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Elote pasta salad

The first time I tried Mexican elote - charred corn, slathered with crema, and dusted in spices, finished with cheese and lime - was at Cafe Habana in Nolita. It was early in 2001, when the Twin Towers still stood, when world was a different place. It was my first trip to New York (and to America), and I had honestly never tasted corn like this. This elote inspired pasta salad celebrates this corn epiphany.

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A bowl of farfalle pasta mixed with corn, leafy greens, cilantro, and a sprinkling of spices, served on a marble surface.

For the creamy element, which is usually Mexican crema, I’ve opted for an avocado cream, accented with lime, jalapeno and coriander (cilantro). Fresh corn is best for this salad, but frozen works too. If you don’t have or like mayonnaise, substitute with yoghurt or a vegan cashew cream.

Elote pasta salad

Serves

Ingredients

450 g short pasta such as farfalle, fusilli or penne (GF pasta is fine)
extra virgin olive oil
3 ears of corn, kernels removed (3 cups kernels, about 500g / just over 1 pound)
sea salt and black pepper
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika, plus extra for serving
1/2 teaspoon ancho chili flakes or red chili pepper flakes
1 teaspoon ground cumin
2 handfuls rocket (arugula leaves)
1 lime, halved
handful coriander leaves

Avocado cream

1 ripe avocado, seed removed
3 tablespoons lime juice (from 1-2 limes)
1/4 - 1/2 jalapeño, roughly chopped
1 clove garlic, roughly chopped
80 g vegan or dairy mayonnaise
small handful coriander (cilantro) leaves
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon sea salt

Instructions

Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil. Add the pasta and cook according to package instructions. Drain, refresh under cold water until cool and drain again
Meanwhile, heat a large frying pan (skillet) on medium high for 2 minutes. Drizzle with olive oil and add the corn, season with salt and pepper and toss to combine. Add the garlic, smoked paprika, chili flakes, cumin and toss to combine. Cook undisturbed for 2 minutes to allow the corn to char, then toss and leave to cook undisturbed for another 2 minutes until there is nice colour on the corn. Turn off the heat.
To make the avocado dressing, add the avocado, lime juice, jalapeño pepper, garlic, mayonnaise, coriander (cilantro) leaves, olive oil to a small blender or food processor. Blitz until smooth. Add salt and about 3 to 4 tablespoons of water and blend again. The cream should be pourable - if it is too thick, add more water, a splash at a time, until it is loose enough to pour.
To a large bowl, add the pasta, corn, avocado cream and drizzle with olive oil. Toss to coat the pasta. Add the rocket (arugula) and toss again. Taste and make sure the seasoning is correct, adding more sea salt and black pepper if needed.
To serve, squeeze over some lime juice, sprinkle over a little smoked paprika, and top with coriander (cilantro) leaves.