Creamed Corn and Other Corn Dishes

[Smithy]

I bought 2 dozen ears of corn this weekend, because our corn season is also nearing its end, and tried the Bundt pan approach.  The pan did make a nice catch basin for *most* of the corn kernels, with a few popping off too far for the pan to catch.  The corn was so juicy that I still ended up having to wash the kitchen island and mop the floors all the way around when I was done.  This job is best done outside on a fine day. 

What particular implements do people favor for stripping the corn kernels off the cob? My darling remembers a double-curved knife of some sort that surrounds the corn cob and changes diameter as you squeeze the handles. I've been using a large kitchen knife. So far I've found a few different styles, but none matches his description.

[Norm Matthews]

I used a birds beak paring knife to cut corn off the cob yesterday and thought it worked very nicely. It was much easier to use than the chef's knife I usually use.

[Shelby]

Field corn is great IF your goods friends with the farmer that harvest it at the right time and you can devote the day to putting it up.   When I was a kid all corn was field corn and when it was deemed perfect for canning you would spend the whole day in the backyard shucking and cutting.  Your right though if it's not at it's prime it can be pretty lousy.  

We eat field corn from our field. Heck, somewhere in here I did a pictorial of me picking baby field corn and pickling it.  And, yeah, it's great if you pick it at the right time.  Really nasty if you don't.

Edited September 20, 2014 by Shelby (log)

[kayb]

I've cooked and frozen a lot of corn this summer, as it's been a good year for it down here and we all love it. When I cook creamed corn, I use only three ingredients: butter, corn and cream. I use Steve's mom's method, cutting just the tips off the corn and then using the back of the knife to scrape the cobs (I use my 5 1/2 inch Misono utility knife, and the Bundt cake pan method). I put it in a skillet with butter (half a stick for about eight ears' worth of kernels) and once it absorbs, I add about 1/2 cup cream, turn the heat down to a low simmer, and put a lid on it.

 

I don't want salt and pepper, or any other seasoning, with my creamed corn. I prefer Silver Queen, which is a white sweet corn (perhaps a variant of the Silver King mentioned above?), but I have trouble finding it here, so I usually buy Peaches and Cream, a yellow/white hybrid. It's also excellent on the cob, either roasted or steamed in the shuck. I'll occasionally blanch it lightly and then cut the kernels off whole--kernel to use in a corn and black bean salad with roasted red peppers and onion.

 

When I freeze corn, I cook it just with water, and freeze it in pint freezer cartons. Then I add the butter and cream when I cook it.

 

Another favorite is corn pudding; Four cups of corn, cut off as for creamed corn; 1 1/2 cup cornmeal mix; 1 cup sour cream or Greek yogurt; 2 eggs. Mix and bake in 8 x 8 baking dish for about 45 minutes at 350F.

Edited September 20, 2014 by kayb (log)

[CeeCee]

Is there other yummy dishes with fresh corn?

 

My favourite corn recipe has got to be perkedel/frikadel/bakwan jagung, an Indonesian corn cakes. Delicious and I don't even like corn that much! Can't recommend an online recipe (in English) from my own experience, but google can help with getting the basic idea. It's not complicated.

My favourite shop version (which I'm still trying to crack) uses both celery and kaffir leaves, which are valued additions imho.

[TheCulinaryLibrary]

A few years back I took my daughter and son-in-law to dinner at Gordon Ramsays  when he was at Claridge's. $1000 for 3 people! (not including wine) and the only thing that was truly amazing and that I couldn't work out what they had done, was their sweetcorn soup! It was intense and amazing unlike the rest of their luke warm food. I have searched for the recipe, unsucessfully, every since so if anyone knows what it was or has the best ever corn soup recipe,  I'd love u to share.

[ChrisTaylor]

A few years back I took my daughter and son-in-law to dinner at Gordon Ramsays  when he was at Claridge's. $1000 for 3 people! (not including wine) and the only thing that was truly amazing and that I couldn't work out what they had done, was their sweetcorn soup! It was intense and amazing unlike the rest of their luke warm food. I have searched for the recipe, unsucessfully, every since so if anyone knows what it was or has the best ever corn soup recipe,  I'd love u to share.

 

I have a copy of Three Star Chef on hand. He provides a recipe for a sweetcorn puree. Puree, yes. Not soup. Do you want it, though? Might be a starting point/have something in common with his soup recipe. 

[TheCulinaryLibrary]

 

I have a copy of Three Star Chef on hand. He provides a recipe for a sweetcorn puree. Puree, yes. Not soup. Do you want it, though? Might be a starting point/have something in common with his soup recipe. 

I would consider it a good starting point and better than I have found so far! thx

[ChrisTaylor]

I would consider it a good starting point and better than I have found so far! thx

 

In that case, here's the recipe in shorthand.

 

Melt 25g butter in pan. Add 150g frozen sweetcorn and 1 tsp caster sugar. High heat: 1-2 minutes. Add 50mL ea. chicken stock and double cream. Bring to boil. Simmer: 10 minutes. Blend until smooth. Strain. Return puree to pan and season. Consistency should be similar to thickened cream. Can be loosened with a dash of hot water if necessary. Can be made in advance and reheated for service. 

 

I haven't made the puree, but instinctively if I was aiming for a sweetcorn flavour I'd be inclined to replace part of the chicken stock with a corn-based stock. From memory there's one in Modernist Cuisine. And I seem to recall a corn-based stock as being the basis for the sweetcorn soup in Daniel Humm's Eleven Madison Park.

 

EDIT

11MP was close to hand so I had a quick look. The corn bisque (served with lobster) sounds a bit more complicated than what the words 'sweetcorn soup' bring to mind. It's based on equal parts lobster stock and corn juice. It's jacked with a lot of things. Having made it some time ago (well, a modified version--I used crab) I seem to recall it being quite rich and spicy. Still, the corn juice idea might be worth hanging onto.

[Smithy]

What particular implements do people favor for stripping the corn kernels off the cob? My darling remembers a double-curved knife of some sort that surrounds the corn cob and changes diameter as you squeeze the handles. I've been using a large kitchen knife. So far I've found a few different styles, but none matches his description.

After the last messy episode, I went in search of an implement that worked better than my standard knives, and came home with this:

It's a definite improvement over a straight knife. The handle fit my hand and the slight curve to the blade reduced the number of cuts I had to make. It all made short work of the next 2 dozen ears, but I still did them outside. :-)