Mexican Street Corn Chicken Salad

This Mexican Street Corn Chicken Salad is the perfect mash-up of two of the all-time best recipes — Mexican Street Corn (Elote) and Chicken Salad! Tender chicken, smoky, charred corn, creamy avocado, and crisp peppers get tossed in a chili-lime dressing and slathered on bread — doesn’t get much better than this!

Love chicken salad? You’ve got to try some of our other variations like these Honey Mustard Chicken Salad Sandwiches, Pesto Chicken Salad, or Curry Chicken Salad.

Mexican Street Corn Chicken Salad

It’s no secret we’re obsessed with the flavors of Mexican Street Corn — this Mexican Street Corn Pasta Salad, these Street Corn Loaded Sweet Potatoes, and Chicken Corn Chowder are a few of many recipes channeling those beloved flavors. 

And today they’re getting directed into another favorite — chicken salad! I don’t think I’ll ever tire of a good chicken salad sandwich, but especially not when it’s also quelling the cravings for street corn!

Mexican Street Corn Chicken Salad is loaded with flavor and has the perfect contrasting textures — from crisp corn to creamy avocados! The chili-lime dressing is a combination of spices, fresh lime juice, and good mayo. The dressing’s flavor is truly the best compliment to the smokiness of the charred corn.

Speaking of corn, don’t worry  — you don’t need fresh sweet corn to make this salad! Below we’re sharing all the different options available so you can enjoy this salad regardless of the season!

Let’s talk corn

There are several different options for preparing the corn for Mexican Street Corn Chicken Salad.

1. Use frozen corn and here’s how to prepare it: Heat a large cast-iron skillet on medium-high heat for 3-4 minutes or until very hot. Place corn in a single layer and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring once in between or until browned. Avoid stirring too often as this will keep the corn from getting a good roast. Once nicely charred, remove from skillet onto a plate to let cool before adding to the salad.
2. Grill fresh corn on the cob until lightly charred all over. To grill corn: Peel back husks and remove the silk. Rub vegetable or olive oil on all sides of the corn and sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper. Place on heated grill (400-450 degrees F) and rotate every 3-4 minutes or until charred and corn is easily pierced with a fork, about 12 minutes total. (This also works on a grill pan!) Once grilled, cut off the cob and set corn on a plate to let cool before adding to the salad.
3. Buy roasted canned corn (near regular canned corn in the grocery store) and use 3 cups of that (thoroughly drained). 
4. Buy regular canned corn and roast it for a few minutes on the stovetop. Heat a large cast-iron skillet on medium-high heat for 3-4 minutes or until very hot. Drain corn and place in a single layer and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring once in between or until browned. Avoid stirring too often as this will keep the corn from getting a good roast. Once nicely charred, remove from skillet onto a plate to let cool before adding to the salad.

Other Ingredients In This Mexican Street Corn Chicken Salad

• Chicken: Use pre-cooked and seasoned chicken or you can purchase rotisserie chicken meat already pulled from the bones and shredded or diced — many grocery stores sell this! Or make this grilled chicken and save some leftovers for this recipe (our personal favorite!).
• Avocado: A ripe avocado makes all the difference — it adds a wonderful texture and flavor to the salad. You can tell if an avocado is ripe when it yields to gentle pressure (think: touching the tip of your nose).
• Fresh herbs: Cilantro and green onions add such great contrasting flavors and a slight citrus note to the salad. If you aren’t a cilantro fan, use extra green onions instead. 
• Jalapeño: To avoid “Jalapeño Hands” wear thick kitchen gloves to cut out the ribs and seeds of the jalapeño before finely dicing. If you prefer less spice in this salad, leave out the jalapeños. Alternatively, amp up the spice by adding in more!
• Red bell pepper: This adds a little sweetness, crunch, and some color! Swap out for an orange or yellow bell pepper if desired.

Mexican Street Corn Chicken Salad Dressing Tips

The best part is you don’t need to make the dressing in a separate bowl — simply add it all on top of the salad ingredients and mix it in. Below are a few quick tips:

• We love Hellman’s/Best Foods® mayonnaise best in this Mexican Street Corn Chicken Salad. It has a robust flavor without being too sweet.
• As for spiciness, I’d rate the dressing to be very slightly spicy. If you’d like to make it milder, reduce or omit the Sriracha/hot sauce and be sure to use McCormick® seasonings. (We find them very mild.) Keep in mind that reducing or omitting spice will reduce the overall flavor of the salad.
  • Alternatively, amp up the heat by adding in 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper.
• The dressing calls for lime juice and zest. If you use citrus a lot when cooking/baking, having a good citrus juicer and microplane is invaluable!

