This easy corn salsa made with lime, cilantro, and tomatoes is perfect with chips or served over your favorite tacos or burrito bowls!
Corn Salsa
This recipe was inspired by Chipotle’s corn salsa. I always get a Chipotle chicken burrito bowl with corn salsa and love it so much that I had to recreate it. It’s wonderful, especially in the summer when sweet corn is at its peak. This flavor of the salsa is the perfect combination of sweet, tangy, and spicy – You can adjust the heat according to your taste. More of my favorite summer corn recipes are this Mexican-Inspired Grilled Corn Salad, Corn Tomato Avocado Salad, and Grilled Corn on the Cob.
Ingredients
- Fresh Corn: Cut the corn kernels off three cobs.
- Tomatoes: Seed and dice two small vine-ripened tomatoes.
- Onions: Red onion and scallions
- Jalapeño: For spicy corn salsa, keep the seeds and ribs in the jalapeño. For a mild dip, remove them.
- Cilantro: Chop fresh cilantro.
- Lime: Juice one lime.
- Salt and Pepper to taste
How to Make Corn Salsa
- Cook the corn: Grilled corn is my favorite for this salsa, but you can also roast, microwave, or boil. To boil the corn, place peeled ears of corn in boiling water and cook 5 minutes, then drain and cool. To microwave the corn, place a wet paper towel around each ear of corn and microwave about 3 to 4 minutes, until the corn is tender. To grill the corn, place peeled ears of corn on the grill over medium heat and cook, turning until charred, about 10 minutes.
- Prep the Corn: To remove the kernels from the cob, hold it upright in a large shallow bowl and cut the corn off with a chef’s knife.
- Combine all the corn salsa ingredients in a bowl and refrigerate it for an hour or longer.
What to Serve with Corn Salsa
There are so many ways to eat this healthy salsa. Here are my favorites!
- Homemade Chiptole’s Burrito Bowls: Make a bowl with cilantro lime rice and your favorite protein like barbacoa beef, Chipotle Chicken or carnitas.
- Appetizer: Dip baked tortilla chips in it.
- As a Topping: Top any nachos, tostadas, or tacos with this corn salsa.
- Salads: Make a taco salad with avocado, tomato, and cucumber.
How to Make Ahead
If you’re serving this easy salsa for a party, you can make it a day in advance. Cover it tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to serve. Leftovers will last up to four days.
Variations
- Corn not in season? Use frozen corn.
- Peppers: Swap the jalapeño with poblano pepper or red bell pepper.
- Tomatoes: Use grape or cherry tomatoes.
- Herbs: If you don’t like cilantro, replace it with chives.
- Beans: Add some black beans for fiber.
- Cheese: If you want to add cheese, cotija cheese would be delish.
More Salsa Recipe Ideas:
- Mango Avocado Salsa
- Salsa Verde
- Shrimp Salsa
- Salsa Picante Roja (Spicy Red Salsa)
- Easy No-Cook Restaurant-Style Salsa
- Pico de Gallo
Corn Salsa Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 cups cooked sweet yellow corn kernels, cut off the cob, from 3 cobs*
- 2 small vine ripe tomatoes, seeded and diced
- 1/2 cup red onion, diced
- 1 scallion, diced
- 1 jalapeño, diced (remove seeds for mild)
- 2 tbsp chopped cilantro
- 1 fresh lime, juice of
- kosher salt and fresh pepper to taste
Instructions
- Combine all the ingredients and refrigerate for about an hour. Makes about 3 cups.
Delicious! We made this salsa for a party. We opted to use some cherry tomatoes from our garden. We also added black beans (one can, drained and rinsed well) for even more veggies. It turned out great!
This was so, so yummy!! I put it on a homemade chipotle chicken bowl. Thank you!
To say this recipe was delicious and addictive is an understatement!! So simple to make. Brought it to a potluck as an app, and everyone also ended up putting it on their dinner, which was chicken breasts and ribs! Tasted even better the next day- perfect addition to cooked egg whites with sliced avocado. This is a keeper! Thank you💜
DELICIOUS! I just made a batch to go with my Skinnytaste pork carnitas. I could eat a whole bowl of this corn salsa alone!
