‘The Pioneer Woman’: Ree Drummond’s Spicy Grilled Street Corn Is Perfect for a Summer Barbecue

Ree Drummond has the perfect way to spice up corn on the cob — her grilled street corn recipe is sure to be a hit at your next barbeque. The Pioneer Woman star said the easy side dish is “possibly my favorite thing.”

Ree Drummond makes easy street corn on the grill

Drummond demonstrated how to make her easy street corn recipe during an episode of The Pioneer Woman dedicated to making a tailgate lunch of grilled food for the hungry cowboys working on the ranch.

“The next thing I’m putting on the grill is possibly my favorite thing — street corn,” she said. “I think grilled corn is delicious enough but I made a rub and put it all over the outside of the corn. It pretty much turns the corn into a miracle.”

To make the spice rub, Drummond soaked dried guajillo chile peppers in boiling water for 30 minutes. She placed the chiles in a blender and added ancho chile powder, cumin, cinnamon, coriander seeds, peppercorns, salt, lime juice, and olive oil and blended the ingredients together.

Drummond brushed the spicy mixture onto halved corn cobs and placed them on a medium-high heat grill for 6 to 8 minutes, turning them halfway through the grilling time. She finished the corn by drizzling lime juice over the top. “It adds such amazing tanginess,” she said. “And I think this is possibly my favorite part of street corn — crumbled cotija cheese.”

The Food Network host sprinkled the cheese over the top of the corn before serving. “This street corn is so great for parties and this cheese just makes it look so festive and beautiful,” she said.

The full recipe is available on the Food Network website.

‘The Pioneer Woman’ star uses grilled corn in a simple summer salad

If you’re looking for another twist on grilled corn, Drummond has the perfect side dish. The Pioneer Woman star makes a corn and squash salad that begins with a flavorful marinade that also serves as the salad dressing.

“It is really tasty, has great Mexican flavors and of course, I’m making it on the grill,” Drummond said. “Grilled salad is not something I make every day but I love this one.”

She combined lime juice, lime zest, olive oil, pressed garlic, cumin, chili powder, salt, pepper, and honey in a mason jar for the marinade/dressing.

“Grilled vegetables are such a treat for me. I love making them into a salad,” the Food Network star said. “And this is great if you’re having a big party because you can just keep grilling as many vegetables as you need. And you can put it together pretty early before the guests show up.”

She continued, “Grilled vegetables are delicious, whether they’re warm or room temperature. You could even grill the vegetables the day before and keep them in the fridge.”

The veggies take just minutes to grill, then Drummond assembles the salad

The rest of the side dish takes just a few minutes to make. Drummond poured two-thirds of the dressing over the corn on the cob, zucchini, and summer squash in a bowl. “I just cut cobs of corn in half and then cut long strips of summer squash and zucchini,” she explained.

Drummond grilled them for 2.5 minutes, turned the vegetables, and cooked them for another couple of minutes.

She made a beautiful salad by placing sliced tomatoes on a platter, sprinkling them with salt and pepper, and placing the corn and squash on top. The Food Network host drizzled the remaining dressing over the top and added crumbled queso fresco and cilantro leaves.

“Imagine this at a big party. It’s just gorgeous,” Drummond said. “I like food to be pretty and tasty … and pretty tasty.”

The full recipe is available on the Food Network website.