Let me preface this by saying when I make Mexican Corn and Quinoa Salad at home, I have no intention of sharing it with anyone. It was one of those things I make and then hide in the back of my fridge and pretend it's not there so no one else (aka my husband or Poppy) will eat it.
No shame in my game - Mexican Corn and Quinoa Salad is so good you won't want to share it with anyone!
Have you guys ever had that delicious Mexican street corn on the cob, known as Elote, that's slathered in mayo, chile powder and lime juice? It's basically the best thing in the world and I'm a BIG fan. The only thing that bothers me about that dish is there is no avocado anywhere to be found. Well, fear not my friends, PROBLEM SOLVED.
Mayo can be substituted for avocado in most any dish in my opinion, so obviously that's what I did. I just took a perfectly ripe avocado and threw it into the blender with a hint of lime juice and a little water and blended it up until it was the same consistency as mayo. And then I went ahead and mixed it in with all my favorite things like quinoa, monetary jack cheese, corn straight off the cob, some cilantro and scallions and then topped it all off with a healthy shake of chile powder and salt and pepper.
You could easily use some grilled corn too, but I'm really into raw corn as you can probably tell!
Much to my dismay, Thomas discovered it in the back of the fridge and I was forced to share last week, Poppy too. He did however declare it to be one of the best things I've ever made! #winning
Mexican Corn and Quinoa Salad (aka Esquites with Quinoa)
Ingredients
- 1 cup red or white quinoa
- 3 cups corn about 4 ears, cut from the cob
- ½ jalapeno seeded and finely diced
- 2 green onions sliced
- 1 handful cilantro chopped
- 1 lime juiced
- 2 tablespoons cotija or feta, crumbled
- chili powder to taste
- ½ cup shredded Monterey jack cheese
- 1 avocado
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Cook the quinoa according to the package directions.
- Once cooked, add the quinoa and raw corn to a large mixing bowl with the chopped jalapeño green onions, cilantro, half of the lime juice, cotija cheese and a dash of chili powder. Toss to combine.
- Remove the avocado from the skin and discard the seed. Place the flesh of the avocado in a blender or food processor with the remaining lime juice and blend until smooth. Add a few tablespoons of water as needed to make the mixture smooth, it should be a similar consistency to a mayonnaise.
- Remove the avocado mixture from the blender, toss it with the corn and quinoa mixture and top with the shredded jack cheese. Season with salt and pepper as needed and serve.
Notes
Nutrition Information
Photo by Matt Armendariz / Food Styling by Adam Pearson / Recipe from What’s Gaby Cooking
Delish! Added a little apple cider vinegar to the avacado mixture. Can’t wait for leftovers !!
Just made this tonight! I am not a huge quinoa fan but wanted a meatless meal. This was beyond delicious. The flavors all came together for such an amazing and satisfying meal! I ate two huge bowls!! Fantastic!
Do you allow the quinoa to cool before adding other ingredidants? Is this a warm or cold salad or both?
either or!! I like room temp
I can’t stand quinoa but this sounds delish , do you have a substitute recommendation?
rice
This may be a silly question, but do the ears of corn need to be cooked?
nope!! best raw 🙂
I love the texture of this salad! Crunchy, fresh, and delicious.
This is loaded with deliciousness! I love this salad!
I made it with Trader Joe’s Roasted Corn and Good Food mashes avocado and ate it on a salad. It was so good!!!’
This sounds soooo good. But you mention keeping it in the fridge. Doesn't the avocado turn brown? Seems like it would need to be eaten immediately and wouldn't be good for meal prep or even leftovers.
it doesnt with the citrus juice!
Do you ever include calories?
we don't!
I made something so similar last week with frozen corn and you're right it was delicious!
How many servings does this make? It sounds delicious and I can't wait to try it!
4!
Serving size?
4
I made so much thinking I would have it for lunches all week, but then for the 18 hours following making it, I kept going back to the fridge to sneak more bites. Literally didn’t last me 2 days.
So so easy, and very light but flavourful. Definitely recommend. Also great to bring to a potluck lunch! (If you don’t eat it all beforehand)
Made this last night and added some cooked soy chorizo - SO good!
GENIUS!
This looks amazing! Despite multiple washings of quinoa, I just can't eat it without getting a lot of stomach pain. What would you recommend for replacing quinoa? Brown rice? Couscous? Farro? Bulgur?
any other grain of your choosing would work
Does this keep well in the fridge? Curious since it has the avocado dressing...does it turn brown?
with the lime juice - it's okay for a few days!