Outstanding!!!!
I have the cilantro tastes like soap gene. Can I use parsley?
Maybe chives?
We will definitely have to make this. I already know it’s a 5 star recipe! I think it is quite versatile. I noticed a photo above that shows rice topped with beef then topped with corn salsa. What recipe did you use for the beef? Looks like something I’d like to make for our Sunday dinner with my father-in-law!! Thank you!
This is barbacoa beef, see on my website.
Can you can this? I’m thinking it should be shelf stable just like other salsa recipes, but wanted to get your opinion. It sounds delicious!
I’m not sure?
Just made this to add to chipotle chicken bowl this week – I have been making that a lot but haven’t tried this corn salsa with it before. I don’t have an outdoor grill and didn’t really want the corn microwaved so I put the corn cobs whole on my Cuisinart but it didn’t work out so well. So, I sliced the corn long ways off the cob and then put it on the flat grill side for ten minutes and it came out perfectly. Mixed it with the rest of the ingredients and it was so tasty – excellent addition for the chipotle bowl and I will use it in a few other dishes I make a lot!
Delicious. We had this with the cilantro lime chicken. Both were delicious. I find all your recipes to be amazing.
Loved this! Very fresh!
A winner. Flavorful bright and pretty salad. I also grilled the onion and jalapeno while at it, and added a bit more of each to the corn. Had with salsa verde chicken slow cooker recipe (with addition of white beans.) Will keep this fresh corn salad in mind anytime making some tacos, enchiladas or salad bowl combos, etc etc.
Love this salsa!! Made it for supper last night with Shrimp Taco recipe and my husband raved about how good it was.
Great!!
Hello! I found your site looking for some corn salsa recipes… this is just out of this world delish! I used Roma tomatoes in my recipe. I bet this would be awesome if one roasted the corn as well. Great salsa and thanks for a keeper!
I’ve made this about 4 times now, and it is so delicious! However much you think you will need, you better double or triple. This stuff is better the next day, and tastes great as a topping for any Mexican dish, chips, or spooning straight out of the bowl.
Made this with cilantro lime chicken and jasmine rice for a summery chicken burrito bowl. It was awesome. Add a little avocado and I didn’t miss tortillas, cheese, or sour cream. It was sooo good. Can’t wait for left overs tomorrow.
This salsa is incredible. The combination of the summer corn, red onion, tomato and lime is so refreshing. I can eat this with a spoon, nothing else and be happy as can be. It’s a must make!
I made this for a Memorial Day pot luck and it was a big hit. I made it with the “Mexican twists” mentioned in the blog. Also I made this before and served it with the Salsa Verde Chicken; they go great together.
I made this salsa just as the recipe was written except I used canned corn instead of fresh off the Cobb. In Pittsburgh in April, it’s not exactly fresh corn season. Here, corn grows “knee high by the 4th of July” so canned was my option of choice. This was really light and refreshing, a nice addition to a taco or along with the Barbacoa Beef recipe that I made also. It might be nice to add a little cumin and maybe some beans to the next time.
Made this for a fourth of July party. A big hit. I actually grilled the corn instead of boiling it. Grilled for 30 minutes. Salt each cob. Turn every ten minutes. Delicious
I was impressed with this recipe! Very tasty and versatile! I used a can of drained whole kernel corn in place of fresh. Will make again and again!
Tastes great in a rice bowl. Made with the chili lime chicken from meal prep cook book to mimic Qdoba.
I made this corn salsa as a side for our grilled swordfish. OMG! It was a perfect accompaniment.
This is a wonderful brightener for so many things. Barbacoa. Tacos. Eggs. Grilled chicken thighs. With chips instead of salsa. You name it. It is delicious and made with all whole foods. Simple to make, lasts a few meals, easy to play with. Sometimes I add ripe avocado, black eyed peas or pinto beans. But most of the time I make it exactly as written. Yu.
This salsa/salad is to DIE for! So sweet and packed with flavor without adding much at all! The ingredients are so fresh and the only additional seasoning is lime juice, S&P! It is SO refreshing and went amazing with the Barbacoa tacos the house RAVED over. Thank you, Gina!
So glad you all enjoyed it!
