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Make delicious roasted corn salsa (2 ways) with fresh, canned, or frozen corn and other ingredients like jalapeños, garlic, onion, cilantro, and lime. It’s a fresh, vibrant salsa bursting with sweet, savory, tangy, and slightly spicy flavors. Plus it’s ready in under 30 minutes!
Fresh and Delicious Roasted Corn Salsa: 2 Ways
There is basically never a wrong time for delicious homemade salsa, but with summer in full swing, options like cucumber mango salsa, fresh and easy Pico de Gallo, and this chili corn salsa recipe are a must-try at your taco Tuesdays, potlucks, picnics, BBQs, and as a simple yet delicious side for quick mid-week meals.
Even better, this easy corn salsa recipe is a 2-in-one recipe. Loosely inspired by the Chipotle corn salsa recipe (that they were kind enough to tease on the official Chipotle TikTok) but with our own special twist. In fact, we’ve included a more traditional Chipotle corn salsa copycat (in the FAQs) along with our own roasted corn salsa recipe below. Either of which are bound to become family favorites.
No matter which version you make, this corn salsa requires under 10 (plus salt and pepper) simple, wholesome, budget-friendly ingredients and can be prepped in as little as a few minutes when using frozen (thawed) corn. It’s also make-ahead friendly, easy to adapt, naturally gluten-free, and vegan.
It is sweet (even more so with roasted corn, which helps to bring out its natural sweetness), mildly spicy, a little smoky, fresh, crunchy, and bursting with flavor and texture that will keep you coming back for more. It’s a versatile, crowd-pleasing side, perfect for enjoying with air fryer tortilla chips, tacos (like these vegetable fajita tacos), burritos (like these sweet potato burritos), quesadillas (like these vegan bean quesadillas), and more.
The Ingredients and Substitutes
Chili Corn Salsa Recipe Variations
- Cucumber: Use a low-seed, thin-peel variety like Persian/English cucumber for extra crunch and freshness.
- Black bean corn salsa: Add a tin of rinsed black beans for a heartier easy corn salsa recipe with plenty of plant-based protein.
- Poblano peppers: Some iterations of copycat Chipotle corn salsa recipes are poblano corn salsa with roasted poblano peppers.
- Fruit: Pair the natural sweetness of corn with sweet and juicy fruits to make
- Mango corn salsa
- Pineapple corn salsa
- Peach corn salsa
- Vegan feta cheese: Adds a salty, tangy, creamy flavor to tomato corn salsa.
- Sugar: Just a little will further bring out the natural sweetness in the corn.
How to Make Corn Salsa
Keep scrolling to the recipe card for the complete list of ingredients and recipe instructions!
Step 1: Finely dice the tomato, avocado (if using), and red onion, mince the jalapeno and cilantro, and juice the lime.
Step 2: Then, add all the ingredients to a bowl, toss, and allow the tomato and corn salsa to marinate for at least 10 minutes (30 minutes is better). Enjoy!
Remove the ribs/seeds from the jalapeño before mincing it for milder roasted corn salsa.
FAQs
To make fresh corn salsa, first strip the corn from the cob by holding it upright and using a paring knife to slice off kernels, one strip at a time. Then roast/grill/ boil the corn using your desired method and continue with the chili corn salsa recipe as written.
Luckily, it’s really easy to thaw corn in just minutes. Rinse it in a bowl with cold water, leave it while you chop the remaining ingredients, then thoroughly drain, pat dry, and toss into the tomato corn salsa.
According to their website and the TikTok recipe they posted, the Chipotle corn salsa recipe uses frozen white corn, some added roasted poblano pepper and a 50/50 blend of lemon and lime juice. It doesn’t contain apple cider vinegar, cumin, avocado, or garlic.
Top Recipe Tips
- Use the freshest ingredients: This homemade corn salsa requires only a simple, short ingredients list, so it’s important to use good-quality, fresh, in-season (where possible) ingredients for the best flavor.
- Cut fine, uniform pieces: This will ensure a consistent and even distribution of all the flavors and a better overall mouthfeel.
- Customize the heat: Make it milder with a mild pepper/less jalapeno. Add some seeds or a hotter pepper (serrano, poblano) for hotter chili corn salsa.
