Hope You Milk Your Ears of Corn
Summer is drawing to a close, which means that “Claire Talking of the Corn Season” is also walking out the door and heading for sunset (but only for one calendar year). But until then, corn is still abundant and sweet, and I will continue to eat it, cook it and share with you all my most soulful thoughts whenever they come to my mind.
Last night, as I was making a lovely raw corn salad with cherry tomatoes from my friend’s garden, I cut off the kernels from the cob and noticed corn juice dripping from my knife. Usually – if I’m making popcorn, corn soup, or creamy corn – I scrape off the juice and any leftover corn pieces into a dish without thinking, but I’ve never added them to a salad.
It turns out that it was a big mistake. (Huge.) These juices contain very valuable sugars and starch. Sugar adds freshness and a touch of sweetness, and the starch mixes with whatever dressing you use, helping it stick to the kernels (and any other vegetables in your salad). Adding the cobs to the salad made it even richer, with that summer sweetness in every bite.
I say it was very good and I want to say that you should always milk the cobs, no matter what you do. This is very easy to do. Simply grab a knife, scrape off the cob with a blade to remove any remaining kernels and juices stuck inside, then add it to your soup / salad / casserole / corn cream.
You might think you are done with the cobs here, but you are wrong. Cook these bad guys to create a golden summer broth that makes the perfect base for risottos, stews, sauces, and of course cereals . You can also drink corn broth from a mug, depending on how you like corn. I, as we all know, really love this.