Excellent. Did not add jalapeños since this group doesn’t like too spicy. Substituted parsley for the cilantro. Perfect appetizer for a 4th of July or any summer barbecue.
The jalapeno without the seeds calms the sweet from the corn and the tomato without adding heat. I highly recommend you try it next time!
Delicioso! Just like Chipotle!
For the corn salsa. Do you cook the corn first? Or just cut the corn off the cob fresh?
yes this calls for cooked corn
Of course having a great corn makes it even better! Made this Jersey fresh corn – roasted.
Delicious, the corn is the star and the other ingredients just elevated the taste. The klime juice was plenty to bring it all together!! Love this recipe
So good! I’ve never had corn salsa as good and fresh as this. It was perfect with the barbacoa beef.
Last comment should have been for the barbacoa – sorry!
This was amazing! My family loved it so much – Thank you. We don’t like really spicy so I substituted 3T mild green chiles for the chipotle peppers. It was perfect for us. Also made your corn and lime salsa (no jalapenos) and that was fantastic too.
I would like to can this? Does anyone with experience know how I could do so?
Used 2 cans of Green Giant canned corn. Drained
Perfect
Made this corn salsa this week with your Barbacoa Beef and cilantro brown rice, so yummy! Thank you so much for sharing this recipe, it is fantastic!
I made this with the Barbacoa Beef tonight. My kids loved both dishes!
Awesome
I think this would be 0 smart points now because of the new Freestyle program!!!
Correct!
Just a note for people who really do want a mild jalapeño. It’s not the seeds that contain the capsaicin oil. It’s the placenta which is the “ribbing” that the seeds are attached to. So, don’t just take off the seeds, cut off the ribbing all the way back to the wall of the pepper.
This salsa is insanely delicious…and addicting! Yum.
This recipe is beyond amazing!!!
This sounds awesome!! Can I can this? Everything in this recipe is available from my garden….also, would you roast or boil the corn??
Just finished making this, it is in the refrigerator until dinner tonight. Pairing this with the Barbacoa beef and cilantro lime rice… I’m beyond excited!! Thanks for all the great recipes Gina! I’ll post again after we’ve eaten it!
Wonderful recipe, esp. since fresh corn and tomatoes are in season. I omitted the cilantro and onion, increased the tomatoes. The fresh lime juice is the secret ingredient! Definitely improves with sitting in the fridge.
This was such a great dish for the hot summer! I grilled the corn out on the BBQ to avoid heating up the house. The flavors are very complex and complimentary. I have munched on it for the last 2 days and it just keeps getting better and better as the flavors meld. Thank you Gina for sharing your talents with those of us who are "culinary-challenged"!
Great compliment to the Barbacoa and Fiesta Lime Rice! I was a little skeptical to it being served straight from the fridge but the flavor carried through:)
Loved this salsa! Just FYI, I put the recipe into WW recipe builder and it came out 2+ per serving… Just wondering if the stats are right.
made this and COULD NOT GET ENOUGH of it… WOW. we had leftover grilled corn on the cob and i think the grill flavor really made it yummo too. thanks
Used this recipe with pickled red onions and it was amazing! I had some corn salsa at a restaurant last weekend and found out that the pickled onions made it sweet. I tried to get the recipe but no luck so I used this one. My husband raves about it – it will be a staple with our grilled catfish from now on!
This corn salsa is so delicious! I love it. Thanks for the recipe! I blogged about it here: http://thefoodcharlatan.wordpress.com/2012/05/18/corn-salsa-with-lime/
Gina, how long do you think this would be good in the fridge? I made it about a week ago and we have been munching on it ever since!
Gina, I love your recipes. I am a first time writer, but I have been using your website for about two months now. You make being on WW easier. I brought this recipe to a Mexican theme potluck at work today and everybody LOVED it. Thank you so much for what you do. 🙂
I just discovered your site and I love it! I made the corn salsa tonight and last night I made the pico de gallo. Yummy!! I can't wait to try more of your delicious recipes!
I made this but grilled the corn and gave it the next level I was looking for. My husband loved it! I also added red pepper to it to give it more crunch! Yummmm….
All I can say is "Wowww!" I had this for dinner tonight along with the barbacoa beef and white rice, and it was delicious!!! Thanks so much for sharing your recipes!
