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This is a summertime favorite of mine — Seared Chicken Tacos with Street Corn Salsa!
I think it’s safe to say we all enjoy whipping up tacos for an easy, delicious weeknight meal. There really could never be “too many” taco recipes in the world! Here, I’ve made a simple yet delicious chicken taco recipe that is topped with a Mexican-inspired street corn salsa. They are just simply delicious with fantastic flavor!
Simply seasoned the chicken and seared it in a cast-iron skillet stovetop (but you could certainly opt to grill it). But the real show-stopper is the delicious corn salsa on top. YUM. For this, I roasted some fresh corn, jalapeño, and onion in the oven. From there, I combined the corn, the chopped roasted jalapeno, some diced roasted onion, and coated it in a creamy mayo-based sauce with some garlic, lime and spices. Oh my goodness, they are just delightful!
What You’ll Need for the Corn Salsa:
- Corn
- Jalapeno
- Red Onion
- Garlic
- Cilantro
- Lime Juice and Zest
- Mayo
- Olive Oil
- Salt, Pepper, Ground Cumin, Chili Powder
The ingredients in this recipe are straightforward and simple — my favorite! I absolutely love it when I can take simple, straightforward ingredients and make something fantastic with them…and that is exactly what happened here in this recipe.
The sliced chicken, the warm corn salsa, the cool avocado, and a sprinkle of queso fresco…YUM! I just can’t get enough and I hope you love these Seared Chicken Tacos with Street Corn Salsa as much as I do.
Be sure to also try my Saucy Chipotle Chicken Tacos!
Seared Chicken Tacos with Street Corn Salsa
Ingredients
For the Street Corn Salsa
- 4 ears of corn, husk removed
- 1 jalapeno
- 1 small red onion, sliced into 1/4 inch rounds
- 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 3 tbsp homemade or store-bought mayo
- zest of 1/2 lime
- 2 tbsp lime juice
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/2 tsp ground cumin
- 1/2 tsp chili powder
- kosher salt, to taste
- black pepper, to taste
- 1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
For the Seared Chicken
- 1.5 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp chili powder
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
For the Tacos
- 16 corn tortilla I like to warm mine on the stovetop
- 1/4 cup queso fresco, crumbled
- 1 lime, cut into wedges
- 1/2 avocado, sliced thin
Instructions
- Preheat oven 375 degrees.
- Place the corn and jalapeño on a sheet pan. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons of olive oil and toss to coat evenly. Slide the corn and jalapeño to one side of the sheet pan, making room for the onions. Place the red onion on the sheet pan and drizzle with the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Season with salt and pepper.
- Transfer to the oven and roast until onions are tender, about 10 minutes. Remove the onions from the sheet pan and set aside. Flip the corn and jalapeño so that they will cook evenly and return the sheet pan to the oven and roast until jalapeño is charred on all sides, about 5 more minutes. Remove the jalapeño and set aside. Turn the oven on broil and place the corn back into the oven on the top rack. Finish the corn under the broiler until a nice char has formed, about 2 minutes, watching carefully so it doesn't burn!
- Remove the corn from the oven and set aside to allow to cool.
Make the Seared Chicken:
- Meanwhile, pat dry the chicken breast. Using a meat mallet or the bottom of a skillet, pound the chicken until it is an even 1/4 inch thickness. Season with salt, pepper, cumin and chili powder on both sides.
- Heat a large skillet, preferably cast iron, over medium-high heat with olive oil. Sear the chicken until golden brown and cooked through, about 4 minutes per side.
- When the chicken is cooked through, transfer to a cutting board to allow it to rest while you prepare the corn salsa.
Make the Corn Salsa:
- In a large bowl, add the mayo, lime zest, lime juice, garlic, cumin, chili powder, salt, pepper and cilantro. Stir to combine.
- Carefully cut the corn kernels off the cob and remove the seeds from the jalapeno. Finely dice the jalapeño and red onion. Add the jalapeno, red onion and corn to the mayo mixture. Gently toss to combine.
Build the Tacos:
- Slice the chicken into thin pieces. Serve on a warm tortilla with sliced avocado and fresh corn salsa. Top with freshly grated queso fresco, hot sauce (if desired) and serve with fresh lime wedges!
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Photography and Styling by Jess Gaertner Creative.
The corn salsa is everything! I love a good corn salsa but if it has chunky red onions – IM OUT! BUT this recipe solved my problem. Cooking the red onions makes them soft – so you get the flavor but not the crunchy texture (also I cooked my red onion to solve this personal problem). My husband started eating the salsa with chips and then a spoon. SO GOOD!
This is one of my husband’s favorites! We always end up grilling the chicken. It truly is an easy weeknight meal!
Family says this is a keeper. Amazing flavors!!
We love this recipe!! Can frozen corn be substituted when fresh corn is out of season??
Absolutely!