeses that are pretty commonly available in Latin markets or larger grocery stores. Queso fresco is a soft, fresh cheese that’s fairly salty. Cotija is a harder cheese more like romano. I bought mine pre-shredded. I have used both types of cheeses with great results, and when I used to make this in Canada, I used crumbled feta with equally delicious results. So don’t hesitate to make this recipe if you can’t find the Mexican cheese — it’ll still taste great!
Mexican Street Corn
Corn on the cob is good on its own, but even better when it’s coated in a tangy mixture of mayonnaise, chili, garlic, lime and cilantro and topped off with salty cheese.
Serves 6
Ingredients
- 1⁄3 cup light mayonnaise
- 2 tablespoons minced cilantro
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- 1 clove garlic minced or pressed
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1⁄8 teaspoon salt
- 6 large cobs of corn, shucked
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 ounce queso fresco or cotija cheese, crumbled (see note)
Instructions
In a small bowl stir together mayonnaise, cilantro, lime juice, garlic, chili powder and salt. Set aside or refrigerate until ready to use.
Oven Method
- Move oven rack to highest position and turn oven to broil. Lightly spray or brush corn cobs with olive oil and set on a rimmed baking sheet.
- Place baking sheet on the top rack in oven and broil until tops of corn are browning, about 10 minutes. Flip cobs over and continue to broil until the other side is browning, 5 to 10 additional minutes.
- Remove baking sheet from oven and brush mayonnaise mixture evenly over each cob of corn. Sprinkle crumbled cheese over the corn. Serve.
Grill Method
- Turn all burners to high and preheat for 15 minutes. Lightly spray or brush corn cobs with olive oil and set on a rimmed baking sheet.
- Place corn directly on the grill. Grill for about 10 minutes until the bottoms are beginning to brown. Turn cobs and continue to grill until the other side of the cobs are browning, 5 to 10 more minutes.
- Remove cobs from grill and place on a platter. Brush mayonnaise mixture evenly over each cob of corn. Sprinkle crumbled cheese over the corn. Serve.
Recipe Notes
If you can’t find queso fresco or cotija, use crumbled feta cheese.
