Mexican Street Corn Stuffed Peppers

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(Note: this post was originally published on October 6, 2019. The date above reflects migration to the new platform.)

Street Corn Gets an Upgrade

What's better than Mexican Street Corn? Not much. But I'd argue that this healthier Mexican Street Corn stuffed into charred, rainbow peppers is even more delicious than the original.

Mexican Street Corn is truly a delight. Charred, slathered in a creamy sauce, and kissed with lime, it's a magical meeting of sweet, salty, and tangy. That's why it makes for the most perfect appetizer, happy hour snack, and game-day food!

This recipe puts two different spins on the classic. First, instead of mayo, this corn gets its indulgent creaminess from Greek yogurt (or non-dairy yogurt of your choice), yielding a much lighter dish. Plus, the yogurt adds the perfect amount of tang, which really complements the lime. Second, the indulgent, creamy street corn then gets stuffed into charred peppers. This makes for double the grilled flavor, a beautiful presentation, and an easy finger-food.

I'm pretty sure these stuffed peppers will fulfill all your appetizer dreams.

Endless Serving Options

This dish is infinitely flexible. First and foremost, you can serve it in a variety of different ways!

If you want more robust portions, use bell peppers as shown above. Like it hot? Poblanos would be so delicious. Hosting a party with appetizers? Baby bell peppers as shown below are the perfect two-bite party app. As written, the recipe makes enough to fill about 3 large bell peppers or 12 baby peppers (each cut in half); just scale up or down as needed based on your pepper size and the number you want to make.

Plus, you can serve these either cold or room temperature, which I always find so comforting and easy.

Make-Ahead Tips

On that note, this recipe is also very make-ahead friendly! You have a couple options for how to do it. First, you can grill the veggies, make the filling, store everything in containers overnight, and stuff the peppers before serving. Alternatively, you can stuff the peppers ahead of time and store them assembled. I prefer the former since the result is a little bit fresher, but the latter is fine if you're really looking for efficiency. When you're ready to serve, you can do it right out of the fridge (i.e. cold) or let everything come to room temperature. I don't recommend heating these up since the yogurt will get runny.

Just be careful of the garnishes! The avocado, cilantro, and pepitas definitely need to be added just before serving, otherwise they'll get brown and wilty. If you're unable to add the garnishes last-minute, just omit them or swap them out for something more robust (e.g. diced cherry tomatoes, pickled jalapenos, etc.).

Make Them Vegan!

The recipe as shown here is made with plain Greek yogurt and feta. However, it can easily be made vegan with two swaps.

First, instead of the Greek yogurt, just use your favorite non-dairy yogurt. Make sure you use the thickest, most neutral-flavored yogurt you can find in order to keep your filling creamy and tasty.

Second, substitute the cheese for either a non-dairy feta or small cubes of tofu. Either will work fine. I don't suggest omitting this part entirely since it will lose the street corn feel.

A Sneaky No-Cook Option

Short on time? You can convert this into an entirely no-cook recipe with the help of the freezer section! Instead of grilling your own corn, just buy frozen (or grilled frozen) corn and defrost it in the microwave. Easy! This is also a great option for out-of-season, when you can't get good corn on the cob; it's how I make this recipe during the winter! I admit to buying many bags of the Trader Joe's grilled frozen corn...

While I love grilling the peppers for both the taste and visual appeal, it's not critical. This recipe will work fine with raw peppers, especially if you're using baby peppers for smaller portions.

You can either omit the onion entirely, or just use raw. Personally speaking, I don't love raw onion, but if you want to go that route just make sure it's very finely chopped so it's not overly-assertive. You can also soak thin slices of onion in ice water for a few minutes to draw out some of the pungency.

Isn't this clever?? While I absolutely prefer the grilled version of everything described above, it's not always practical. Take shortcuts if you need them!

Let's Talk Ingredients

Here's what you'll need for this recipe, as well as some thoughts, tips, and possible substitutions. If you make any substitutions, I'd love to hear about it in the comments section below.

