Chef Juan Reyes, Diego’s, Newport
This salad is a great way to enjoy fresh local produce in the summer. We like to serve ours off the cob because it’s easier to share as a side dish or appetizer with less mess, but of course the traditional on-the-cob style is fun to do if you’re having dinner on the grill. For on-the-cob style, simply char the sweet corn on the grill, sauté the red bell pepper and red onion separately and plate each ear of corn with the various toppings.
Ingredients
- 5 ears sweet corn, shucked
- 1 Roma tomato, halved
- ½ jalapeño, seeded
- 2 cloves garlic
- ⅓ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
- Kosher salt
- Juice from 1 lime, divided
- ½ cup quality mayonnaise
- 1 tablespoon your favorite hot sauce (or to taste)
- 1 tablespoon neutral cooking oil
- ¼ cup diced red bell pepper
- ¼ cup diced red onion
- 4 tablespoons minced cilantro
- ½ cup grated cotija cheese
- Smoked paprika for garnish
- Freshly ground black pepper
Preparation
Shave the raw corn kernels off each cob into a bowl and set aside. Either on the grill or under the broiler, blacken the outer skin of tomato and jalapeño and lightly brown the garlic. Place them together in a blender and add the olive oil, vinegar, 1 teaspoon salt and 2 tablespoons lime juice and purée to create a charred tomato vinaigrette. Taste for seasoning and set aside.
Next, make the spicy aïoli by placing the mayonnaise in a small bowl. Stir in 1 tablespoon lime juice and 1 tablespoon hot sauce (more or less depending on your heat tolerance). Taste for seasoning and set aside.
Heat cooking oil in a cast-iron skillet until the pan is very hot and the oil is shimmering. Add the raw corn and a pinch of salt. Stir and sear to create some char on the kernels. After 2 minutes, add the onion and bell pepper and a touch more oil if needed. Cook until corn is lightly charred but soft, about 1 to 2 more minutes. Remove pan from heat and put corn in a serving bowl.
To serve, toss with 2 to 3 tablespoons vinaigrette (or to your liking) and sprinkle with cilantro. Top with cotija cheese, drizzle with spicy aïoli to finish and sprinkle top with smoked paprika and fresh black pepper.