~Teresa~
Maybe try another supermarket, it's in the spice aisle, or use any chile powder.
Love your site! Where do you buy chipotle chili powder? I have looked at Safeway and no luck.
Thanks. Can't wait to make this.
I would eat it over rice and beans. Plain rice I'm not too sure if I would like.
I plan to make this with Trader Joe’s roasted corn and a can of mild or original Rotel, drained, and a packet of Just Lime for a last minute side dish.
Hi. I was wondering if you think this would taste good over plain white rice??? Thanks.
This looks great! I love Chipotle's corn salsa. Since I can't get fresh corn I though I would try this using Trader Joe's Roasted Corn. Yummmm
Yes, this is amazing with fresh grilled corn!
this is an awesome recipe! Used grilled corn if you can.
I made this for a girls weekend at a cabin and it was amazing! I recommend this dip with baked chips! The container was empty in a matter or 2 hours! THUMBS UP!
I will definitely have to try this. It sounds wonderful. I make something similar with whole kernal corn, cucumbers, grape tomatoes (cut in half), lime juice, olive oil, salt and pepper and a couple packets of Splenda. It always gets rave reviews.
YUMMY! I have been keeping this around the house for snacks and side dishes. PERFECT to go with anything off the grill … burgers, chicken, shellfish, etc. Made a perfect side with your zucchini turkey burgers!
this was to die for! actually every recipe i've tried has been delicious!
If you use fresh corn do you boil it or grill it and then just cut from the cob? Never made corn salsa before but it looks yummy!!! Thanks!
Fresh corn works best here but frozen would do.
This looks amazing! I can't wait to try it. I also added a link to your site from my blog of daily tips as I just did a post on weight watchers. You have a great site. I am a new subscriber and can't wait to check out all the recipes.
http://mytipstoshare.blogspot.com/
Hi Gina!! I would like to publicly state I normally do not GOBBLE lol however I confess in this case GUILTY as charged!! This was absoulutely delicious and so light (lol except the chips)!
@mamafliz- Yay, I am part Latina (my mom) and plan on making many more lighter Latin meals in the future. Glad this is helping you stay on track.
@Lori- where are you going?? Enjoy your girls trip!
@Kassie- I'm sure it will be great. Happy Chipotle night!
I make something very similar to this, but I add black beans for extra flavor and fiber! I also add cumin. We LOVE this stuff as a side dish, salsa, salad, etc!
I tried this recipe last night. It turned out very pretty, but I haven't had a chance to taste-test it. I used half of a poblano chili pepper instead (since I didn't have any jalopenos). Do you think the flavor will still be good??
I plan on making the Chicken Ropa Vieja tomorrow and having a Chipotle at home night!
THANKS!!
Thanks Gina. This will be great to take on our Girls Weekend trip in April, any other ideas? By the way, thanks for all you do, I look forward to your new recipes each day. My kids and husband LOVES the lime garlic steak and they loved it with chicken too, we used the leftovers for enchiladas…delicious.
Lori Doughty
I just wanted to say thanks for your great blog! I've been on WW for over a year and have been struggling with maintenance. I was in a food rut and going way over points to make up for it, but your blog has inspired me to get cooking light again! Thank you also for the awesome latin recipes. My Abuelo was Peruvian and my son's Abuela is Ecuadorian, so latin food is a huge thing in our house 🙂
Thanks Leslie!
Mmm, I always put this corn salsa in my burrito at Chipotle. I think it's amazing… and the rice is why I come back! Thanks.
I love corn salsa and it looks so pretty and healthy! I just love your blog!! ~LeslieMichele
I love this corn salsa. Thanks for a new recipe!!
Fresh corn is ideal but I used frozen. Grilled corn on the cob is even better!
I've never made corn salsa, but often order it at Qdoba restaurant on my burrito. Definitely trying this recipe!
OMG this looks wonderful, I can't wait to try it!
Wow this looks great! Could you tell me what kind of corn you used? Was wondering if I could use frozen or canned?? Thanks so much!
I always use frozen.
shut right up! (And I only mean that in a good way). I love this stuff and can't wait to try it myself!