Growing up in the southside of Chicago, one of the joys of summer is eating outside, whether it's at a street fest or even in your own backyard grilling and shit.
One of summer's true pleasures is the elote. While it's more commonly found in Mexican neighborhoods, it's a super-easy snack you can make yourself. Every kid knows the thrill of hearing the elote man's horn on his cart from down the block and begging your mom to give you a dollar so you can enjoy one of these snacks.
What is elote? The tradition of slathering corn with mayo, butter and cheese is well-known in Mexico, and to some extent, here in Chicago.
And doing it yourself is easy. For the cup version, just slices off kernels over tinfoil, adding enough to fill the cup halfway. Then add some mayo, topping with the same squeeze bottle butter. Not only does he had cotija cheese, but also grated Parmesan and queso fresco.Usually a dry-aged cheese, cotija is big, sometimes you see queso fresco on there; and some people use parmesan as well.
Then adds the second half of the corn, tops it the same way, and finishes off with a bit of chile de arbol for a jolt of heat. For the cobs, slice off the bottom, jams in a stick, then adds all of those same ingredients while the cob sits on tinfoil; youcan then roll the cobb around to spread out the crema, mayo and butter, before adding the grated cheeses and arbol chile.
You can have them ready in the oven and pop 'em and dress them as you go, or have them pre-dressed for your guests coming in.
