I recently started a supper club with a friend I met in culinary school. We hold it every month at different locations. Each time we serve a four-course meal and the attendees vary from month to month.
Last month someone mentioned we should start doing themed dinners. So, we decided to take a look at the holidays coming up and thought Cuatro De Mayo would be a great place to start. Why Cuatro De Mayo you might ask? Besides my friend being an Arrested Development fanatic, we thought “aren’t most people busy drinking margaritas on CINCO De Mayo?”
And just like that, Cuatro De Mayo Supper Club was in the works.
Obviously, we are cooking Mexican food.
And, spoiler alert: one of our menu items is elote!
Don’t be ashamed if you don’t know what elote is—I just recently learned myself. A few weeks ago, my cousin (who lives in SoCal) asked me if I’d ever tried it.
My response was, “Huh?”.
When he started describing it, I realized that it was what I had been calling up until this point: “Mexican street corn,” because—well that’s what the menu at the Taco Truck down the street says.
Regardless of if it’s “elote,” “Mexican street corn,” or “heaven on the cob,” this corn is absolutely mouthwatering. The classic recipe uses mayonnaise or butter, but I’m sure you realize that I would put a different spin on it!
Yields: 5 ears of corn
Prep Time: 5 minutes | Cooking Time: 10 minutes | Total Time: 15 minutes
Ingredients:
1 cup plain fat free greek yogurt
½ cup crumbled cotija cheese, +3 tbsp reserved for garnish
1 tsp chili powder, + more for garnish
1 tsp chopped cilantro
1 garlic clove, minced
5 ears of corn
1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil.
2. Mix together yogurt, ½ cup cheese, 1 tsp chili powder, cilantro, and garlic. Spread mixture on a flat surface.
3. Boil corn ~5-8 minutes or until tender. Allow to cool.
4. Roll corn in cotija mixture until covered.
5. Sprinkle remainder crumbled cotija and chili powder to garnish.
The Cook’s 2 Cents:
· Cotija is a Mexican cheese that resembles feta. If you’ve got that in the fridge, or can’t find cotija, you can replace it with feta instead.
· The classic elote is typically grilled, not boiled. However, living in a one bedroom in the Upper West Side means no grills allowed. If you like the grilled appearance, but are in a similar housing situation, you can alternatively use a grill pan on the stove top to obtain the attractive grill marks.
· The corn is done when you can easily pierce the kernels with a fork.
Nutrition Facts:
Serving Size: 1 ear
Servings Per Recipe: 5
Calories: 229 Fat: 10g Sodium: 548mg Carbs: 22g Fiber: 3g Sugars: 5g Protein: 16g
