Corn on the cob

[jaykellogg]

I grew up thinking that when you buy Corn on the cob you look for several immature rows at the silk end. The thinking is, if it is mature to the very end it will be less sweet and more starchy. When I lived in PA, the farmers would pick corn in the morning at dawn and by 2:00 they would take the unsold corn and feed it to the pigs. Now I live in the south. The thinking apparently is different here. I don't live near any farms that raise corn, so I buy it at the supermarket. Goodness knows how old it is. Also apparently the farmers here pick it fully mature. My son says when he boils corn on the cob he adds 2 TBS. of sugar to the water. I tried it and it works! The corn is sweeter.

When I lived in PA I had a moderate sized garden and I raised sweetcorn. The (ex)wife would put water on to boil and I would walk into the garden, pick a few ears, and husk it there. When I got back to the kitchen the corn went into the boiling water, man that tasted good! For good sweet corn it is hard to beat Jersey Silver Queen. Good sweet corn goes really well with seafood.

 

[rimfired]

From my Grandmothers on down. Always add a cup of milk and some sugar to the boiling water.

Correct in your description of local harvest corn.

 

[Mickey D]

From my Grandmothers on down. Always add a cup of milk and some sugar to the boiling water.

Correct in your description of local harvest corn.

I agree with the added ingredients.

For tender cooked corn, place the ears in cold water, turn on the heat. Once water is boiling, remove the corn. Sweet and tender.

 

[pineappleshooter]

Try microwaving 3 ears for 6 minutes (husks on). Handle with a towel when you take them out and husk them - best tasting corn ever - and to top it off the silk peels right off with the husk!

 

[jaykellogg]

Forgot to mention, Peel the husks back but don't tear them off. Remove the silk and replace the husks. Twist at the end and wrap in aluminum foil. Soak in water. Then you can cook them on the grill or in the coals of a wood fire. The corn will usually have a few tan spots where it got too hot, but it is great tasting corn.

 

[w-30dreamin]

For the freshest sweetest corn,

get a pot of water boiling,go outside and pick the corn...run into the house as fast as possible while dehusking the corn...if you trip and fall throw it aside and go pick some more,run in the house,boil till tender and enjoy.

There is more than corn in Indiana but we know corn!

 

[Silver Dollar]

Jersey Silver Queen is the best there is. When I was stationed in rural New Jersey, I couldn't get enough of that corn. Now I really miss it.

 

[Mickey D]

For the freshest sweetest corn,

get a pot of water boiling,go outside and pick the corn...run into the house as fast as possible while dehusking the corn...if you trip and fall throw it aside and go pick some more,run in the house,boil till tender and enjoy.

There is more than corn in Indiana but we know corn!

I found that adding the ears to boiling water often causes the kernels to be tough. Hoosier daddy?

 

[indiandave]

Jersey Silver Queen is the best there is. When I was stationed in rural New Jersey, I couldn't get enough of that corn. Now I really miss it.

That's one thing New Jerseys got right. That and tomatoes. It's called the garden state for a reason. Now if they could only get their **** together with gun laws. LOL!

 

[Stevens]

When I'm picking corn I usually wind up eating at least one ear right there in the garden. My favorite is grilled in the husk.
Steve W

 

[duppie]

Jersey Silver Queen is the best there is. When I was stationed in rural New Jersey, I couldn't get enough of that corn. Now I really miss it.

I drive through those corn fields every day here in central NJ and our farm stands will be busting with them soon.
I trim the ends, remove the silk and all but the last 3 layers of husk,brine in lots of water for 2 days and grill on the cold side over charcoal.
Serve as is in all their sweetness or melt plain or compound butters over the top.
I sometimes boil it the West Indian way...Big pot of salty water,large smoked ham hock and 5 Scotch bonnet peppers with much cold beer.

 

[wbraswell]

I just like fresh corn any way I've ever had it fixed. I like it sweet and juicy.

 

[duppie]

That's one thing New Jerseys got right. That and tomatoes. It's called the garden state for a reason. Now if they could only get their **** together with gun laws. LOL!

Sadly we'll be eating a lot of corn and tomatoes before that happens

 

[BearBio]

Soak the corn in water with the husk on. Grill it until heated. No salt, no butter==just corn!

Great farmer's markets around here.

Best I've ever had was a roadside stand in Porterville, CA. Picked each morning. When it sold out, that was it for the day. 12 ears for $3, minimum purchase. Usually sold out by noon.

 

[jaykellogg]

Being single I hate to buy a lot of corn and not eat it right away. I also hate to drive 30 miles round trip to buy a few ears, so I am stuck buying it from a farm stand nearby that ships it in or at the supermarket.

Oh, Well....

 

[redlevel]

The freshest I have ever had was when I walked out in the garden/field at about daybreak, pulled about three ears, shucked and silked them and ate them raw within two minutes of pulling. It really is excellent like this, but three ears is about my limit unless I want to be "trotting" to the outhouse all day.

 

[heatheroo]

Jersey Silver Queen is the best there is. When I was stationed in rural New Jersey, I couldn't get enough of that corn. Now I really miss it.

you've obviously never been to Lancaster Co. PA. I have lived here about 7 years and I am a confirmed corn snob. My local Mennonite produce stand can tell me exactly what time that day the corn was picked. By afternoon, the AM corn is already marked down.

