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CORN BASICS
Buying: Look for ears with bright green husks and slightly damp, light brown silks. As corn ages, the husk fades, and silks will appear dry and black. Tightly packed small kernels supply the sweetest corn.
Cooking: It doesn’t take much to release corn’s sweetness when it’s eaten in season, but a simple boil in salted water will have your ears butter-ready in about a minute.
ON THE COB
From whiskey to cereal, corn is connected to almost all of the food we eat and many products we use on a daily basis. The United States is its largest producer by far, responsible for over one-third of global corn production.
AROUND RVA
Spoonbread Bistro: Served with roasted duck breast, the satiny caramel corn pudding hits a happy place on the Venn diagram of candy corn and corn pudding.
En Su Boca: The grilled street corn gets doused in a cool and creamy lime mayo, enhanced with bright pequin chilis and cilantro.
Bev's Ice Cream: Available only when Virginia corn is in season, sweet-corn ice cream delivers corn-on-the-cob flavor with hints of cool and creamy sweetness.
“I love corn, and it was always a treat to eat growing up in Massachusetts.” —Michelle Parrish, owner of Soul n' Vinegar
Photo by Eileen Mellon
COOK LIKE A LOCAL
Sweet-Corn Salsa
By Michelle Parrish, owner of Soul n' Vinegar
“Whenever corn season came, both of my parents would get so excited about getting the really sweet corn at the peak moment and making a meal around it,” says Michelle Parrish, whose Church Hill food shop, Soul n' Vinegar, employs a similar philosophy. Parrish roasts corn on the cob and then shaves off the kernels to use in dishes, such as her sweet-corn salsa.
3 ears of fresh yellow sweet corn
6 medium tomatillos, small dice
1/4 medium Vidalia onion, small dice
1 red pepper, roasted and peeled
1 bunch fresh cilantro, chopped
Extra virgin olive oil
Salt and black pepper
Juice of 1 lime
Preheat oven to 450 (or use your grill or broiler). Shuck the corn and rub the ears with a light amount of olive oil and a generous pinch of both salt and black pepper. Roast the corn for about eight to 10 minutes, or until the kernels plump and spots of golden brown begin to appear. Allow the corn to cool slightly before cutting the kernels off the cob. Turn over a small bowl inside a larger one, and place each cob on the smaller bowl, shaving the kernels off in a downward motion with a sharp knife so that they fall into the larger bowl. Toss the corn with the rest of the ingredients and season with salt, pepper, olive oil and lime juice to taste. Spoon over chili, soup, salad or serve alongside grilled meat or veggies. Garnish with a few whole cilantro leaves.