  • Corn. In season, it's wonderful to grill it on the cob and then cut the kernels off. Out of season, you can buy frozen corn and grill it indoors. Or, see the section above for a no-cook option!
  • Lime
  • Cumin
  • Salt and pepper
  • Red onion
  • Thick yogurt. Dairy or non-dairy is fine, but make sure to choose one that is unflavored and unsweetened! The thicker the better. I like unflavored Greek yogurt best.
  • Fresh, salty cheese. I love queso fresco! Feta works well and is easier to find. Your favorite vegan feta would also work, as would some very small cubes of tofu. See the vegan tips above!
  • Peppers. You can use either the adorable bite-sized baby ones or full-size bell peppers. I've found that this amount of filling is enough to stuff ~12-15 baby pepper halves and ~6 larger pepper halves, so scale up or down as needed.
  • Additional handful of cheese. Bonus points for marinating the cheese ahead of time in a bit of chili powder and lime zest, as shown in the photos above.
  • Handful of fresh cilantro
  • Avocado
  • Roasted salted pepitas

Closing Thoughts

However you decide to make and serve these peppers, they're just plain fun! And with all the options I've given you above, I certainly hope you'll find a way to add them into your menu.

These have become a go-to in our house, and with good reason! I've made them for happy hour get-togethers numerous times, and also on game day. I've made them for Cinco de Mayo and for deck parties. Each time they're a little bit different.

One final tip. This filling is darn good as leftovers! So if you're having a party, don't hesitate to double or triple the filling. Use part of it to stuff peppers, then keep the rest in the fridge to roll into tortillas, scoop onto salads, or add to a burrito bowl. I've made numerous successful burrito bowls with leftover street corn filling!

Share It!

It makes me so happy to hear from you and see your creations! Please leave a comment below and let me know what you think about this recipe. If you post a photo on Instagram, hashtag #TheRogueBrusselSprout and tag me (@TheRogueBrusselSprout) in the post text so that I'm sure to see it.

Suggested Pairings

Blackberry Coconut Margarita

Tropical Guacamole

Watermelon Nachos with Avocado Sauce

Orange Jalapeno Brussel Sprouts

No-Cook Rainbow Black Bean Salad

Mexican Street Corn Stuffed Peppers

Mexican street corn gets stuffed into colorful grilled bell peppers for a party-ready appetizer. This version gets its creaminess from yogurt instead of mayo, so it's a much more nourishing take on the classic.

Author:
Lee

Ingredients

For the Peppers and Filling

  • Oil of choice for grilling
  • 3 large or 12 baby bell peppers
  • 3 ears of corn
  • Small red onion
  • Zest of a lime
  • Juice of a lime
  • 0.5 tsp cumin
  • Generous salt and pepper
  • 2 tbsp thick, plain yogurt
  • Big handful of fresh, salty cheese like feta

For Garnishing

  • Additional handful of cheese
  • Handful of fresh cilantro
  • Avocado
  • Roasted salted pepitas
  • Sprinkle of chili salt

Instructions

  1. Preheat the grill to medium heat and oil the racks well.
  2. While the grill heats, remove the husks from the corn, cut the peppers in half length-wise, and cut the onion into rounds.
  3. Grill the corn and onion rounds until tender and lightly-charred.
  4. Grill the peppers only very briefly, just enough to mark and flavor the edges. Don't grill them further than that, otherwise they'll lose their shape and won't be able to hold the filling.
  5. Cut the kernels off the corn cobs. Then, while the corn is still hot, toss it with the lime zest, lime juice, cumin, salt, and pepper. This helps the corn absorb the moisture and flavor, and will keep your filling creamier in the end.
  6. Dice up the onion and add it into your marinating corn.
  7. After the corn has cooled to room temperature, stir in the yogurt and give everything a thorough mix. Add in the cheese and stir gently.
  8. Stuff your peppers! You can use a small spoon for baby peppers, or a soup spoon for larger peppers.
  9. Just before serving, lay the peppers out on a platter and garnish with additional cheese, fresh cilantro, avocado, and pepitas.

Leave a Comment

Please Share Your Thoughts!

Did you make this recipe? Did you make substitutions? How did you serve it? Any helpful tips? Please share your thoughts, since these insights are really useful to both me and to other readers.

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Pamela
June 27, 2020
One of my favorite weeknight recipes. I’m generous with the citrus to give it a nice tang, and as a compliment to the salty pepitas. Great recipe!
Cold Climber
June 24, 2020
Love love love these! I always put the extra 'insides' with some sliced cherry tomatoes for a chip dip :)