This Mexican Street Corn Gnocchi is going to be my new go-to dish in the Summer! Loaded with extra soft pillowy gnocchi, creamy and tangy Mexican street corn – it’s bright, refreshing and so yummy!
Alright y’all, it’s no secret that I love elote. AKA Mexican Street Corn.
I’ve talked about it many times on the blog at this point – basically, when Ben and I went to Mexico City a few years ago, we were OHB-SESSED with it! It was a chilly evening and we got a huge cup of it – steaming, so flavorful and delicious for only 75 cents! Needless to say, we got it many more times while we were there.
You also know how obsessed with it I am considering I have this amazing Mexican Street Corn and Chicken Chowder recipe on my blog as well as my Shrimp and Street Corn Tacos 😉
What is Mexican Street Corn?
Mexican Street Corn can also be known as elote! Basically, this is a super delicious way they cook corn in Mexico – they usually grill the cobs of corn to help char it and then mix it with mayonnaise, chili powder, lime, cotija cheese etc. It results in a tangy, creamy, flavor explosion!
Usually, you can find it in Mexico at street carts, vendors, etc., but it has since gotten wildly popular in the U.S. – so much so that one time I saw a pizza with it on it (not mad about it)!
Why You’re Going to Love This Dish:
Okay so first off – I love the street corn just by itself. Sadly, no mayonnaise was used in this recipe but I did substitute mayo with cream cheese – it made it incredibly creamy as you can imagine.
But don’t worry! The tanginess wasn’t gone because HELLO COTIJA! If you’ve never had cotija cheese before, please do yourself a favor and go buy some right now! It’s my all time favorite cheese to have with Mexican cuisine because it’s creamy but tangy and adds the BEST flavor!
The cotija really helps add a flare to the dish, as well as the classic chili powder, lime juice and half and half. I used half and half to increase the creaminess as well – I thought about using heavy cream but I personally think the half and half worked best. It wasn’t OVERLY rich but it still was lusciously creamy.
The zip and punch from the fresh lime is perfect as well as the spice from the chili powder and if you’d like, tajin seasoning! Tajin is a super yummy chili lime seasoning that you can find in most grocery stores.
So, yeah, the street corn is honestly good enough and I feel like I could eat it with a spoon straight from the skillet BUT why not add gnocchi to it?!?
A little flavor infusion – the perfectly soft gnocchi adds an incredible texture to the dish. They’re soft, fluffy, a little chewy and the perfect compliment to the crunchy corn in the dish.
So – by now you want to know how to make it, right?! Right! Let’s get into it!
Ingredients You Need:
- Potato gnocchi
- Fresh corn
- Red onion
- Garlic
- Cream cheese
- Half and half
- Cotija cheese
- Chili powder
- Lime
- Tajin seasoning
- Salt to season
Best Tips on Making This Dish:
First off – I just want to say that you CAN use canned corn for this recipe. I don’t discriminate against canned veggies – I love the fact that they can be time savers! I used fresh corn, since it’s in season but canned works just fine!
So now that’s out of the way…begin by dicing your red onion, mincing your garlic and slicing the corn off of the cob.
To a large skillet, add in a tsp or two of avocado oil and let it heat up on medium heat. Once hot, add in the onion and cook for 3-4 minutes or so – this will help get that classic red onion “bite” out of it.
Next, add in the corn! Cook this for 5-6 minutes, not really moving it around too much because you want to get crispy! Lastly of course, add in the garlic and let it cook until fragrant, just about 1 minute or so. Add a pinch of salt to taste!
Turn the heat down to medium low and add in the cream cheese – stir it in until it has melted down and is incorporated with the corn/onion. And now add that incredibly creamy half and half!
Stir together and then add in the chili powder and tajin. Mix together. Let this gently simmer for 2-3 minutes, never letting it boil! It should thicken pretty quickly, especially if you stir it around every few seconds.
