Grilled Corn and Mango Salsa
This Corn Mango Salsa mixes grilled corn, fresh mango, and blistered red pepper to create a sweet, savory, and smoky flavor that everyone loves! Spoon this chunky salsa over your favorite tacos, nachos, and burritos.
This Is the Salsa Recipe I Always Make When Sweet Corn Is in Season
Salsa doesn’t have to be the traditional tomatoes, onion, jalapeño, cilantro, and lime that you might think of when chips and salsa come to mind!
One of my favorite ways to jazz up my homemade salsas is to incorporate whatever ingredients are currently in season. I’ve made strawberry salsa, zucchini salsa, and even cranberry salsa — but my current favorite is this sweet and savory mango salsa with grilled corn.
Here’s why I think you’ll love this corn and mango salsa, too:
✔ Fresh or Canned Corn: Grilled sweet corn is the best for this recipe, but if a craving strikes in the middle of winter I’ll just drain a can of corn and cook it in a cast iron skillet until the kernels start to blister.
✔ Fast and Easy: The salsa itself takes less than 15 minutes to prepare (including grilling the corn!), but it tastes even better after it’s chilled for about 30 minutes in the fridge.
✔ Flexible Recipe: You can swap out the peppers, use frozen mango instead of fresh, and use a variety of citrus juices. It’s such an easy recipe to customize, which is great if you’re out of a certain ingredient.
Enjoy!
-Katie
Ingredient Notes
The full list of ingredients with their measurements are in the recipe card below, but here’s an overview of what you’ll need (+ swaps you can use!).
- Sweet Corn — I prefer grilling fresh sweet corn, but you can use frozen corn that’s been thawed and drained or canned corn that’s been drained and rinsed well.
- Red Bell Pepper — The trick to getting the bell pepper to blister versus sauté is to add it to a dry cast iron skillet without any oil.
- Mango — Fresh is best, but I’ve made this recipe with frozen mango in the past too. If using frozen mango, I find it easiest to cut the chunks into slightly smaller pieces while it is still frozen and then let it thaw.
- Jalapeño — Adds a nice kick of heat to the mango and corn salsa. Leave the seeds in if you love spice, or remove the seeds for a milder salsa.
- Citrus Juice — I prefer using a blend of freshly squeezed orange and lime juice, but you can use just one or the other if desired.
- Fresh Cilantro — Use just the leaves and tender stems.
- Onion — Sweeter red onion is my top choice, but finely chopped white onion or green onion work too.
How to Make Corn Mango Salsa
- Grill the corn. I have a whole tutorial on how to grill corn, and my favorite method involves cooking it in the husk to prevent the kernels from drying out. If you don’t want to preheat an outdoor grill for this, a stovetop grill pan works too!
- Blister the peppers. Dice up the bell pepper and add it to a dry skillet (i.e. without any oil) and cook until lightly charred.
- Chop up the other ingredients, then combine. Once the corn and pepper have finished cooking, add all of the salsa ingredients to a bowl and stir to combine.
The above is simply a quick summary of this recipe. Check out the full recipe in the free printable recipe card at the bottom of this post for all the detailed instructions.
Ways to Serve It
This grilled corn and mango salsa is the perfect summer salsa to add lots of color and flavor to your favorite Mexican-inspired dishes.
- Serve with tortilla chips for dipping
- Spoon over cilantro lime chicken, Crockpot Mexican chicken, flank steak fajitas, or grilled skirt steak
- Use for topping pulled pork nachos, shredded chicken tacos, and crispy black bean tacos
- Add your favorite leafy greens to make a fresh side salad
- Stir a generous amount of salsa into steamed white rice to create a colorful, easy side dish
More Summer Salsas to Make
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Grilled Corn and Mango Salsa Recipe
This corn mango salsa mixes grilled corn, fresh mango, and blistered red pepper to create a sweet, savory, and smoky flavor that everyone loves! Spoon this chunky salsa over your favorite tacos, nachos, and burritos.
Ingredients
- 1 large red bell pepper
- 1 cup corn kernels (approx. 2 medium ears sweet corn)
- 10 ounces diced mango (if using frozen, thaw first)
- 1 jalapeño, minced
- 1 tablespoon orange juice
- Juice of 1/2 a lime
- 1 1/2 tablespoons finely chopped cilantro
- 2 tablespoons finely minced red onion
- salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Grill the corn. You'll want to peel back the corn husk (but leave it attached at the base) and remove the silky strands. Then, replace the husks and soak the corn in cold water for 30 minutes. After soaking, grill in the husk for 15 to 20 minutes, turning every 5 minutes. See notes below for alternate cooking methods.
- Meanwhile, add the red bell pepper to a cast iron skillet over medium heat and cook (dry, without oil) until it begins to roast and brown, about 5 - 10 minutes.
- In a medium bowl, add the mango, jalapeño, orange juice, lime juice, cilantro, and red onion. Gently stir to combine.
- After the red pepper and corn have finished roasting, add that to the mango mixture and stir to combine. Season, to taste, with salt and pepper (if desired).
Notes
Alternate cooking methods for the corn:
- If you don't want to grill the corn on the cob: Remove the husks and boil until cooked (roughly 3 to 5 minutes). Cool, then cut off the cob and pat dry before proceeding with the recipe.
- If using canned corn: drain, rinse, and pat dry. Then, cook alongside the bell pepper in recipe step #2.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 8 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 64Total Fat: 0gSaturated Fat: 0gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 0gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 56mgCarbohydrates: 15gFiber: 1gSugar: 10gProtein: 1g
Lou says
My favorite dip is guacamole! 😀 But this looks mighty interesting. I’ve never used mangoes in salsa before.