Corn tortillas are loaded with flavorful shredded chicken, a charred corn salsa, and topped with a hearty drizzle of avocado cilantro lime sauce and crumbled cotija cheese. They’re Mexican street corn turned into tacos!
One of my favorite food sayings is: “It’s okay if you fall apart some time. Tacos fall apart, and we still love them”.
In that sense, I relate strongly to tacos – but really, don’t we all?
There probably isn’t a kind of taco that I would say no to, but these Mexican street corn chicken tacos are at the top of my list.
Why these tacos are my favorite:
We’re using corn tortillas, which are always my preferred choice over flour tortillas
The shredded chicken is juicy and flavorful with a little bit of heat, not in a “omg that’s so spicy” kind of way
Corn is my favorite vegetable, so I load my salsa up with it (along with avocado, cilantro and scallions)
For some extract avocado flavor, I make my own sauce to drizzle on top with avocado, cilantro and lime
And to top it all off, I like to top them off with a hearty spoonful of cotija cheese
Avocado cilantro lime sauce
If you have a blender(aff link), this sauce is super easy to make. Just toss all the ingredients in together, and puree! Aside from peeling the avocado and garlic, you don’t need to do any other kind of prep.
You’ll need:
avocado
cilantro
sour cream, mayonnaise or Greek yogurt
olive oil
garlic, peeled
lime juice
salt and pepper
This sauce is great on these tacos, but also makes a great salad dressing or dip for veggies!
How to make shredded chicken
Don’t be intimidated be the idea of making your own shredded chicken! My favorite method is to simply roast chicken breasts in the oven and then shred them with the meat claws(aff link) we got as a wedding present.
After you’ve prepared your shredded chicken, you’re going to cook it with onion, garlic, cumin, chili powder, paprika and freshly squeezed lime juice and lime zest.
They’ll be infused with just enough flavor and spice, and it’s easy to customize to your own flavor preferences – add a little more of your favorite spices if you want some extra heat!
Avocado corn salsa
The first step is to saute the corn in a pan until you get a nice char.
If you have access to a grill, go this route: coat the corn in oil, salt pepper and chili powder and grill it on the cob until it’s charred and then removing the kernels from the cob tastes amazing.
In a bowl, combine the charred corn, diced avocado, chopped cilantro, scallions and lime juice and toss or stir to combine.
Tacos, assemble!
Now for the best part – you know, aside from actually eating them. I love a good DIY food because I get to customize every aspect of what I’m going to shove in my face.
Important question: Do you build each taco one at a time as you’re eating your way through the stack, or do you build them all upfront so you can ensure they all have an even quantity of fillings?
I’m sure it won’t surprise you that I fall into the camp of the latter. My husband is a one-at-a-time type, and that feels like proof that marriage is full of making compromises.
I kid, I kid – but it does stress me out a bit, because what if he gets to his last taco and he has a tiny amount of chicken? Or what if there’s entirely too much salsa left?
These are the things that give me anxiety that I am acutely aware are not actually real problems.
Now go make yourself some tacos and remember that even if they fall apart –
After you’ve made this recipe, please leave a comment below with a rating – and if you came from Pinterest, add a photo to the Pin of what you make to the pin to share your experience!
Corn tortillas are loaded with flavorful shredded chicken, a charred corn salsa, and topped with a hearty drizzle of avocado cilantro lime sauce and crumbled cotija cheese. They’re Mexican street corn turned into tacos!
Ingredients
Scale
Avocado cilantro lime sauce
1/2 avocado, peeled
1 Tablespoon cilantro
1 Tablespoon sour cream, mayonnaise or Greek yogurt
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon garlic, peeled
Squeeze of fresh lime juice
Salt and pepper
Avocado corn salsa
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 1/2 cups corn kernels (about 2 cobs)
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground pepper
1 ripe avocado, peeled and chopped
1/4 cup scallions, sliced (or 2 tablespoons chives)
Place all ingredients in a food processor or blender(aff link) and pulse until smooth.
If it’s too thick, add water a teaspoon at a time and pulse again to combine. Repeat until desired consistency is achieved. Set aside.
Avocado corn salsa
In a large saucepan, heat 1 Tablespoon olive oil over medium high heat.
Add corn kernels and stir occasionally, until starting to brown (5-10 minutes).
Add chili powder, salt and pepper and stir to coat and combine. Transfer to medium bowl and wipe out pan (you’ll use it for the chicken prep).
Add avocado, scallions, cilantro and lime juice to bowl and toss or stir to combine. Salt and pepper to taste and set aside.
Shredded chicken
In a large saucepan, heat 1 Tablespoon olive oil over medium heat.
Add onion and saute until softened. Add garlic, cumin, chili powder, paprika and stir until fragrant, about 1 minute.
Add remaining 2 Tablespoons olive oil and shredded chicken and stir to coat. Add lime juice and lime zest, and stir to combine. Salt and pepper to taste. Transfer to medium bowl and cover.
Assembly
Heat tortillas in your preferred method. I like to place them stacked in a small warmed saucepan, cover and heat for 5-10 seconds. Then I flip the stack over, cover, and heat for another 5-10 seconds. Transfer to tortilla warmer or covered bowl until serving.
To assemble, top each tortilla with chicken, salsa, sauce, crumbled cotija cheese and serve with a lime wedge to squeeze on top. Enjoy!
Notes
Shredded chicken: You can use a pre-cooked rotisserie chicken and shred it, but my preferred method is to bake 1 pound of chicken breasts and season it myself – see this post with detailed instructions and step by step photos on how to make your own shredded chicken.
Category:Dinner
Method:Stovetop
Cuisine:Mexican inspired
Keywords: mexican street corn chicken tacos, mexican street corn tacos, chicken tacos, avocado corn tacos
Made these w out the corn salsa soooo yummmmy OMG .
Julie
Friday 31st of July 2020
I had everything I needed to make these except for the corn tortillas so I just made them into taco bowls and it was SO GOOD! Just enough spice for me and I don't like spicy stuff. My husband added more to his because he likes it spicer
Leslie Kiszka
Monday 3rd of August 2020
So glad you enjoyed them! Thanks so much for coming back to leave a comment and rating, I really appreciate it.
Hi there! I’m Leslie and I use baking as an outlet for relieving stress and anxiety to provide you with easy to follow homemade recipes and a little humor. About Leslie >>
Yana
Monday 5th of April 2021
Made these w out the corn salsa soooo yummmmy OMG .
Julie
Friday 31st of July 2020
I had everything I needed to make these except for the corn tortillas so I just made them into taco bowls and it was SO GOOD! Just enough spice for me and I don't like spicy stuff. My husband added more to his because he likes it spicer
Leslie Kiszka
Monday 3rd of August 2020
So glad you enjoyed them! Thanks so much for coming back to leave a comment and rating, I really appreciate it.