How To Get 'Elote' At Chipotle With A Simple Ordering Trick

Street food is a true pillar of the culinary world, and among the absolute best street foods in North America is none other than elote. This Mexican street corn is beloved by many despite not being particularly easy to find in some areas across the United States. So, if you find yourself craving some good elote, we recommend heading to your local Chipotle to get the job done.

So, for those that don't know, several key ingredients in elote — such as corn, cheese, and sour cream — are staples at Chipotle. Thus, a cup-sized version of elote has become one of the most popular secret menu items at Chipotle, with fans getting a side order of roasted chili-corn salsa, mixing it with Chipotle's perfectly acceptable queso blanco and finishing it off with sour cream. Other additions like cilantro and fresh lime juice — both of which are available a la carte at Chipotle — can also be added to the mix for a flavor that's very similar to the iconic street dish.

Now, while the Chipotle elote dupe is a delicious side dish in its own right, attempting to concoct authentic elote purely using ingredients found at the restaurant will still leave you pretty far off from the Mexican street food staple. Thus, you're better off buying the key ingredients in the recipe — most notably, the roasted chili-corn salsa and queso blanco — from Chipotle, and doing some additional work at home.

For starters, adding Mexican crema instead of sour cream is a massive improvement for your elote, though you aren't out of luck without it; If you mix mayonnaise and sour cream together, you will end up with a fitting substitute for Mexican crema. Beyond that, adding chili powder, lime, and Cotija cheese to the mix will grant fans of elote the flavor and texture they know and love. While these improvements obviously won't result in the most authentic version of elote — which calls specifically for corn that's still on the cob — you will have created something similar to "elote en vaso," also known as corn in a cup. From there, you can simply dig in with a spoon, or enjoy it as a dip for Chipotle's delicious tortilla chips.