Fiesta Corn Salad with Fritos

This make-ahead salad is filled with a creamy zesty taco dressing, sweet corn, cheese and at the last minute Fritos are tossed in to give it the crunch you love!

Great for game day food as a dip or as a side dish for potlucks or barbecues.

Fiesta Corn Salad is so simple you’ll wonder why you didn’t think of this recipe yourself. I’d never heard of this but when I read about it I knew I had to make it.

I can just imagine how perfect it will be on game day when I can make it early in the day and toss it into the fridge to set and chill then toss the Fritos in when it’s time to eat it!

Make ahead side salads are some of my favorite things in this world. Anything that saves time when it comes to entertaining or at dinnertime are things I can really get behind.

This salad has all the fun things…. sweet crunchy corn, a dressing that is boosted in flavor with taco seasoning and lots of crunchy colorful veggies like red peppers, green peppers and onions …. oh and grated cheese for the win too!

It pairs well with grilled chicken, grilled pork chops, and barbecue ribs. I’m looking forward to making it for Cinco de mayo too with that spicy taco sauce it will go great alongside fajitas or tacos that day!

I found this delicious recipe from Rebecca at Devour Dinner. I was immediately smitten with it because it sounded so good– I honestly don’t know if it was the corn, the taco flavored dressing or the fact that there were Fritos in a salad that hooked me.

serving bowl full of corn salad topped with Fritos

Freaky Friday

It’s that time again for Freaky Friday. If you’re new to West Via Midwest let me tell you about it.

It’s a blog hop put on by Michaela at An Affair from the Heart. Every quarter about a dozen food writers exchange names and pick a recipe from another site to make and share with our readers.

It’s fun for us because we get to make something from someone else and it’s fun for you because we introduce you to another place to get great recipes you might not have heard of before!

Devour Dinner

This time I have Rebecca’s site– Devour Dinner. She’s a mom of 4 boys and one fur baby boy Finn! You can only imagine how she’s busy with all their activities and her site reflects that— she gives you so many easy , approachable recipes so that everyone will want to devour dinner!

I can’t even imagine how she gets everything done with all of those boys … I have a hard enough time with a much smaller household… but I love her attitude.

Her favorite quote is “It’s kind of fun to do the impossible” It’s a quote by Walt Disney and in this crazy world I know all of us can relate!

Rebecca is an expert on the instant pot. She has so many approachable recipes using it and even more so she has a guide that tells you all you would ever want to know about one. I have one and use it but I learned so many new things by reading it.

Be sure and go check the Instant Pot Guide out — even if you use yours all of the time you will definitely learn some new tricks with it!

She tells you all the tricks about it and has both beginner and advanced instant pot cooker recipes. She also does a weekly FB live on her Facebook page with a different cooking recipe each week. She’s easy to follow and I promise you will enjoy all of her tips and tricks!

My favorite recipes were her Pressure Cooker Cordon Blue Casserole, her Cafe Rio Sweet Pork and her Hawaiian Macaroni Salad. In the end, I decided to share the Frito Corn Salad because I thought it would be great snacking when we were watching the playoffs and upcoming outdoor entertaining meals.

labeled ingredient photo to make corn salad

Ingredients/Grocery List

Corn (whole kernel)
Mayonaise
Sour Cream
Taco Seasoning
Cheese
Red and Green Peppers
Red Onion
Fritos

I used canned corn but you can use frozen or fresh with no issues.

You can buy store-bought taco seasoning, I used the one from Trader Joes because it’s nice and spicy. You could also use a different seasoning, Ive also made it with our Cajun Seasoning for a change of pace.

I used cheddar cheese, but any semi-hard cheese like you buy in block form will work. Monterey Jack, Swiss, Colby — any of them. Use what you can find on sale to save money, this is an easy thing to adapt.

Either regular Fritos or the Chili Fritos work in this salad. When I make it for Cinco De Mayo I’m going to use the Chili Fritos for extra kick to go with the tacos!

all the ingredients in the bowl before serving.

Tips For Making this Taco Corn Salad with Fritos

If you are using canned corn you will need to drain away the liquid. If you are using frozen corn I let the bag sit on the counter for a half an hour and then place it in a strainer to remove any water. The water will dilute the dressing and you don’t want that.

This recipe is so easy you add all of the ingredients into a bowl– except for the Fritos and stir it together. That’s it!

The Fritos are a last-minute addition so they stay nice and crunchy. If you put them in too early they will get soggy. No one wants soggy Fritos!

I like to make it ahead of time and then place it in the fridge for at least 2 hours to chill. Once it’s chilled and it’s time to eat you stir the Fritos in.

If you are serving this as a dip instead of a salad I suggest buying the Scoop Fritos and not stirring them in. You can use the scoops to get all into the dip!

The Most Asked Questions with this recipe:

Can I use frozen or fresh corn in Frito corn salad?

Yes. If you use frozen you’ll want to let it thaw on the counter for a bit and then drain away any excess water that would dilute the salad’s dressing.

What kind of Fritos to use for the Frito dip?

Any Fritos will work, I suggest using the larger scoops if you are serving this as a dip so you don’t get the dip all over your fingers.

More BBQ Side Dishes you might enjoy:

Chili Lime Corn Salad
Ceasar Style Potato Salad ~ mayo free!
Creamy Cucumber Dill Salad with Sour Cream ~ just like Mom used to make!!
Watermelon Salad with Feta
Asian Peanut Cabbage Salad
Honey Butter Corn
Baked Beans (how to make canned baked beans taste homemade!)

Hashtag any recipes you make from West Via Midwest #westviamidwestrecipes or tag me @michele_westviamidwest on Instagram to be featured on our stories!

Yield: 16

Frito Corn Sald (Corn Dip)

Simple Potluck salad you can make ahead of time then toss in the Fritos when its time to serve it. Corn, creamy dressing with tangy taco seasoning to spice it up a little bit. Great as a dip for Fritos too!

Prep Time 15 minutes

Total Time 15 minutes

Ingredients

3 cans (15.25 oz) Whole Kernel Corn
2/3 cup Red Bell Pepper diced
2/3 cup Yellow or Orange Bell Pepper diced
1/2 cup Red Onion diced
1/2 cup Mayonnaise
1/4 cup Sour Cream
1.5 cup Cheddar Cheese
2 tbsp Taco Seasoning (less if you like less spicy)
3 cup Fritos Chips (plain or chili Fritos)

Instructions

Mix corn, with diced red pepper, diced yellow pepper, diced red onion, mayonnaise, cheese and Taco Seasoning.
It can be served immediately, but I recommend letting it chill for 2 hours in the fridge first.
Add Frito Chips before serving. Alternatively, serve this as a dip and use large scoop Fritos to dip into it.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 364Total Fat: 25gSaturated Fat: 5gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 17gCholesterol: 16mgSodium: 422mgCarbohydrates: 32gFiber: 3gSugar: 2gProtein: 6g

This recipe was calculated using the exact brands and measurements I used to make this recipe. If you are following a strict diet please note changing anything will cause the nutritional info to change. Please calculate your own nutritional information if you want it exact to what you make and use my calculations as a guide only.