Saveur’s Elotes Asados: Grilled Mexican Street Corn

Close-up of a hand preparing Mexican street corn with chili and cheese. Perfect for food lovers.

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This write-up follows the Elotes Asados recipe published by Saveur (credited to the SAVEUR Editors, page updated July 2024). We have not cooked it for this article; the ingredients and method are Saveur’s, rewritten in our own words, and the dietary notes rely on the recipe’s ingredient list plus the official and society sources listed at the end. Saveur describes grilled corn as “a street food staple in Mexico,” and this version uses the classic trio of mayonnaise, aged cheese and chile powder.

It serves 6 and takes about an hour by Saveur’s estimate, including a 30-minute soak. The corn is cooked in two stages: first in its husks so the kernels steam and pick up smoke, then with the husks pulled back and a coat of melted butter so the kernels brown directly over the fire.

Diet Status: Read This First

This recipe is not vegan and may not be vegetarian, depending on the cheese you buy. Here is what each topping brings:

  • Butter (3 tablespoons, melted): a dairy product, so the recipe contains milk.
  • Cheese (queso añejo or Cotija, finely crumbled): also dairy. Saveur’s recipe does not say how the cheese is made. The Vegetarian Society explains that many cheeses are set with rennet, that traditional rennet comes from animal stomach enzymes and is not vegetarian, and that microbial and thistle rennets are vegetarian. It advises checking the label for terms such as “traditional rennet,” “pepsin” or “animal enzymes.” Whether a given Cotija or añejo is vegetarian therefore depends on the individual product, and we cannot confirm it for you.
  • Mayonnaise (1/2 cup): the recipe just says “mayonnaise.” Under the U.S. federal standard of identity, mayonnaise is made with egg yolk-containing ingredients, so standard mayonnaise contains egg. Saveur does not specify a plant-based alternative.

Saveur’s introduction also mentions that the corn can instead be slathered with sour cream thinned with a little cream in place of the mayonnaise. That swap removes the egg but is still dairy. The FDA lists milk and eggs among the major food allergens, so anyone avoiding either should skip this recipe or adapt it using products they have checked themselves. This is not medical advice.

Ingredients

US measures are Saveur’s; the bracketed metric figures are our own approximate conversions.

  • 6 ears fresh corn, in their husks
  • 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted (about 45 ml)
  • 1/2 cup mayonnaise (about 120 ml)
  • 1/3 cup queso añejo or Cotija cheese, finely crumbled (about 80 ml)
  • 1 tablespoon árbol or ancho chile powder

Method

  1. Put the corn, still in its husks, in a large bowl and cover it with cold water. Weigh the ears down with a plate so they stay submerged, soak for 30 minutes, then drain.
  2. While the corn soaks, heat the grill to medium-high and set the cooking rack 5 inches (about 13 cm, our conversion) above the fire.
  3. Lay the corn on the grill and turn it often until the outer leaves are blackened, which Saveur puts at 15 to 20 minutes.
  4. Take the corn off the heat. When it is cool enough to handle, peel back the husks and remove the silks, leaving the husks attached at the base of each cob.
  5. Brush the exposed kernels with the melted butter and return the corn to the grill. Turn it often until it is browned all over, about 10 minutes.
  6. Remove the corn from the heat, spread each ear with mayonnaise, then sprinkle with the crumbled cheese and the chile powder. Serve right away.

Notes on the Method

The recipe is a two-stage cook. The first stage, in the soaked husks, is judged by the outer leaves turning black; the second, after the husks are pulled back and the kernels are brushed with butter, is judged by browning all over. Saveur describes the finished corn as “smoky, chewy.”

Timing depends on your fire. Saveur specifies medium-high heat and a rack 5 inches over the fire but gives no temperature in degrees, so go by the cues in the recipe rather than the clock alone. Turn the ears frequently in both stages, as the recipe directs.

Cheese and Chile Choices

The recipe allows either queso añejo or Cotija, which Saveur describes as a salty aged Mexican cheese, and either árbol or ancho chile powder, which it describes as a mild chile powder. Because the cheese is crumbled finely and applied last, it is worth having it ready in a bowl before the corn comes off the grill, and the same goes for the mayonnaise and chile powder, since Saveur says to serve the ears immediately.

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