By Kathie Smith
Toledo BladeAs fresh sweet corn finds its way to roadside stands, farmers markets and supermarkets, now is the time to buy and cook as much as you can use.
According to author Olwen Woodier in Corn (Storey, $12.95), four major types of corn are grown in the United States.
- Dent or field corn has large ears, and the kernels have a soft starchy center; it is grown for animal feed, ethylene alcohol, breakfast flakes, corn syrup and cornstarch.
- Sweet corn is eaten fresh, frozen or canned. Carbohydrate is stored as sugar, which changes to starch as the corn ages. Sweet corn is picked while the plant is immature; picking and removing the husk speed the conversion of sugar to starch. Traditionally, sweet corn needed to be cooked immediately after picking for maximum sweetness and tenderness. Today, many sweet and super-sweet varieties remain so for several days.
- Flint, or Indian corn, has a hard, smooth flint-like kernel. It is usually sold as decoration at roadside stands and comes in blue, red, black, purple and orange. Indian corn is edible when ground and makes a sweet high-protein cornmeal for breads, muffins and pancakes.
- Popcorn has short ears and hard kernels. When heated, the kernel explodes and a soft starch center bursts.
Other types of corn:
- Flour corn, grown primarily in the Andean region of South America, is easy to grind.
- Baby corn is immature corn hard-harvested one to five days after silks appear. The tender, delicately flavored ears are entirely edible.
- Shoepeg corn is an old-fashioned sweet variety not often found today. The kernels are small and thin and have tough skins, according to Woodier, who likens them to pine nuts in appearance and sweetness.
Versatile corn is the star of salads, casseroles, soups, stews, salsas and appetizers. Two classics are corn bread and corn relish.
From fresh corn kernels, frozen and canned corn, and even creamed corn, there are numerous ways to make corn bread. Real Cornbread is made with cornmeal, baking mix (such as Bisquick) and corn.
If you want to open a jar of summer in the middle of winter, make Fresh Corn Relish in pint jars using a boiling-water-bath canner.
Fresh Corn Relish
Ingredients:
12 ears corn
1 large onion, finely chopped
1 large green bell pepper, diced
1 large red bell pepper, diced
1-1/2 cups apple cider vinegar
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup water
1 tbsp. sea salt
1 tsp. celery seed
1 tsp. curry or chili powder, optional
1 tsp. dry mustard
Preparation:
Using a sharp knife and working from the top to the bottom of each ear, remove kernels from the cobs, for about 6 cups of kernels and liquid. Place in a large enamel or stainless-steel kettle. Add the onion, green bell pepper, red bell pepper, vinegar, sugar, water, salt, celery seed, curry powder (if desired) and mustard; stir to combine.
Bring to a boil, lower the heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Turn off the heat. With the help of a wide-mouthed funnel, spoon the mixture into hot, sterilized canning jars, leaving a 1/2-inch space at the top. Wipe the jar rims and cover with sterilized lids. Screw down the lids tightly.
Place jars, not touching, in a boiling-water-bath canner and cover with hot water. Bring to a boil and process 10 minutes according to manufacturer's instructions. Remove from water with canning tongs and let cool.
Yield: 5 pints
-- Corn by Olwen Woodier
Real Cornbread
Ingredients:
2 cups biscuit mix
2 cups cornmeal
3 cups buttermilk
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled
4 eggs, beaten
1-1/2 cups corn kernels, fresh or frozen, drained
Preparation:
In a large bowl, whisk together baking mix and cornmeal. Add buttermilk and melted butter. Stir to combine. Add eggs and blend to incorporate. Fold in corn. Spread mixture in a 9-by-13-inch baking pan, sprayed with vegetable spray. Bake in preheated 425-degree oven until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, 22 to 28 minutes. Serve hot with butter.
Yield: 8 servings
-- 125 Best Biscuit Mix Recipes by George Geary
Shrimp and Corn Fritter
Ingredients:
2 ears of corn, shucked and cooked
1 large egg
1/2 cup milk
1/3 cup yellow cornmeal
2-1/2 tbsp. all-purpose flour
1/2 pound cleaned and deveined shrimp, chopped
1 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/4 cup chopped green onion
vegetable oil
Preparation:
Cut corn kernels from ears and scrape cobs to extract juice; discard cobs. Whisk together egg and milk until smooth and stir in cornmeal and flour. Stir in corn, including juice, shrimp, cayenne and green onion.
Heat one inch of oil in a nonstick skillet over moderate heat until hot. Drop batter (about 2 tbsp. each) for 4 fritters. Fry until lightly brown and turn fritter until evenly brown on all sides. Repeat with the rest of the batter.
Serve hot.
Yield: 4 to 6 fritters or 2 servings
-- Pam Weirauch of Pam's Corner restaurant in Toledo, Ohio, and Steve Moss
Quesadilla with Fajita Chicken & Corn Salsa
Ingredients:
four 10-inch flour tortillas
2 cups cooked fajita-flavored chicken, diced
4 ounces pepper jack cheese
4 ounces shredded cheddar cheese
1 cup of Black Bean and Corn Salsa (see recipe below)
sour cream
Preparation:
In small skillet, combine chicken and salsa. Saute for about 3 minutes to heat through.
In large skillet sprayed with cooking spray, heat one tortilla. Place heated chicken and salsa mix onto tortilla, leaving about 1/2-inch uncovered at the edge of tortilla. Sprinkle with cheese and place another tortilla on top. When the bottom tortilla becomes crisp, flip entire creation upside-down to allow uncooked tortilla to be on the bottom of the skillet. When the bottom tortilla has become crisp, gently slide the quesadilla onto a cutting board. Use a pizza cutter to cut in eight wedges. Repeat with remaining flour tortillas.
Serve with remaining salsa and sour cream.
Yield: 2 quesadillas or 16 wedges (4 servings)
-- Pam Weirauch
Black Bean and Corn Salsa
Ingredients:
4 ears corn, husked, cooked and kernels removed
2 cups cooked black beans
1/2 cup chopped mild banana peppers
1/2 cup chopped green onions
1 bunch chopped fresh cilantro
1/2 cup chopped red pepper
For the dressing:
6 tbsp. olive oil
2 tbsp. white wine vinegar
2 tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro
1 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp. dried crushed red pepper
1/4 tsp. Tabasco sauce
Preparations:
Prepare dressing by combining ingredients in a small bowl and whisk to blend. Prepare and chill one day before use. Combine corn, black beans, banana peppers, onions, cilantro and red pepper. Add dressing and chill.
Yield: 2 quarts
-- Pam Weirauch
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