- For smokier flavor: Lightly char the corn/jalapeño. To do the latter, blister/char it using a gas range or broiler, then leave the peppers to steam in foil/ a plastic-wrapped bowl, then peel them and chop.
- Leave it to marinate: This is important to allow the flavors to meld.
- Have fun experimenting: You can tweak the spice and flavor profile and play with optional add-ins in this roasted corn salsa.
How to Quickly Roast Corn
Transfer two 15oz cans of corn kernels (or equal amounts of thawed, frozen corn kernels) to your air fryer for about 10 minutes at 400F/200C (or 20-25 minutes in the oven), shaking halfway.
You could also pan-fry the corn in a cast-iron skillet (5-7 minutes with oil or vegan butter) or even broil/ grill corn for a more smoky charred corn salsa.
How to Make Ahead and Store?
We recommend you prepare this roasted corn salsa a few hours (or even a day) in advance to allow the flavors to meld. Add the avocado just before serving.
Once prepared, the chili corn salsa will store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 4-5 days.
What to Eat with Corn Salsa?
This sweet, savory, slightly spicy roasted chili corn salsa is a summery side you can enjoy year-round with
- Warm pita or air fryer tortilla chips or over vegan nachos
- Tacos (tofu tacos, cauliflower tacos, potato chickpea tacos, roasted veg tacos)
- In or alongside burritos (like this bean and rice burrito) and burrito bowls
- Vegan quesadillas (like this vegan bean quesadilla), squash enchiladas with salsa verde, and vegan tofu fajitas
- Grilled tempeh or tofu skewers/grilled tofu steaks
- Tofu scramble with veggies or with a vegan potato frittata
- Cilantro lime rice, Vegan Mexican rice and vegan refried beans, etc.
- Vegan avocado toast, vegan grilled cheese, and vegan burgers (like these 9 vegan burgers)
- Side salads like a Mediterranean vegan pasta salad, french potato salad, texas caviar, etc.
- Southwest vegan stuffed bell peppers
Roasted Chili Corn Salsa (2 Ways)
Ingredients
- 3 cups of frozen roasted corn kernels, thawed
- 1 small red onion, finely diced
- 1 avocado, diced (optional)
- 1 roma tomato, diced
- ⅓ cup of minced cilantro
- 1 jalapeno, minced
- 2 limes, juiced
- ½ tablespoon of apple cider vinegar (optiona)
- ½ teaspoon of ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon of garlic powder
- Salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine all of the ingredients. Mix well and allow it to marinate for 10 minutes. Mix again, taste, and add more lime juice or spices as needed.
Notes
- Use the freshest ingredients: This homemade corn salsa requires only a simple, short ingredients list, so it’s important to use good-quality, fresh, in-season (where possible) ingredients for the best flavor.
- Cut fine, uniform pieces: This will ensure a consistent and even distribution of all the flavors and a better overall mouthfeel.
- Customize the heat: Make it milder with a mild pepper/less jalapeno. Add some seeds or a hotter pepper (serrano, poblano) for hotter chili corn salsa.
Nutrition
Disclaimer: Although plantbasedonabudget.com attempts to provide accurate nutritional information, kindly note that these are only estimates. Nutritional information may be affected based on the product type, the brand that was purchased, and in other unforeseeable ways. Plantbasedonabudget.com will not be held liable for any loss or damage resulting for your reliance on nutritional information. If you need to follow a specific caloric regimen, please consult your doctor first.
I’ve never thought of using corn with salsa, and this roasted chili corn salsa recipe did not disappoint! The textures and flavors were so spot on. Can’t wait to make this again for our taco Tuesday nights!
Tangy and fresh delicious salsa! Tastes like summer!
So many flavors going on! Love the tip about air frying corn!
tasty corn salad the whole family loves
Can’t wait to try this recipe! Thanks for the tip about the corn. I can’t find roasted frozen corn in my area so I’ll be going with the canned corn!
Love this flavorful corn salad! Perfect for those hot summer days!
This is what summer is all about! I live this recipe- delicious
What a delicious side dish. We loved it very much and the bowl was empty afterwards.
We have been tearing it up this summer with corn salads. This was no exception. I really loved the Tex-Mex flavors.
Love how the flavors meld perfectly together!