Hyperfixation #500000000etc: hot bacon anything.

Hello and happy Tuesday, kids. The pendulum of life is swinging a bit more evenly, though I’m still waiting for a sign of my prospective Polly car shipping. Seriously, how long does this take? I understand that a few factors determine when the transit begins, but the waiting game for such a huge, important purchase is not an easy one in which to partake.

While we wait, I guess we can grill some corn. As good a way to pass time as any, better than refreshing Carmax’s shipment page every 2 minutes.

Hot Bacon Elotes are key for your July 4th celebrations. My god, are these ridiculous. Charred corn nestles itself in a special space in my heart, for no sentimental reason aside from being eye-poppingly good on its own.

But, when you give it a cotija and hot bacon vinaigrette facelift? Bruh. You might need surgery to unroll your corneas from the forefront of your brain matter.

Elope with Elotes

The hot bacon dressing featured in a recent pasta salad, and because I beat concepts to a pulp whenever I adore them so, the formula is showing its face again today.

If you have premade tofu bacon around already, great. If not, the prep will add about 40-45 minutes to your total time, so keep that in mind. I like to think ahead and cook a batch a day or two prior to needing the elotes on my table.

You can also use regular bacon. Slice your raw strips into small pieces, and follow the next directions as listed.

Melt some butter with olive oil in your skillet, then stir in your choice bacon for a couple minutes to infuse. Stir in garlic cloves, dijon mustard, and hot honey for a minute or two, then pour in a good heap of apple cider vinegar. Simmer a couple minutes to marry all the salty, savory flavors. Move the pan off the burner and let cool a bit.

FYI, leftover dressing will keep up to a week in the fridge. Great for all sorts of salads, sandwiches, or atop an omelet.

Next, the corn. I prepped my ears from an aesthetic standpoint, but if you don’t got time for that, you can skip this stylistic tip. Rather than fully pulling the husks off, strip them to the base of the stem but keep them in tact. You might need to remove a few to use as “hairties”, preferably some longer strips.

Speaking of hair – do be sure to pull off all the corn hair. Not a type of fiber you need in your diet.

Heat your grill or grill pan to medium. Working two or three at a time, depending on how large your grates are, char up the cobs for 10-12 minutes total. Turn the corn over every 2 minutes or so. Some of the husks will blacken, which I think adds to the visual appeal! Also it’s inevitable.

In the meantime, or once all the corn is grilled, mix up your cotija, mayonnaise, lime juice, chipotle chili powder, and a bit of salt. This shit is what makes an elote, an elote.

Rub that beautiful creamy goodness all over your corn cobs, then drizzle on a good heap of the hot bacon dressing. Toss some fresh basil or cilantro overtop, and finish with a little squeeze of lime.

Holy mackerel, dudes, not-dudes, and those of unidentified dudehood.

Leftovers? Elotes will keep for up to 5 days in the fridge, but you will likely have to refresh your cotija and hot bacon dressing after reheating. The microwave works just fine for me, anywhere from 45 to 60 seconds depending on the strength of your nuker.

Cotija substitute? Feta is your best bet, or queso fresco!

What color corn? Any type is fine, but yellow is traditional and my personal favorite. I think I was forced to get bicolor because I wasn’t about to peel every goddamn cob in the grocery store to find a 100% yellow cob.

Enjoy, friends!

Tried this recipe out? Leave a rating and comment below with your thoughts, and don’t forget to come say hi on Instagram and show me what you made!

Corn porn:

White Street Corn Chili Chowder

Chipotle Street Corn Dip Pasta Salad

White Street Corn Dip Pizza

Charred Corn Salad with Tomatoes and Chickpeas

hot bacon elotes

Everything is better with (tofu) bacon.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 20

Total Time 35

Course Appetizer, Side Dish

Cuisine Mexican

Servings 6 elotes

Ingredients

6 yellow corn cobs, shucked but green husk still attached
1/3 cup vegan or regular mayonnaise
1/3 cup cotija cheese, crumbled (or use feta)
2 tbsp lime juice
1/2 tsp chipotle chili powder
fresh basil or cilantro, for serving

hot bacon dressing

2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
4 strips 4 strips tofu or regular bacon, crumbled (see note)
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1 tsp dijon mustard
3 tbsp hot honey (see note)

Instructions

In a small skillet, melt the butter with the olive oil. Stir in the bacon and garlic for 1 minute, then add the apple cider vinegar, dijon, hot honey, and a pinch of salt and pepper. Simmer 2-3 minutes until combined. Remove from heat.
When peeling your corn, be sure the little corn hairs are all removed, but keep the green husk in tact as best you can. You can peel off a few strips to use as ties, as you see in the photo. This is purely stylistic – if you can't be assed to do this part, you can remove them completely.
Heat your grill or grill pan over medium high. Working in batches as needed, set the cobs on the grates and grill 10-12 minutes, turning every 2 minutes or so, until deeply charred in spots. Transfer to a large serving plate.
In a bowl, stir together the mayo, cotija, lime juice, chipotle chili powder, and a pinch of salt.
Slather the corn cobs with the cotija mixture, then generously drizzle hot bacon dressing atop. Finish with fresh cilantro or basil and an extra squeeze of lime juice.

Notes

*Hot honey: To make the hot honey: combine 1/2 cup honey, 1/4 cup hot sauce, 1 tsp cayenne pepper, 1/2 teaspoon each garlic and onion powders, and 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes in a microwave-safe jar or glass. Heat 1 minute on high. Stir, then zap an additional 20-30 seconds until the granules dissolve. Leftover hot honey will keep up to 2 weeks in the fridge.

*Tofu bacon:

Drain and press a block of extra firm tofu to remove excess water for about 5-10 minutes. I make a homemade press by placing paper towels on a large plate, then the tofu, then more towels, another plate, and a skillet.
Preheat oven to 450 degrees and lightly grease a large baking sheet. Slice the tofu very thin (as thin as you can without breaking it) and place onto the baking sheet.
In a small bowl, whisk 1/3 cup soy sauce, 2 tbsp maple syrup, 1 1/2 tsp smoked paprika, 1/2 tsp chili powder, and 1/4 tsp black pepper. Pour over the tofu and, using a basting brush, coat each slice. Flip, and brush the sauce over the opposite side. Let sit while the oven heats.
Bake for 20-25 minutes, flipping once halfway through baking time. Let cool on the baking sheet: the tofu will continue to crisp up.