Gluten Free/ Mexican and Latin Recipes/ Vegetables

Fiesta Corn

 Fiesta Corn ~ The Complete Savorist
I know the mayo looks scary…’Why would she put mayo in this’ you might be asking yourself.
For a short time, I lived in a rather unsavory section of Santa Ana, California.  While the gang activity of the area made it an unsavory place to live, the ethnically divided street made it very savory street to live on, culinarily speaking.  One half the of the block was Mexican immigrants and the other half was Cambodian immigrants.  I was living on the Cambodian side with friends and Kha, the younger brother of a friend, asked me if I wanted a ‘corn from the truck.’ I said sure and off he went.  A short while later he came back with an ear of corn wrapped in foil on a stick.  I was expecting an ear of corn with butter and maybe salt and pepper.  That’s not what I got.  I asked him what this was and he just said “Mexican corn.” He was Cambodian and 6 years old, so forgive his non-PC terminology.  I looked at this white-red speckled ear of corn with great scorn and speculation.Kha was going to town on this ear of corn so I decided if he could eat this, so could I.  I’m so glad I followed his example.  It was by far the most delicious thing I have ever had to that point in my life as far as corn goes.  I am certain I had “Mexican corn” almost daily until I moved out that place.

For years I wanted to know what was on that corn.  I craved the flavors.  I had asked the food truck vendors but neither operator would tell me.  Rude!

Flash forward 17 years.  I’m living in Logan, UT. I’m at the county fair.  Food vendors galore.  I see this fresh corn vendor and that sounded good.  I got in line.  While I was in line I saw this young Hispanic boy, maybe 10, dressing his corn at the condiment section of the vendor booth.  This kid slathered mayonnaise all over his corn, then parmesan cheese, and finally sprinkled chili powder all over it.  He passed by me and I was able to look at the corn.  It looked almost exactly like the corn from the food truck all those years ago.  It never occurred to me that mayonnaise and parmesan cheese was on the food truck corn.  After buying my corn, I dressed it the same way as I had seen the boy do it.  That first bite transported me back to a different time and place.

During the summer when fresh corn is aplenty, I will often eat my corn this way.  My daughter loves it too.  I have shared it with many friends who now enjoy it as well.  After a bounteous gathering at the farmer’s market one Saturday, I took some of my fresh veggies and created a side dish to rival these flavors.  I added bell peppers, onions, and carrots to my fresh (or frozen, depending on the time of year) corn and add the mayo, parmesan cheese, chili powder.  It is a favorite of family and friends now.  They call it “that corn dish” and since I am sharing it with you all, I guess it needed a name.   So I present to you “Fiesta Corn.” Enjoy
Fiesta Corn ~ The Complete Savorist

Fiesta Corn

Author: Michelle De La Cerda
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Ingredients

  • 4 ears of corn , kernels removed OR 3 cups frozen corn
  • 2 medium bell peppers; diced
  • 1/2 onion; diced
  • 1 carrot; diced or about 8-10 baby carrots diced
  • Salt/pepper/olive oil/small knob of butter
  • 1 1/2 tbsp +/- chili powder
  • 1/8 cup +/- mayonnaise
  • 1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Instructions

  1. Remove corn husks, de-silk, and slice the kernels off the ears, blanche them in salted water for 3-5 minutes. Drain.
  2. In a pan heat up olive oil and 1/4 tbsp butter on high, add onion, bell peppers, and carrots, 2 minutes stirring constantly.
  3. (If using frozen corn, at it at this point, still frozen.)
  4. Reduce heat to medium high and continue to cook for 5 more minutes or until the veggies have soften.
  5. Add salt and pepper.
  6. Add fresh corn. Mix well.
  7. Add chili powder-to your liking. Remove from heat.
  8. Transfer to a mixing bowl.
  9. Let cool for about 2 minutes.
  10. Add mayo and parmesan cheese. Mix well.
  11. This dish tastes great either at room temp, slightly warm, or cold fresh out of the fridge. It's completely your call on how you'd like to serve it.

Fiesta Corn ~ The Complete SavoristI make this dish often enough and I continually take pictures of it and I never like them. But these are better than the originals, so I decided to update them. Give me a few more months, I will do it again. Hopefully then it isn’t raining.

Fiesta Corn ~ The Complete Savorist

 

Thank you for sharing!

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18 Comments

  • Reply
    Tira
    February 15, 2014 at 12:30 pm

    FANTASTIC! LOVE IT!

  • Reply
    Florian @ContentednessCooking
    May 22, 2015 at 3:52 am

    This is the the perfect salad for any party or occasion. So fast, vibrant, colorful and festive! Perfect for summer or as appetizer as well, thumbs up!

    • Reply
      Michelle
      May 22, 2015 at 11:14 am

      Thanks Florian, it works well in any setting or occasion, served warm or cold.

  • Reply
    Arman @ thebigmansworld
    May 22, 2015 at 4:06 am

    How did you know I was having Mexican tonight? The perfect side dish!

    • Reply
      Michelle
      May 22, 2015 at 11:14 am

      How’s life in the States?

  • Reply
    Patricia @ Grab a Plate
    May 22, 2015 at 6:02 pm

    Wow wow wow! This sounds amazing! This is on my “definitely do” list for this weekend (I’ll probably dream about this tonight)!

    • Reply
      Michelle
      May 23, 2015 at 12:07 am

      If you love Mexican street corn, you will love this.

  • Reply
    Healing Tomato
    May 22, 2015 at 9:32 pm

    5 stars
    This corn is so festive looking. I love a good recipe for corn. I can sit on the patio and eat a whole bowl of these corn.

  • Reply
    Des @ Life's Ambrosia
    May 22, 2015 at 11:41 pm

    What a great way to enjoy summer corn! I never would’ve thought of mayo,how interesting!

    • Reply
      Michelle
      May 23, 2015 at 12:07 am

      I was shocked by the mayo too. But it’s a must.

  • Reply
    Gia
    November 6, 2015 at 1:05 am

    Was hesitant to try this at first but wanted to experiment a little and voila! It taste really good!

  • Reply
    Joe
    February 2, 2016 at 11:58 am

    My significant other, Kathy, works with a group of Hispanics, who told her about this corn. We made it one weekend, and fell in love with it, and neither of us cares to eat corn any other way. When Kathy told her co-workers we make it frequently for dinner, they laughed at her saying it wasn’t a dinner side, but a snack. We still get a chuckle out of that. Regardless, best corn ever and even though the corn dish is a great alternative, there’s nothing quite like eating it off the cob, with mayonnaise and Parmesan cheese all over one’s chin…

    • Reply
      Michelle De La Cerda
      February 2, 2016 at 1:21 pm

      I am a huge fan of corn on the cob dressed this way. It’s my favorite way to eat it. This is just a riff on that.

  • Reply
    Heidi Majewski
    March 1, 2016 at 6:35 pm

    This was an amazing side dish!!!! Don’t skimp on the chili powder 🙂

  • Reply
    Mandi
    March 6, 2016 at 9:59 pm

    This dish looks amazing. I plan on serving it with enchiladas this week, but as corn is currently out of season if frozen corn is used instead should it be thawed first? I see you listed it as an alternative, but no instructions on what to do if it is used instead. I look forward to your reply, thank you in advance. ☺

    • Reply
      Michelle De La Cerda
      March 6, 2016 at 10:13 pm

      I updated the directions! Thank you for bringing this to my attention. Hope you enjoy this dish.

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