Of course you’ll buy corn on the cob this summer. It’s traditional – burgers, dogs, ribs, slaw, baked beans, arctic-cold watermelon, corn slathered with butter. So why write a column about something so obvious?
Because I’ll ask you to make a special trip to buy corn that’s amazingly fresh and tender, corn picked just before you buy it. It’s a divine taste, the pop and crunch of sweet kernels heaven in your mouth. In short, corn nirvana exists but you must seek it out, July through late August. Your destination: the Keller Farms sweet corn stand.
Park on Hillside Drive and pick your way over uneven ground, skirting the lines and stakes that anchor the tarp shading the old-fashioned stand. The line to the counter moves fast. Baskets of lush tomatoes, piles of supple bright green beans and slim cukes crowd the plywood counter. You’ll smell the muskmelons before you see them. Big as bowling balls, they boast light brown netting on skins blushed to peachy ripeness. But it’s the trailers behind the stand, full up with ears of white, yellow and bicolor sweet corn, that bring fools like me back each year, every year. Even when gas neared $4 a gallon last summer.
“Our corn is always just picked, fresh and tender, guaranteed,” said Lindsey Keller, office manager for Keller Farms. “Our crews begin picking every morning at 4:30 to deliver corn to the stands by 9 each day. We never sell anything that isn’t picked the same day.”
Most often, the corn I buy stays on the cob and gets buttered. Last year, I cooked with fresh-cut kernels to see what I could make. Like Corn Dollars, a Keller recipe with just enough egg and flour to hold the corn together and a touch of baking powder to lighten, fried in olive oil and lightly salted. And corn relish with fresh peppers, celery, cherry tomatoes and scallions in a light vinaigrette. Corn bread gone over the top with the addition of fresh creamed corn and a touch of cayenne, served with avocado-lime butter.
I made corn chowders with new potatoes; skillet-fried corn; and a frittata with white corn, linguini, Fontina cheese, pancetta and roasted red peppers. I tossed kernels in pancake batter, pumped corn and jalapeños into tamales, and added a layer of corn to old-fashioned macaroni and cheese, baked in the oven. Everything worked. No disasters. This year I want to try making a stock from the cut cobs.
Although I’m preaching the gospel of fresh, corn is so easy to freeze that you should put some by for winter soups and stews. Blanch husked ears for a minute or two in boiling water, then remove to an ice bath until the ears are cool to the touch. Use a sharp knife to cut the kernels from the cob. I place a cup in each freezer bag and place the bags in a single layer to freeze firm.
Mostly, I’ll boil the ears like my grandmother taught me. She would fill her big kettle with water, no salt added, and bring it to boil before she picked her corn from the backyard. We shucked, trimmed the ends and pulled off the pliant silks. The ears went in the kettle. When the water returned to a boil, she’d turn off the gas, cover the pot, and set the timer for three to five minutes. Sliced tomatoes, wilted lettuce, lima beans and pork chops waited on the table.
The remembered taste of just-picked corn – hot, tender and buttery – is what drives me to extreme lengths. Maybe this year you’ll drive to a sweet corn stand, cook up just-picked ears and find a fresh taste for an obvious favorite.
The four Keller Farm sweet corn stands open July 2; visit www.kellerfarmsinc.com for locations and hours.
This article appears in Jul 1-31, 2009.