Elotes Callejeros

It’s a happy day today! Apart from the all-around-awesomeness of weekends and the apple-cranberry-cinnamon lassi I had at lunch, this wonderful creature came into my life:

He is named Ignatio for his fiery personality. And I have lived without him for the last two months, during which the ignitor on my gas stove didn’t work, and so I lit my stove using a candle and a lighter. I have wax all over the counter top which I’m not sure how to remove. I kept getting distracted by the fresh produce whenever I went to the supermarket, so I forgot to buy him every time. But now he is here! Wheee!

Anyway, back to business – the fancy words in the title. I don’t speak Spanish so I don’t know what it means exactly, but I do know that I ate this it Mamasita (Melbourne) the night before I left in January, and have dreamt about it ever since. Also other things, but that’s a subject for another day.. It’s a type of grilled corn, done Mexican-style. From what I can understand, this is *real* Mexican from Mexico not Tex Mex ..which I also like, I’m no food snob!

Do try this, the dripping mayo and tasty cheese with the sweetness of the corn is just unforgettable. Though for an authentic result, you need to use chipotle mayo and smoked paprika instead of the random substitutions I pulled out of my store cupboard. Scale it up for more corn.

Elotes Callejeros

Copied and bastardised version of EssJayEats recipe, which also includes instructions for chipotle mayo if you feel like a challenge 🙂

Corn on the cob – one, I really do need to start being more sociable at mealtimes.
Butter – 1 tablespoon. I used olive oil as I don’t have butter in my sad sad kitchen.
Garlic – 2 cloves, chopped
Mayo – 1 tablespoon. I used Kewpie, because Kewpie is the best in all mayo-situations.
Zest & juice of a lime – half the lime. I used a teaspoon of lemon juice as I didn’t have any lime..you are beginning to see why I said it was ‘bastardised’ now aren’t you.
Smoked paprika powder – half a teaspoon. I used loads of chilli flakes again, as I didn’t have any smoked paprika.
Salt – just a pinch

I’m such a bad food blogger, I didn’t have half the ingredients. But if it tastes good like this imagine how awesome it will taste with real limes and paprika powder!!

Please ignore the stray chilli and garlic on the right hand side. A girl can’t survive on a single corn on the cob for dinner, so Aglio Olio pasta was involved. Also, don’t cook with your laptop in the kitchen, my touchpad doesn’t work properly anymore because I keep dropping water (and garlic and olive oil and other various condiments) on it. You have been warned!

1. Remove the corn from the husk. Try to take off all the stringy white bits as well, they get stuck in your teeth.
2. Mix the garlic into the oil/butter, and stick it in the microwave for 1 minute. This fries it slightly and infuses the garlic taste into the oil.
3. Rub the oil and garlic on to the corn (wait for it to cool a bit first!!). Grill the corn for about 15 minutes, turning frequently. If your grill is hotter than mine it will grill faster (full disclosure: mine’s actually an ambitious toaster oven)
4. In the meantime, mix the mayo, paprika/chilli flakes, and lime zest and juice/lemon juice. Grate the parmesan. Be generous, parmesan provides an important chemical involved in producing brain-happiness.*
5. When the corn is grilled, pour on the mayo and sprinkle on the cheese.

Sabrosa sabrosa! **

*Don’t believe everything I tell you, in all seriousness I’m not a brain-scientist.
** Google Translate says this means “tasty tasty”.