This elote-style Korean cheese corn is an upgraded, more flavor packed version of the classic Korean cheese corn you'd find at Korean BBQs. It encompasses all the flavors and yumminess of an elote corn into a sizzle platter of cheesy goodness! Plus, you can easily make this corn side in 15 minutes!
If you love elote corn and Korean cheese corn, you are gonna LOVE this elote-style Korean cheese corn! It's the best of both worlds!
The sweet, cheesy corns are topped with a kick of salty, tangy, and mild spice in each bite. It's a flavor party in your mouth! And a controversial bias, I think the cilantro is the cherry on top for this corn dish!
If you're looking for more street food inspirations, you might like kkwabaegi (Korean twisted donuts), classic Korean corn dog or the french fry (potato) version, and Taiwanese fried chicken.
Jump to:
Ingredients
Please scroll down to the recipe card for the ingredient quantities!
- Canned corn - Canned sweet corn is the most convenient to use and produce the most consistent flavor and sweetness.
- Shredded mozzarella - Pre-shredded mozzarella is perfect for this cheesy corn. Though, I recommend the finely shredded ones over the regular thickness mozzarella.
- Cotija cheese - This is the cheese needed for elote corn. You can find cotija cheese already crumbled or whole.
- Kewpie mayo - Japanese Kewpie mayo has more flavor than regular mayo. However, if you don't have any Kewpie mayo, regular mayo is fine too.
- Sugar - Just a touch a sugar to help season and balance the saltiness of the cheese.
- Black pepper - Just to add a tiny bit of kick.
- Cilantro, Tajín, lime - Toppings needed to replicate the flavors of elote corn. Tajín seasoning is definitely a must!
- Cooking spray - Highly recommend using some cooking spray to prevent the cheese from sticking to the baking dish.
How to make elote-style Korean cheese corn
1. Move the baking rack to the second from the top of the oven and preheat the oven to 450°F. Also, lightly grease a sizzle platter or a small cast iron skillet (5 to 6 inches) with oil or cooking spray.
2. In a mixing bowl, add all of the ingredients for the cheese corn (corn, mozzarella, cotija, mayo, sugar, and black pepper). Mix until evenly combined.
3. Transfer the corn and cheese mixture into the greased pan and spread it out evenly.
4. Top the corn and cheese mixture with a little more shredded mozzarella and bake for about 10 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and golden brown here and there.
🌟 Pro tip: If the top of your cheese corn isn't getting much color or you want more color, use the broil setting on the oven. But make sure to keep an eye on it! Your cheese corn can burn in seconds!
5. Remove the cheese corn from the oven and top with your desired amount of cotija cheese, cilantro, and Tajín. Garnish with a couple wedges of lime if you want some extra acidity.
6. Let the elote-style cheese corn cool for a moment and enjoy!
Recipe tips
- Drain the canned corn well. Too much excess liquid from the corn can make this Korean cheese corn loose and watery.
- Use a fast heat conducting bakeware if possible. Cast iron and thin metal baking pans are great because they can heat up very fast, which means the corn won't dry out.
- Grease the baking pan. Cheese loves to stick to baking dishes. So we highly recommend using some cooking spray, or at least some high smoke point oil, so that the cheese doesn't stick.
- Use a resealable plastic bag to crumble the cotija cheese. You can easily crumble the cheese and store it in the resealable bag. Less dishes. Win-win!
Storage and reheating
Just like our classic Korean cheese corn, this elote-style Korean cheese corn is best enjoyed shortly after making, while it's hot or warm. The cheese will stay gooey and stretchy, and the flavors will be at its peak!
If you have leftover elote-style cheese corn, let it cool completely, then transfer it to an airtight container. It will stay good in the fridge for up to 4 days.
You can easily reheat it in the microwave or in the oven at 350°F or the air fryer at 325°F for about 5 minutes, or until it's hot and the cheese is melted and gooey again.
FAQ
Cotija cheese is an aged Mexican cow's milk cheese. It's salty and milky in flavor and semi-firm in texture. A comparable substitute would be feta cheese.
Yes! If you don't have Kewpie mayo, you can use regular mayo. We just find Kewpie mayo to be more flavorful than regular mayo.
We recommend adding a little sugar into the cheese corn to help balance out the savory, salty flavors of the cheeses and Tajín. If you absolutely do not want to use sugar, you can omit it.
If you’ve made this recipe or any recipes from our blog, please tag us on Instagram using #twoplaidaprons! You can also tag us in your Instagram stories using @two_plaid_aprons. We would love to see your creations! It absolutely makes our day! 🥰
📖 Recipe
Elote-Style Korean Cheese Corn
Ingredients
For the cheese corn:
- 1 can sweet corn well drained (the 15.25 oz/432 g can)
- ¾ cup shredded mozzarella cheese
- ¼ cup cotija cheese crumbled
- 2 tablespoons Kewpie mayo
- 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
- Few cracks of black pepper
Toppings:
- Shredded mozzarella cheese
- Cotija cheese crumbled
- Cilantro roughly chopped
- Tajín seasoning
- Lime cut into wedges
Instructions
- Move the baking rack to the second from the top of the oven and preheat the oven to 450°F. Also, lightly grease a sizzle platter or a small cast iron skillet (5 to 6 inches) with oil or cooking spray.
- In a mixing bowl, add all of the ingredients for the cheese corn (corn, mozzarella, cotija, mayo, sugar, and black pepper). Mix until evenly combined.
- Transfer the corn and cheese mixture into the greased pan and spread it out evenly.
- Top the corn and cheese mixture with a little more shredded mozzarella and bake for about 10 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and golden brown here and there.*Use the broil setting on the oven if needed to get some colors. Make sure to keep an eye on it! It can burn really fast!*
- Remove the cheese corn from the oven and top with your desired amount of cotija cheese, cilantro, and Tajín. Garnish with a couple wedges of lime if you want some extra acidity.
- Let the elote-style cheese corn cool for a moment and enjoy!
Notes
- Kewpie mayo - We recommend Kewpie mayo because it's the tastiest. However, you can use regular mayo instead.
LB says
I've been majorly lurking. Your recipes are amazing. Thank you for taking the time to share. 🙂
Mei says
Hi LB!
Thanks for dropping such a kind comment! This totally mades our day!😁
Mei ❤️
Emely says
Can this be made with fresh corn? would there be any additional adjustments to account for the fresh corn? This looks amazing and the corn at the farmer’s market is crying out for this recipe. Thank you so much!
Mei says
Hi Emely!
Although we have not tried with fresh corn, it does sound amazing with this recipe! I would suggest giving the fresh corn a quick blanch or brief boil with some salt. This way it'll bring out the sweetness of the corn more and the corn will taste better. Also, make sure the dry the corn well so that extra moisture isn't introduced. Happy cooking!
Mei ❤️