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Jun 25, 2023

3 ways to cook with corn this summer

A friend invited me to lunch a couple weeks ago. In addition to a beautiful salad filled with mango and other good things and her irresistible bread, fresh from the oven, we had grilled corn on the

A friend invited me to lunch a couple weeks ago. In addition to a beautiful salad filled with mango and other good things and her irresistible bread, fresh from the oven, we had grilled corn on the cob.

Before putting the corn on her outdoor grill, she slathered it with olive oil and commercial taco seasoning. When it came off the grill, she slathered it again, this time with butter. It was astonishingly tasty.

Overall, corn is quite good this summer. I’m not sure where my friend got hers, but I’ve been getting mine from the Patch, where it is $1 an ear, as it is in most places right now.

It’s best to buy corn that has not been shucked, as the silks and husks add layers of protection that are essential until the corn is used. Simply remove the silks and husks just before preparing your corn. Most experts say corn is best the day it is picked and absolutely must be eaten within two days.

This doesn’t mean you have to throw out the corn that’s been in your fridge for five days, as mine has. These days, my eyes are often bigger than my stomach. I seem incapable of buying small amounts of anything, so I’m often behind in devouring my farmers market catches. But I just took a bite, raw; it is just fine, sweet and full of corn-y goodness. It is on tonight’s dinner menu.

Makes about 3 cups

Corn salsa is easy to make and quite delicious. Some versions simply add corn kernels to tomato salsa, something I don’t recommend, as I think both ingredients are compromised. I like to let main ingredients have center stage, solo. For suggested ways to enjoy this, see the ideas at the end of the recipe.

3 - 4 ears of corn, shucked

1 small red onion, cut into small dice

1 or 2 serranos, stemmed, seeded and minced

1 red bell pepper, roasted, peeled, seeded and cut into small dice

1 teaspoon chipotle powder

1 teaspoon dried Mexican oregano

Juice of 2 limes

Kosher salt

⅓ cup extra-virgin olive oil

Black pepper in a mill

Prepare an outdoor or stovetop grill. When the grill is ready, grill the corn, using tongs to turn it frequently, until it is lightly browned all over. Remove from the heat, let cool and then cut the kernels from the corn cobs.

Put the corn into a medium mixing bowl. Add the onion, serrano and bell pepper and toss gently. Add the chipotle powder, oregano and lime juice and toss again.

Taste, season with salt, taste again and add more salt if it tastes at all flat. Stir in the olive oil, add several turns of black pepper, cover and let rest for 20 to 30 minutes.

Serving suggestions: Enjoy with chips, in tacos or atop Anaheim or similar chiles that have been roasted, peeled and filled with grated St. George cheese. The salsa is also excellent with grilled, roasted and fried fish and is a great accompaniment to both queso fundido and corn custard (for which there is a recipe at the end of this column).

Makes 8 servings

This hearty stew is based on locro, a soup/stew with Argentine roots. It is also an important dish in Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru. Most versions include hominy instead of fresh corn, as the soup is popular during the winter holidays, when fresh corn is not in season. I enjoy both versions. Here, I use canned chickpeas so everything will be ready at the same time. Feel free to use dried chickpeas. You’ll need about ½ cup dried. Cook them as you usually do, drain them and then add to the soup with the tomatoes and other ingredients.

Don’t let the long list of ingredients discourage you. You can make the sofrito hours or even a day before making the soup. And there isn’t much to do while the meat cooks.

For the sofrito

⅓ cup lard or peanut oil

4 garlic cloves, crushed and minced

6 scallions, trimmed and very thinly sliced

3 tablespoons minced fresh cilantro (leaves and stems)

1 tablespoon each: mild Spanish paprika, smoked Spanish paprika and hot Spanish paprika

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon dried oregano

½ teaspoon red pepper flakes

2 teaspoons kosher salt, plus more as needed for the soup

For the soup

3 pounds beef brisket

1 large onion, thinly sliced

4 cups chopped fresh tomatoes

4 - 5 ears of corn, shucked

1 14-ounce can chickpeas, drained and rinsed

3 cups (about 1 pound) cubed winter squash or sweet potato

2 large russet potatoes, scrubbed and cubed

Black pepper in a mill

First, make the sofrito. To do so, heat the oil in a small saute pan set over low heat. Add the garlic, half the scallions, paprikas, cumin, oregano, cilantro, red pepper flakes and salt. Cook, stirring continuously, for two to three minutes, until the mixture is fragrant and the scallions are limp. If it seems too thick, thin carefully with 1 to 2 tablespoons of water. Transfer to a small bowl and set aside.

Put the brisket into a large soup pot, add 3 quarts (12 cups) of water, season generously with salt and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to low, skim off the foam that rises to the surface and simmer gently, partially covered, until the meat is very tender, about 2 ½ to 3 hours. Transfer the meat to a clean work surface and let cool.

Add the onion, tomato, corn, chickpeas, winter squash and potatoes to the cooking liquid. Stir, then cook over medium heat until all the vegetables are tender, about 15 to 20 minutes depending on the size of the cubes.

While the vegetables cook, tear the meat into small pieces and stir it into the soup. Stir in the remaining scallions, taste the cooking liquid and correct for salt. Add several turns of black pepper and remove from the heat. Cover and let rest 10 to 15 minutes before serving.

To serve, ladle soup into large wide bowls, swirl a generous spoonful of sofrito into each portion and enjoy right away.

Variation: Use 5 pounds of pork ribs in place of brisket. Cook until tender, about 1½ hours, remove from the cooking liquid and let cool. Pull out and discard the bones and tear the meat into pieces.

Makes 6 servings

If you want to savor the silky quality of corn, you won’t find a better way than this delicious custard, which is adapted from Betty Fussell’s book “Crazy for Corn” (HarperPerrenial, 1995).

8 ears of fresh corn, kernels cut from the cobs (about 4 cups kernels)

Butter, at room temperature, for the baking dishes

3 large eggs, beaten

1½ cups half-and-half

3 tablespoons butter, melted

2 teaspoons kosher salt

White pepper in a mill

1 tablespoon snipped fresh chives

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Fill a tea kettle and bring the water to a boil. Select a baking or roasting pan large enough to hold a 1½-quart souffle dish or six 8-ounce ramekins and coat the dish or ramekins with butter.

Put the corn kernels into the work bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade and pulse several times to achieve a fairly smooth puree. Set a strainer over a large bowl and scrape the pureed corn into the strainer. Use a large heavy wooden spoon or wooden pestle to press the corn milk into the bowl, stirring and rubbing the puree to extract as much liquid as possible. Discard what’s left in the strainer.

Stir the beaten eggs and the half-and-half into the corn milk. Add the butter, salt, several turns of pepper and chives and mix well. Pour the custard into the souffle dish or ramekins and set in the large pan. Set in the oven and then pour enough hot water to come halfway up the sides of the dish or ramekins. Bake until the custard is just turning golden brown at the edges and the custard is just set. Time will vary based on the containers used; check after 25 minutes for a large souffle dish and after 15 minutes for smaller ramekins, then continue to check every five minutes.

When done, remove from the oven, transfer to a rack and cool slightly. Serve the custard warm or at room temperature.

Serving options:

Michele Anna Jordan is the author of 24 books to date, including “California Home Cooking.” Email her at [email protected]