 

[redlevel]

We creamed about 100 ears of Merit variety yellow sweet corn yesterday. Excellent in soup, or just heated with a little bacon grease.

 

[shouldazagged]

Dental concerns make eating corn off the cob impossible--I always have to cut it off the cob. But I know that overcooking is the enemy of fresh corn.

I love it fried, white corn for choice, in a dab of bacon grease and more butter, cooked briefly and then given just a little whole milk or half-and-half to thicken it. Lots of fresh-ground black pepper is essential.

But just minimally cooked--blanched, really--in hot water, cut off the cob, and tossed with real butter, salt and pepper, it doesn't need anything else if it's fresh.

 

[captorquewrench]

For the sweetest and best corn ... find a local who is using ANY non-GMO seeds. when you buy from the big stores...what you are getting is a plant that is designed to make the insides of the pests eating it explode. They say it shouldn't hurt us (but it's messing up lab rats insides when they eat it...) because our bodies are large enough to metabolize it or something like that without any damage.

But ... I'm not taking any chances. I don't think it's coincidental that our dinner is illegal in most other countries. We eat some BAD mojo in the US...


I digress...

Rub the cleaned corn with butter, not margarine, and wrap tightly in foil, and quick cook on the grill. Crispy, sweet, not overcooked. And a lot less PITA than boiling, and no dirty pot to wash when you are done.

 

[labworm]

I always just threw it in boiling water, now I steam it and like the taste much better with all that butter and salt.

Just happen to have some in the house at the moment.
It won't be here after 6 PM.

 

[redlevel]

I don't think there is any GMO sweet corn.

Only field corn, grown for grain, has the Roundup Ready and/or the BT gene. The biggest effect has been that because of this technology, the chemical footprint left by production is now only a fraction of what it was before. One or two applications of glyphosate, which isn't soil active at all, has replaced multiple applications of atrazine, which remains in the soil almost indefinitely, and leaches down to the groundwater. Bt, or bacillus thuringiensis, a biological rather than chemical pesticide that occurs naturally, has replaced multiple applications of organophosphate insecticides. The BT gene in corn means the corn is no longer sprayed with these organophosphates.

There is a lot of misinformation, myths, and outright lies out there concerning GMO crops.

 

[jaykellogg]

I used to live in Iowa (1986-1996). Of course I got to know a lot of farmers. The part i lived in raised hogs, cattle, corn and soybeans (called beans there). I have had farmers lament that they could plant a row of sweet corn in the middle of a 40 acre field of feed corn and the raccoons would still find it.

 

[mike from st pete]

For the freshest sweetest corn,

get a pot of water boiling,go outside and pick the corn...run into the house as fast as possible while dehusking the corn...if you trip and fall throw it aside and go pick some more,run in the house,boil till tender and enjoy.

There is more than corn in Indiana but we know corn!

Take the pot and camp stove out to the field and when the water is boiling bend the cornstalk so the freshly husked, still attached ear goes into the water. Repeat until full, of corn that is!

 

[labworm]

Take the pot and camp stove out to the field and when the water is boiling bend the cornstalk so the freshly husked, still attached ear goes into the water. Repeat until full, of corn that is!

Excellent idea, I'll have to give it a try.

Would you recommend bringing a first aid kit also?

 

[mike from st pete]

First Aid?

I don't plan on getting hurt but it may be a good idea.

 

[BigBill]

We pick the silver queen fresh from our garden and right in the microwave it goes with butter. There is no starch and all the flavor is still in the corn.

I plant about $70 worth of corn seed per year. About 20% we eat the rest the deer get. I do it for the deer and animals.

 

[duppie]

Take the pot and camp stove out to the field and when the water is boiling bend the cornstalk so the freshly husked, still attached ear goes into the water. Repeat until full, of corn that is!

"plant the heirloom corn kernels gathered by the Pilgrim fathers in a pot big enough to later boil water from the artisinel well you'll have to dig in the corn field"......enough, enough.
Boil,steam,devour raw...... but enjoy the bounty of this year's corn.

 

[therevjay]

For the sweetest and best corn ... find a local who is using ANY non-GMO seeds. when you buy from the big stores...what you are getting is a plant that is designed to make the insides of the pests eating it explode. They say it shouldn't hurt us (but it's messing up lab rats insides when they eat it...) because our bodies are large enough to metabolize it or something like that without any damage.

But ... I'm not taking any chances. I don't think it's coincidental that our dinner is illegal in most other countries. We eat some BAD mojo in the US...


I digress...

Rub the cleaned corn with butter, not margarine, and wrap tightly in foil, and quick cook on the grill. Crispy, sweet, not overcooked. And a lot less PITA than boiling, and no dirty pot to wash when you are done.

I like to add salt, pepper & honey as well as lotsa butter before wrapping in foil.

You could be right about the GMO seed. The last time I (over?) ate grilled corn my insides exploded several times!

 

[vigil617]

Got home tonight from work, and found out my wife had stopped by the local produce stand on the way home from the supermarket, and had bought cataloupes, peaches, and Silver Queen corn! I sat down to some of the best-tasting corn on the cob I've had in a long time -- first time since last summer, when the stand was open last -- and then after eating, I logged on to the Forum and found this thread!