Elote Casserole (Mexican Street Corn Casserole)
This Mexican street corn casserole aka Elote casserole recipe is a twist on the infamous Mexican corn dish. Traditional Elote is a popular street food that packs in some wicked delicious creamy, salty and spicy flavors, and if you love it, you’ve got to try this version of the dish.
This side dish is perfect to make and enjoy with the entire family or take along to a potluck. Spoon over some Mexican chili oil for an extra kick of heat!
This casserole packs in all the flavors of Mexican street corn in a delicious, easy to eat format that lessens the mess and comes together in just under 40 minutes.
Looking for other Mexican side dishes? Try Mexican roasted potatoes or Mexican deviled eggs.
Quick Look: Elote Casserole
- 🔪 Prep time: 5 minutes
- ⏲️ Cook time: 35 minutes
- 👪 Servings: 3 servings
- 📋 Main ingredients: Corn, butter, mayonnaise, jalapeños, sour cream, queso fresco, Parmesan cheese, green onions, seasonings.
- ♨️ Cooking method: Mix corn with creamy ingredients, cheese, and seasonings 🡢 add jalapeños 🡢 layer in a baking dish 🡢 top with remaining cheese and jalapeños 🡢 bake until hot and bubbly 🡢 garnish with green onions.
- ⭐ Difficulty: Easy
- 🥣 Serving ideas: Serve as a side with tacos, quesadillas, burritos, or chicken fajitas or serve with Texas toothpicks and tortilla chips.
Jump to:
What's So Great About the Recipe?
- It packs in those creamy, spicy and tangy flavors of a classic Elote in a comforting, casserole format.
- It's hearty and wholesome, perfect to make when you're hosting. Serve it alongside a fresh cucumber and Tajin salad or watermelon Tajin salad.
Recipe Ingredients
Corn: I used sweet corn kernels for this Mexican street corn recipe. About 1 cup of the corn should work just fine.
Butter + mayonnaise: For the rich, creamy base. Use an infused butter like jalapeno butter or my spicy jalapeno mayo for extra deliciousness.
Cheese: I used a mix of Queso Fresco and Parmesan cheese. You can also use a Mexican cheese blend if you have it at hand.
Sour cream: Sour cream teams up with the mayonnaise and the cheeses to create the base. I like using my homemade sour cream, and sometimes, I also end up using my Mexican sour cream sauce instead of just plain sour cream.
Jalapenos: Chopped jalapenos bring a bit of a color and a kick of heat to the corn casserole.
Green onions: Chopped green onions bring some much needed freshness and a bit of a crunch to the baked dish. Use leftovers to make Mexican grilled green onions.
Lime juice: A dash of lime juice helps tie all the flavors together and brings some tanginess into the corn dish.
Seasonings: I used some simple seasonings for this corn bake - cayenne, garlic powder, black pepper powder and a bit of salt. You could also use some Tajin seasoning if you want to.
See recipe card for quantities.
Substitutions & Variations
- Don't have Queso Fresco? Use Cotija cheese or crumbled Feta to replicate those same creamy, tangy flavors.
- I used chopped green onions to garnish the dish. If you don’t have it, you can just chop up some fresh cilantro and sprinkle some of it over the casserole right before you serve.
- You can also mix in some Air Fryer shredded chicken or shredded rotisserie chicken and make it more hearty and wholesome.
- For a smoky undertone, use roasted or charred corn as the base instead of plain boiled corn.
How to Make Elote Casserole
Step 1: In a large bowl, combine the corn, spices and seasonings, mayonnaise, butter, sour cream, Parmesan cheese and half of the queso fresco. Give it a good mix.
Step 2: Now add the chopped jalapenos into the corn mixture.
Step 3: Layer this corn Elote mixture into a baking dish and sprinkle with remaining cheese and chopped jalapenos.
Step 4: Bake for 30-40 minutes and top with some chopped green onions.
💭Top Tip
To lend this dish a bit of a smoky flavor, you can use grilled corn instead of the corn stripped from the corn on the cob.
Tips & Tricks to Nail the Recipe
- Ideally, it is best to use fresh corn to make this Elote corn casserole, but if you don’t have it at hand, some leftover corn can do the trick too.
- If you’re using a whole corn on the cob, you may have some of the kernels left over after making this recipe. You can use it to make a corn Pico de Gallo for the next day!
- I used regular sour cream for this recipe, but you can also choose to use the low fat version, or use some Greek yogurt as a substitute if you want to make this dish healthier.
- To make the Mexican corn casserole look extra fancy, top it with a dollop of avocado lime Crema or a few spoonfuls of lime pickled onions right before serving.
How to Serve Elote Casserole
You can team up this versatile corn casserole with any tacos of your choice. I always end up making this for taco night with my Tajin shrimp tacos- no regrets there!
This unique spin on the traditional Mexican street corn can also work wonderfully with almost all popular Mexican recipes. I love serving it with some quesadillas, burritos and even my chicken Fajita rice bowl, teamed up with some Pepinadas and a side of Tamarindo candy.
Sometimes, I even use up the leftovers as a topping for my Mexican baked potatoes.
Troubleshooting & FAQs
You totally can! In fact, I highly recommend using it since frozen corn makes this dish so much easier to cook. Just remember to let it thaw completely before you use it for the recipe.
You can also use canned corn to make this Mexican street corn casserole. Just remember to drain off the excess liquid before using it.
If you have any leftovers, you can store them for later for up to 3 days. Just make sure you cover the baking dish with some cling wrap or move everything to an airtight container.
The casserole can then be reheated in the microwave, pausing at every 1 minute increments.
More Mexican Recipes
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
If you tried this Elote casserole or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the 📝 comments below. Thanks for visiting!
Elote Casserole (Mexican Street Corn Casserole)
Ingredients
- 1.5 cup corn kernels
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 3 tablespoon mayonnaise
- 2 jalapenos finely chopped
- 1 cup sour cream
- ½ cup Queso Fresco cheese
- 2 tablespoon Parmesan cheese
- 2-3 green onions chopped
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 tablespoon cayenne
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- salt to taste
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine the corn, spices and seasonings, mayonnaise, butter, sour cream, Parmesan cheese and half of the queso fresco. Give it a good mix.
- Now add the chopped jalapenos into the corn mixture.
- Layer this corn Elote mixture into a baking dish and sprinkle with remaining cheese and chopped jalapenos.
- Bake for 30-40 minutes and top with some chopped green onions. The Elote is now ready to serve.
Notes
- Ideally, it is best to use fresh corn to make this Elote corn casserole, but if you don’t have it at hand, some leftover corn can do the trick too.
- If you’re using a whole corn on the cob, you may have some of the kernels left over after making this recipe. You can use it to make a spinach and corn frittata for the next day!
- I used regular sour cream for this recipe, but you can also choose to use the low fat version, or use some Greek yogurt as a substitute if you want to make this dish healthier.
