Mexican Salad with Ham + Charred Corn + Avocado + Chipotle Mayo
It's New Year, and I have a beautiful Christmas ham that I’m still enjoying as leftovers. So to make the most of our hot Sydney days I made a kind-of-Mexican salad using the best of summer veggies, ham and a spicy chipotle mayonnaise. And this is an easy throw together salad, rather than an actual recipe!
2 corns on the cob
4 spring onions
1 cos or butter lettuce
6-10 ripe small vine ripened tomatoes or cherry tomatoes
300g ham, cut thick
2 chipotles, or to taste
1/4 cup, or to taste, of a good egg mayonnaise
1 ripe avocado
1/2 bunch coriander
2 limes
Sea salt
This is primarily an assembly job, but there are a few simple things to do. Start off by charring your corn cobs. Peel and clean the cobs if they’ve come with their husks on. Place the cobs on a barbecue plate heated to high, or on a griddle or grill plate heated to high on the stove top. Cook till the cobs are nicely charred on the outside.
Remove from the heat, and once cool enough to handle, strip the kernels from the corn, keeping some in chunks for texture.
Trim the spring onions and peel into strips using a vegetable peeler. Put into iced water so the strips curl. Or you could just cut into segments. Separate the lettuce leaves and drop into the iced water with the spring onions.
Wash and halve the tomatoes. Quarter if they are big. Tear the ham into strips or chunks - this is a rustic salad!
Roughly chop the chipotles. Stir into the mayonnaise. Halve and peel the avocado and cut into slices. Pick the coriander leaves and halve the limes.
Now just assemble. No need to be too precise. Lay the lettuce leaves on a platter or large dish, then place or scatter the corn, tomato halves, ham pieces, spring onions and avocado slices over the lettuce. Drizzle with the chipotle mayo, and scatter the coriander leaves on top. Finish with a grind or two of sea salt and a squeeze or two of lime and then place the lime halves onto the salad.
Delicious as is or try it with a margarita!