Street corn

Elote is grilled corn rolled in crema, cotija and chilli powder, and it turns out that is already most of a white pizza. The corn has to be charred dry in a pan before it goes on, not tipped from a tin. Untoasted corn steams under the cheese and the whole thing tastes of the tin.

The build

1. Char the corn kernels in a dry, very hot pan until they blacken in patches. Do not stir much.
2. Spread the lime crema on the dough.
3. Mozzarella, then the corn, then thin slices of jalapeno.

After the oven Cotija, chilli powder or Tajin, more lime, and coriander. All of it after the oven.

The bake

On top

Sauce

Crema or sour cream thinned with lime juice, with garlic and a little chipotle.

Cheese

Mozzarella for melt, crumbled cotija for salt. Feta is a fair stand-in for cotija.

You got it right when Black flecks on the corn, and enough lime that the first bite reads sour before it reads rich.