I have a new favorite “Salsa”, Roasted Sweet Corn Salsa. This salsa is like everything good in the world all combined into one beautiful, corny, creamy, cheesy, spicy dip.
Roasted Sweet Corn Salsa
Can I think of any more descriptive adjectives? Well, yes I can, but I’ll spare you. Just be assured that this dip is more than you might expect from a Salsa. It’s a kind of mixed up mashup that reads like salsa combined with corn dip combined with elotes combined with pimento cheese. I think you’re gonna love it!
About Roasted Sweet Corn Salsa:
I love all of those things, so this makes a perfect dip for me! The primary ingredient in Roasted Sweet Corn Salsa is *duh* the sweet corn but wait, there’s more! That sweet corn is roasted with a little chipotle, a little smoked paprika and a few other spices, so it’s absolutely delish. Then the layers of flavor start with roasted poblano (and jalapeno if you’re like me), red bell pepper for crunch, red & green onion. And lots of lime. Honestly, it’s good just like that. And maybe that’s a healthier option!
The real goodness, though, comes in with the creamy mix up in the form of a “dressing” kind of like a cole-slaw dressing. Except the sweet/sour taste comes from lime rather than vinegar. I’ve been loving me some lime lately, by the way! So you’ll taste it and think, “That couldn’t be any better” but then in goes the cheese. By now it’s OMG I’m gonna slap your Momma good. Notice I won’t be slapping MY Momma, lol!
The idea for this crazy mix up mash up of Roasted Sweet Corn Salsa isn’t mine. I saw it on Diner’s Drive-Ins and Dives, the Sweet Carrot restaurant. I fell hard for the idea of a dish shown on the episode. A Corn Fritter Pancake (I posted that yesterday) with by smoked brisket (I chose a Pulled Chicken) along with a bit of slaw. Then everything was topped by the Roasted Sweet Corn Salsa. The other recipes are coming soon, but in the meantime, this salsa is fantastic as a dip for tortilla chips. I dare you not to just eat it by the spoonful!
Corn Fritter Pancakes. Instant Pot Pulled Chicken, Sweet Corn Salsa & Honey Lime Slaw
Making Roasted Sweet Corn Salsa:
First of all, don’t let the long list of ingredients throw you off – a lot of them are spices. The first step in the recipe is roasting the corn, which I did in the oven. As I pulled it out and tasted it, my first thought was that the corn is so good on its own that next time I want Roasted Sweet Corn Salsa, I’m going to grill the sweet corn whole, rubbed with the spices, the day before and serve it as a side for dinner. I’ll just make extra of it for the dip. I love doubling down on a recipe and making it work more than once!
There was no actual recipe for the Roasted Sweet Corn Salsa, but I did watch the video a few times. I think I did it justice, not having tasted it. I made a few changes. I used Yogurt instead of Sour Cream, hoping to make it just a smidge healthier. I tried to hold back a bit on the cheese, but I’ll give you a range, so go for it if you want.
The biggest change from the Sweet Carrot Roasted Sweet Corn Salsa was that I used roasted, not raw Poblanos and I added a couple roasted jalapenos, too. I’m not too happy about the taste or texture of raw poblano with their heavy skin. I’ve only ever used Poblanos roasted. I can say that everyone at the restaurant seemed perfectly happy with the salsa with the raw poblano, so maybe I’m over complicating things. To make it easy, toss the poblanos in the same time as the corn and when the corn comes out, turn the oven up and broil them. And do the same with the jalapenos if you want them.
Roasted Sweet Corn Salsa, before the dressing and cheese. It is even good like this!
Saving Money on Roasted Sweet Corn Salsa:
I’ve talked so much about saving money on Sweet Corn in the last few posts so many times (just flip over to the Corn Fritter Pancakes if you’d like to see the hints) that I’ll focus on some of the other ingredients in Roasted Sweet Corn Salsa. If you can’t get fresh sweet corn, use a can of well-drained corn and blot it dry. No need to be perfect, just do the best you can. Roast it for about 6 minutes.
Bell Peppers and sometimes limes go on sale. Pick up extra when you see them, for the current week and the week after. The color doesn’t matter with the limes, as long as they’re sound. Pick up several in your hand to get an idea of the weight and buy the heaviest.
Yogurt, if you’re a big couponer, can be incredibly cheap, but watch the quality. Costco and Aldi both have excellent prices on the larger cartons. Making your own is the way to go if you use a lot of yogurt (and have the time – but there’s very little “hands-on” work) and you can control the quality and the fat content. I love my daughter’s method and am still working on perfecting an Instant Pot method. But that’s another story.
Roasted Sweet Corn Salsa
Roasted Sweet Corn Salsa
- 2 to 3 ears of sweet corn, enough to make about 2 cups kernels
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon chipotle powder
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne
- 1 poblano, roasted and diced
- 2 jalapenos, roasted and diced
- 1/2 red bell pepper, diced
- 2 to 3 green onions, thinly sliced
- 1/4 red onion, diced
- 1/4 cup chopped cilantro, optional
- 2 limes, one zested
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 1/2 cup yogurt or sour cream
- 1 tablespoon (or to taste) sugar
- 1/2 to 3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
Cut corn from cob, spread out on a sheet pan, sprinkle with salt, smoked paprika, chipotle powder, pepper, and cayenne. Add the poblano and jalapenos if using. Roast for about 7 to 8 minutes. Remove corn and add to a medium bowl. Turn the peppers over and return to the oven, turning as necessary (turn the broiler on, if needed) until skin is blistered. When done, put peppers in a small bowl and cover. Allow to steam for several minutes. When cool enough to handle, peel, deseed and chop the peppers, and add to the bowl with the corn.
To the bowl with the corn add the bell pepper, green and red onion and cilantro. Squeeze the juice of one lime over the vegetables.
In another bowl, mix the mayonnaise, sour cream or yogurt, juice of 1 lime and the zest of one lime. Mix with the corn mixture. Add cheese to the corn mixture and toss together.
Serve immediately if desired or keep overnight. Best if used within 2 to 3 days.
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I’ll be posting Roasted Sweet Corn Salsa at Fiesta Friday 232, hosted this week by Laurena @ Life Diet Health and Jenny @ Apply To Face Blog. Stop over, mingle a bit and check out all the best food blogger recipes for the week, all in one place.
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