Roasted Mexican Street Corn Slaw Salad Recipe

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This Roasted Mexican Street Corn Slaw Salad is the perfect side dish for summertime. Made with crunchy cabbage, tender sweet corn, and salty queso fresco that’s tossed in a creamy citrus dressing. It’s light and refreshing and full of fresh produce. 

I love a good slaw salad and this one is no exception. This salad is made with the bold flavors of Mexican style corn so you know it’s going to be delicious. It’s topped with a creamy citrus dressing that’s full of smokey, bold spices for the tastiest summer salad. After your first bite, your taste buds will be begging for more and I know it will become your new absolute favorite!

Why You’ll Love Roasted Mexican Street Corn Slaw Salad

This salad is quick and easy to make. I love to have easy side dish recipes ready to bring to family reunions or gathering with friends.

This salad is packed with fresh veggies and herbs, making the most of garden fresh produce. We grow almost all of the produce right in our garden so we can enjoy the produce moments after it’s picked. This is when it’s at its peak nutritional value. No worries if you don’t have a garden! All of the produce can be found at most local farmer’s markets.

It’s the perfect addition to serve at any Mexican-themed dinner. Or serve with tortilla chips for a quick and easy dip.

Add your favorite protein such as diced chicken, chopped steak, or shredded pork, and serve it as the main course.

With a cabbage salad base, this salad lasts longer than traditional salads. You can make the salad ahead of time and let the dressing flavors meld with the salad. Enjoy leftover salad for a couple of days after the dressing is added.

The great thing about this salad is that you can’t mess it up! It’s also easy to omit things, add things, or change things for your personal tastes. For example, I use red and green cabbage, but not everyone wants to buy two types of cabbage. So skip the red cabbage if you prefer.

Roasted Mexican Street Corn Slaw Salad Ingredients

Creamy Citrus Dressing

• Mayonnaise – Creamy mayonnaise provides a great base for the dressing. Use homemade mayonnaise that’s full of good fats for added health benefits. You can substitute sour cream, Mexican crema, or Greek yogurt.
• Lime Juice – Tangy lime juice brings a light, bright flavor to the dressing. Freshly squeezed limes will give the freshest flavor, but lime juice will work if fresh limes aren’t available.
• Ground cumin – Brings a warm, nutty, earthy flavor to round out the bright citrus dressing.
• Paprika – Use either regular or smoked paprika.
• Chili powder – Made from peppers, chili powder adds a touch of heat to the dressing. 
• Salt – Helps to flavor the salad.

Slaw Salad Ingredients

• Corn – Local fresh sweet corn will have the freshest flavor and will always be my first choice for this salad. Frozen corn is frozen moments from its harvest and is the next best choice. 
• Cabbage – I’m using a combination of red and green cabbage that I shred using a sharp knife. You can use a food processor or even a vegetable peeler to cut.
• Onion – Any onion type will work whether it’s red onion or the tops of green onions. They all impart the onion flavor so use what you have! Dice onion finely. 
• Jalapeno pepper -For flavor and heat. Omit if jalapenos aren’t for you, or substitute bell peppers in their place.  
• Black beans – Hearty black beans’ creamy texture is a nice balance with the crunchy cabbage. Drain and rinse black beans with water. 
• Queso Fresco – Queso fresco cheese is a light, soft cheese typically sold in a block. Crumble before use. Use feta cheese or salty cotija cheese if you aren’t able to find queso fresco.
• Fresh cilantro – Fresh cilantro is quintessential for this salad, however, if you’re one of those that cilantro has a soapy flavor then feel free to leave it off or substitute fresh parsley in its place.
• Tomatoes –  Grape tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, or the flesh part of a paste tomato are ideal tomatoes for this salad. Halve cherry and grape tomatoes. Other varieties of tomatoes have a higher ratio of soft and juicy seeded part to flesh and will work, just be sure to discard the soft, seeded part. 

How to Make Roasted Mexican Street Corn Slaw Salad

Creamy Citrus Dressing

Add mayo to a small bowl. Slice two limes in half and squeeze in a citrus press, releasing the juices into the bowl with the mayo. Add the ground cumin, paprika, chili powder, and salt to the mayo mixture, whisk to combine, and set aside.

Roasted Mexican Street Corn Slaw Salad

Remove the husks from the fresh corn and grill over medium-high heat on an outdoor grill until the corn has turned from a pale yellow to a bright yellow with a light char. Allow the cobs to rest until they’re cool enough to handle, roughly, 10 minutes, and remove the corn from the cobs. I find it easiest to place the corn cob standing on its end and use a sharp knife to cut the corn kernels off the cob. Continue with the rest of the cobs and add the corn to a large mixing bowl.

Roasting Corn Oven Option: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees with the oven rack in the middle position. Place corn on a baking sheet and bake for 20-25 minutes.

Next, prep the rest of the vegetables. Remove the outer leaves from the cabbage. Quarter the head of cabbage and cut out the core. Using a sharp knife or food processor, cut the cabbage into thin ribbons and add to the bowl with the corn. Next, finely chop the onion and jalapeno pepper. Give the cilantro a rough chop, then cut the cherry tomatoes in half and add to the bowl, giving it a good mix with a tongs to combine. 

Finally, whisk the dressing mixture again, ensuring nothing has settled to the bottom. Lastly, add in the drained black beans and crumbled queso fresco cheese. Lastly, pour the creamy dressing over the Mexican corn slaw salad and toss with tongs until thoroughly mixed.

Cover and refrigerate for at least two hours before serving. Before serving, toss once more.  

How to Store Roasted Mexican Street Corn Slaw Salad

Coleslaw is a salad that stores quite well and can last for several days. This coleslaw will keep fresh for two to three days in your refrigerator. If stored, before serving, toss the coleslaw well, because the dressing will have settled to the bottom of the container.

Can You Make This Salad Ahead Of Time?

That’s the great thing about coleslaw salads, they just get better and better over time. You can make this salad a day or two in advance without compromising the texture or flavor. For the best texture, I would not suggest making this salad more than 48 hours before you plan to serve it. Keep in mind that the longer it sits, the softer the cabbage becomes.

You can prep all of the salad ingredients ahead of time and wait to add the dressing until two hours before serving.

I’d love to hear from you! Please leave a comment and rate the recipe. Tag photos #Lockremhomestead over on Instagram when you share pictures of your Roasted Mexican Street Corn Slaw Salad!