Corn Salad Like Mama's

August 4, 2008 5:33 PM

I love the Fresh Corn Salad from Mama's Food Shop in Manhattan's East Village. I have a feeling it's made with raw corn kernels. At any rate, it's loaded with cilantro and chiles and the dressing is deliciously tangy. All efforts to replicate it at home have failed. Any suggestions?
posted by Morpeth to Food & Drink (6 answers total)

How about this recipe? Rather than sauteing the corn kernels, you could leave them raw and just toss with the tbsp of oil. Also if you don't have champagne vinegar, you can substitute any good quality vinegar.
posted by peacheater at 6:06 PM on August 4, 2008

Sauteed/roasted corn kernels, lime juice, cilantro, and chile makes a delicious salad. No fancy anything required--quite mediocre corn is just fine in it. The carmelized corn kernels make the salad quite sweet.
posted by OmieWise at 6:27 PM on August 4, 2008

What nature is the dressing? Creamy, clear, oily? There are multiple schools of thought on elotes (on the cob) or elotes en vaso (in a cup); in Texas mayonaise is a must, and lemon pepper, other mix-ins vary. Though elotes is traditionally roasted, when the good sweet corn has just come in you can often find it raw or lightly boiled or steamed.

I'm not sure if that's actually the thing you're eating, though, or if it's a different kind of corn salad.
posted by Lyn Never at 7:35 PM on August 4, 2008

funny, i had this for lunch! have you ever tried just asking asking them what's in it? mama's is low key enough that they might be happy to tell you.
posted by lia at 10:35 PM on August 4, 2008

What nature is the dressing? Creamy, clear, oily?

The unique thing about the dressing is that it's sort of watery and milky, and not particularly oily. The milkiness is probably starch from the corn; it's a crucial and unachievable (for me) aspect of the dish.

have you ever tried just asking asking them what's in it? mama's is low key enough that they might be happy to tell you.

I have indeed thought about it, and once even picked up the phone to call them, but then shyness got the better of me. But as you say, the folks who work there are very low key. I am being a bit of a wuss.
posted by Morpeth at 7:06 AM on August 5, 2008

don't call, ask in person! just say you really enjoyed the salad but can't figure out what exactly it is that you're enjoying, and you'd love to know.
posted by lia at 9:49 AM on August 5, 2008