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This Street Corn-Inspired Slaw with Spicy Tahini is one you are going to want to pair with everything this grilling season!
ThisStreet Corn-Inspired Slaw with Spicy Tahini is inspired by the flavors of elote and your favorite slaw typically piled on a street taco. Since the base is cabbage, even with the creamy tahini sauce it stands up great in the fridge, doesn’t get soggy, and doesn’t wilt. So perfect to make ahead for summer hosting!
The flavors pair great with just about anything from grilled chicken thighs, skirt steak, grilled prawns or even simple burgers making it great to bring to a summer potluck too.
One note on tahini sauces: depending on the brand of tahini you use, it can be thick or thin. When blending tahini with another liquid, it tends to seize up. If this happens to you, keep streaming in a bit of warm water and it should thin out just fine.
Street Corn-Inspired Slaw
Ingredients
For the Spicy Tahini Dressing:
- 2 cloves garlic peeled
- 1 small jalapeno roughly chopped
- ½ cup chopped cilantro
- ¼ cup chopped chives
- ½ cup tahini
- 2 tsp. lime zest
- ¼ cup fresh lime juice
- 2 tbsp chipotle hot sauce I like Siete Foods brand
- ½ tsp kosher salt
- ¼ tsp fresh cracked pepper
- Warm water as needed some tahini can be thicker than others. If your dressing is too thick, add warm water ¼ cup at a time until you have a texture you can drizzle but is still thick.
For the Corn:
- 2 tbsp avocado oil
- 2 tsp honey
- 1 tsp chili powder
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- ½ tsp fresh cracked black pepper
- 4 fresh corn cobs – husks removed
- For the Slaw:
- 4 cups finely shredded purple cabbage
- 4 cups finely shredded green cabbage
- ¼ cup pickled onions sub thinly-sliced red onions
- 5 radishes thinly sliced
- 1 cup chopped cilantro
- ½ cup toasted and salted pepitas
- ½ cup crumbled cotija cheese omit for dairy free
For Serving:
- Lime wedges
Instructions
Make the Spicy Tahini Dressing:
- In a high-speed blender or food processor, add the garlic, jalapeno, cilantro, chives, tahini, lime zest and juice, hot sauce, salt, and pepper. Depending on how thick your tahini is, add your warm water 1 tbsp at a time then blend on low to start to chop up the garlic, jalapenos, and herbs. Slowly increase the speed to medium and blend until creamy and completely smooth. Transfer to a jar and set aside.
Grill the Corn:
- Preheat your grill to medium-high heat (about 375-425). Allow to heat while you prep the corn.
- In a small bowl, mix the oil, honey, chili powder, salt, and pepper. Using a pastry brush, coat the seasoning on all sides of the corn, making sure all the kernels are coated.
- Once the grill is hot, transfer the corn to the grill. Cook, rotating every 2-3 minutes, until the corn is cooked through and a bit charred, about 12 minutes total. Remove from the grill and allow to cool.
Assemble the Slaw:
- Once corn is cool enough to handle, carefully cut the kernels off of the cob and place in a large bowl.
- To the large bowl add both cabbages, the pickled onions, radishes, cilantro, and cotija. Add your desired amount of dressing and toss until well combined. Serve with lime wedges.
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Photography by Eat Love Eats.
So great! I ended up using the Frozen Roasted Corn from Trader Joe’s (1 bag) and it worked like a charm 🙂 I just folded in the honey and chili powder with the slaw.
Love it!!
I am going to make this for our TCU tailgate this weekend for 20 plus. How could I use frozen corn instead of roasting that much corn and getting it off the cob?
yes– frozen, roasted corn would be best!
Do you have a tahini substitute? Sesame allergy and would love to try this. Thanks! Love your recipes.
Hi!! You could do with greek yogurt and it would be delicious!
Hi Alex! How would you recommend making this ahead of time for a summer party?
We made this for Fourth of July & it was absolutely PHENOMENAL! This is an absolutely perfect side dish for Summer & I will definitely using it on top of tacos in the near future!!
This was so good and even better the next day! My ears if corn were small so I would probably do more than 4 next time. I also want to try it with shrimp or fish inside a taco. Highly recommend!!!
This recipe was an absolute hit at our BBQ!! Thank you so much for this awesome and flavorful recipe!
if I do not have a grill to grill the corn how do you suggest cooking the corn?
you can roast the corn in the oven! i would do 425 for about 20 mins!
Oh my gosh, this was fantastic! Thanks so much!
We made this tonight and it was delicious! We added diced avocado to the slaw mixture and it was so yummy. I would highly recommend that addition. It makes a ton of slaw. In my opinion you could feed up to 10 people! We made your rosemary shrimp from your original cookbook to go with it and it was perfection!!
Your recipes are always spot on! Thank you!
So glad you enjoyed it!! and love the avocado addition!!!