Mexican Street Corn Chicken Salad Serving Suggestions

• On croissants: My personal favorite way to serve this salad is on big, buttery croissant rolls. Add in some lettuce, pile on the chicken salad, and devour!
• On toasted bread: Another way we’ve enjoyed this salad is on toasted slices of hearty whole wheat bread.
• Piled on a tostada: My boys’ favorite way to eat this salad is on a tostada shell. Slather some guacamole right on top of the tostada then top with loads of the Mexican Street Corn Chicken Salad.
• With chips: Another favorite way we’ve eaten this salad is with corn chips. Serve the salad in a big bowl with a bag of chips and go to town!
• Add some cheese: However we serve this salad, we like to add a sprinkle of cheese right on top of the salad. For a more authentic Mexican Street Corn flavor, go for Cotija cheese. It’s typically near specialty cheeses in the grocery store. 

More Easy Rotisserie Chicken Recipes

Mexican Street Corn Chicken Salad

This Mexican Street Corn Chicken Salad is a mash-up of two all-time best recipes — Mexican Street Corn (Elote) and Chicken Salad! Tender chicken, smoky, charred corn, creamy avocado, and crisp peppers get tossed in a chili-lime dressing and slathered on bread — doesn’t get much better than this!

Mexican Street Corn Chicken Salad

This Mexican Street Corn Chicken Salad is a mash-up of two all-time best recipes — Mexican Street Corn (Elote) and Chicken Salad! Tender chicken, smoky, charred corn, creamy avocado, and crisp peppers get tossed in a chili-lime dressing and slathered on bread — doesn’t get much better than this!

Instructions

• CORN: See Note 1.

• CHICKEN SALAD: Add all the salad ingredients and all the dressing ingredients to a large bowl. Season to taste with salt and pepper. (I add 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon pepper.) Gently stir until well combined and serve immediately.

• SERVING: See Note 6. However you chose to serve this chicken salad, we like adding a sprinkle of cotija right on top of the chicken salad!

• STORAGE: Without the avocado, this salad stores really nicely in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days. If you’d like to store leftovers, store salad and avocado separately. Or simply omit the avocado.

Recipe Notes

Note 1: Corn: Several different options for corn preparation: 

• Use frozen corn and here’s how to prepare it: Heat a large cast-iron skillet on medium-high heat for 3-4 minutes or until very hot. Place corn in a single layer and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring once in between or until browned. Avoid stirring too often as this will keep the corn from getting a good roast. Once nicely charred, remove from skillet onto a plate to let cool before adding to the salad.
• Grill fresh corn on the cob until lightly charred all over. To grill corn: Peel back husks and remove the silk. Rub vegetable or olive oil on all sides of the corn and sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper. Place on heated grill (400-450 degrees F) and rotate every 3-4 minutes or until charred and corn is easily pierced with a fork, about 12 minutes total. (This also works on a grill pan!) Once grilled, cut off the cob and set corn on a plate to let cool before adding to the salad.
• Buy pre-roasted canned corn (near regular canned corn in the grocery store) and use 3 cups of that (thoroughly drained). 
• Buy regular canned corn and roast it for a few minutes on the stovetop. Heat a large cast-iron skillet on medium-high heat for 3-4 minutes or until very hot. Drain corn and place in a single layer and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring once in between or until browned. Avoid stirring too often as this will keep the corn from getting a good roast. Once nicely charred, remove from skillet onto a plate to let cool before adding to the salad.

Note 2: Cilantro and green onions: If you aren’t a fan of one or the other of these herbs, just leave them out — no changes necessary. For each measurement, measure the 1/4 cup after chopping/thinly slicing.
Note 3: Avocado: A ripe avocado adds such a nice creaminess so ensure the avocado is ripe before preparing this salad. Add the avocado in last to keep it from browning/changing texture.
Note 4: Mayo: The mayo makes a big difference — get a good quality, full-fat mayo. We love Hellman’s/Best Foods the best in this recipe.
Note 5: Lime: We’ll need 3 tbsp freshly squeezed lime juice + 1/4 teaspoon lime zest. 
Note 6: Serving suggestions: Several different options for enjoying this salad:

• On croissants: My personal favorite way to serve this salad is on big, buttery croissant rolls. Add in some lettuce, pile on the chicken salad, and devour!
• On toasted bread: Another way we’ve enjoyed this salad is on toasted slices of hearty whole wheat bread.
• Piled on a Tostada: My boys’ favorite way to eat this salad is on a tostada shell. Slather some guacamole right on top of the tostada then top with loads of the Mexican Street Corn Chicken Salad. Purchase Tostada Shells or make your own by following the recipe here: Bean Tostadas
• With chips: Another favorite way we’ve eaten this salad is with corn chips. Serve the salad in a big bowl with a bag of chips and go to town!

Note 7: Calories only include the filling, calories of the bread will vary.

Nutrition Facts

Serving: 1serving | Calories: 288kcal | Carbohydrates: 23.4g | Protein: 12.9g | Fat: 23.3g | Cholesterol: 55.6mg | Sodium: 99.6mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 7.7g

We do our best to provide accurate nutritional analysis for our recipes. Our nutritional data is calculated using a third-party algorithm and may vary, based on individual cooking styles, measurements, and ingredient sizes. Please use this information for comparison purposes and consult a health professional for nutrition guidance as needed.