Tip – once it’s fully thickened, place it on low heat to just keep it warm. Keep your half and half near you though!
Now, cook the gnocchi! Your package should have directions on it – so follow those! Once they are done, drain them and add them to the pan. Stir until it’s fully incorporated and yummy.
Oh, and don’t forget the lime and cotija cheese – hello flavor!
Taste and adjust seasoning – add more salt, chili powder etc. Lastly, if it has gotten less creamy while it’s been staying warm, ADD MORE HALF AND HALF! This will make sure it continues to stay super creamy and yummy. Trust me on this one!
Top with tons of cilantro, extra cotija and of course, another squeeze of lime and you’re all set!
Storing Leftovers:
To be honest, I feel like this is a dish that is BEST enjoyed the night it’s cooked. But, if you do have leftovers, as always, store them in a tightly sealed tupperware container in the fridge for up to 1 day.
When warming it up, be sure to add a splash of half and half in there to help it get extra creamy again!
Did you enjoy this recipe? Here are a few others you might like:
Chorizo Tacos with Cilantro Lime Crema
Ground Chicken Tacos with Chipotle Crema
Thank you so much for following along here, friends! Want to see more? Be sure to follow ourbalancedbowl on Instagram and tag me with your photo if you end up making a recipe! You can also post a photo of your recipe to the Our Balanced Bowl Facebook page! Like a recipe that you saw? Follow me on Pinterest here! I always love to see your re-creations! If you do make a recipe, it would make my whole day if you were to rate and comment so I can get your feedback! Lots of love! – Haylie
Mexican Street Corn Gnocchi
This Mexican Street Corn Gnocchi is going to be my new go-to dish in the Summer! Loaded with extra soft pillowy gnocchi, creamy and tangy Mexican street corn - it’s bright, refreshing and so yummy!
Ingredients
- 1/2 medium red onion, diced
- 3-4 large ears of corn
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 3 oz cream cheese
- 1 and 1/2 cup half and half (plus more if needed)
- 1/3 cup + more Cotija cheese
- 1 lime squeezed + more for garnish
- 1 tsp Tajin (chili lime) seasoning (more to garnish if desired)
- 1 tsp chili powder
- salt to taste
- cilantro to garnish
- 16 oz package of gnocchi
- 1 tsp avocado oil
Instructions
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Dice the red onion and slice the corn directly off of the cob. Mince the garlic.
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To a medium size skillet, add 1 tsp of avocado oil and let it get warm on medium heat. Once hot, Add in the onion and let cook for 2-3 minutes. Next, add in the corn and let it get cooked/crispy - cook about 5-6 minutes. Finally, add in the garlic and let it cook for 1 minute. Add a pinch of salt to taste.
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Turn down the heat on the skillet to medium low. To the skillet, add in the cream cheese and half and half as well as the chili lime seasoning. Stir together and let it gently simmer - reducing, for about 2-3 minutes. Never let it boil though! It shouldn’t take long to thicken, especially if you are stirring it every few seconds! Once thickened, place on LOW heat.
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While this is cooking, begin boiling the water for the gnocchi. Cook the gnocchi according to package directions. Drain the gnocchi.
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Add the gnocchi to the skillet along with the cotija cheese, cilantro and lime juice. Add extra half and half if desired for ultra creaminess (see notes on half and half!). Taste and adjust seasoning if needed.
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Garnish with extra chili powder, lime wedges and cilantro. Enjoy!
Recipe Notes
If the creamy corn mixture has gotten less creamy while the gnocchi cooks, no worries! Just add another generous splash of half and half, mix it in and it should become creamy again.
Also, when you're heating this up for leftovers, a splash of half and half goes a LONG way.
You would think since I live in Denver that cojita cheese would be easy to find. It’s not. I didn’t have parmesan available so I used aged Romano cheese.
I hope it still turned out yummy, Barbara! Cotija is the BEST, I’m so sad you couldn’t find it!