Corn on a stick.

When I first moved out on my own I lived on the west side of town which afforded me the luxury of street vendors. My two favorites were the paletero and the elotero, the elotero sells corn on a stick for a dollar. So when I moved to the not so Mexican east side of town I no longer got my tasty treats.

I pretty much forgot about them until I moved back to the west side! Not only is the paletero alive and well but so is the elotero! I also found out there are several carniceria's which sell the corn on a stick. Check out the picture below, it's the corn on a stick my little sister and I shared from a carniceria.

Is it good? I think so and so do many other people. This is the Mexican way of enjoying corn on the cob on a stick. I know most people have seen corn on the cob at county fairs and festivals. Usually it's yellow corn and you can smother it in butter. This is the way I usually see corn on a stick eaten. But I think the Mexican way is much more savory. How do you achieve this corn on a stick with a twist?

1. Steam some corn, white corn is the best for this. But again that is personal preference.
2. Smother the corn with mayo (you can use cream but I like mayo).
3. Roll the corn around in some hard grated cheese. Parmesan works well because it's easy to obtain where I live but queso fresco is the traditional way. (You can also sprinkle the cheese on if you prefer it to rolling the corn in the cheese.)
4. Optional! Chile powder, paprika works well in a pinch but any type of fine chile powder works well.
5. Optional! Why stop at mayo and cheese? Pack on a few more calories with squeezy butter drizzled on the corn.
   

What was that you said? You are having a bbq? You are going to be grilling your corn, you say? Okay, well you can have it the buttery way, the way listed above OR try this:

1. Cut a few lemons into wedges.
2. Take your grilled corn and rub the lemon on the corn.
3. Sprinkle with some chile powder.

Now I am hungry for corn AGAIN! Lastly I wanted to mention the appearance of a new street vendor; The Tamale Lady!!!! Oh dear lord I love tamales. And you can find random ladies selling tamales out of baby carriages or grocery carts. Some of them are expensive and some are not. The same goes for quality some are fair and some are fantastic. My favorite is the lady that only sells them on Sunday. She goes around the apartment complex I live in with a small lunch pail selling them for a buck a piece of 6 for 5 bucks. Once she runs out of that little lunch pail she is out till next Sunday. They are always steaming hot and the woman is very nice and very polite. Her children (she has 2 that she takes with her) are also well behaved which is shocking to see in my neighborhood.