You know how I feel about corn. On the off-season, I sometimes turn to canned or frozen corn, but am usually disappointed. Canned tastes canned (which is actually a very nice thing in cornbread, to which I like to add a can of creamed corn), and frozen gets tough if you cook it for more than about twelve seconds. That’s a shame, because I like my corn cooked more like twelve minutes. My favorite thing to do with the stuff in summer is cook it off the cob in a skillet with bacon, scallions, and fresh jalapeños, until each kernel gets a little browned.
So imagine my delight when I found frozen roasted corn at Trader Joe’s. They roast the hell out of it *before* freezing. Many of the kernels are downright charred. It tastes like corn bacon. I made a quick succotash last week (thanks again, Cook’s Illustrated) with the TJ’s corn, lima beans, onion, red bell pepper, and a little tarragon. We ate it with the [catfish sandwiches](https://www.rootsandgrubs.com/2007/06/02/mamsters-in-the-market/), and there was plenty left over.
What else should I do with this blackened corn?
Yum, put some in with creamy jack mac & cheese with green chilies.
In Vietnam they deep-fry corn kernels and serve them at beer halls. Great snack food. But you can use frozen for this – thaw and dry it then toss with starch/four mixture, throw in crushed garlic and fry until lightly browned. Eat with soy sauce w chili (using chopsticks).
I think I’ll making a roasted corn ice cream in the near future…
Salsa! Or make it into a corn and bean salad with some balsamic vinegar.
Oooh, I have a good recipe for you! I used to have this on the menu at the Gourmet to Go shop I ran. It’s from “Pot Pies”: Comfort Food Under Cover by Diane Phillips.
Corn, Zucchini and Tomato Pie
3 cups fresh or frozen and defrosted corn kernels (I used roasted)
5 small zucchini, cut into matchsticks
2 tsp salt (Maybe not that much, if you’re using roasted)
1 tsp fresh ground black pepper
1 Tbsp fresh dill weed
2 Tbsp melted butter
3-4 vine ripened tomatoes, cut into 1/2″ slices
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup dry bread crumbs
2 Tbsp olive oil
Preheat oven to 375. In a 13 by 9 inch baking dish, combine corn, zucchini, 1 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp pepper, dill and mileted butter, tossing to coat the veggies. Cover the vegetables with the tomatoe slices. Sprinkle with remaining salt and pepper.
In a small bowl, combine the cheese and bread crumbs. Sprinkle over tomatoes and drizzle with the olive oil. Bake for 30 minutes, or until the cheese is bubbling. Let stand 5 minutes before serving. Serves 6-8.
I second the salsa idea.
I think you could also put some in cornbread (though not as a replacement for the creamed corn). I think that would produce a nice smoky addition to the cornbread.
No question, throw it into a stir-fry of summer vegetables and fresh chicken. Since it is already cooked, you can add it at the last second – still frozen even – and have the frsh flavor and color of corn as a welcome addition to a great stir fry!
we had it tonight in a salad of halved heirloom cherry tomatoes, diced red onion AND red pepper, fresh oregano, and a dressing of lime juice, olive oil, salt, and tabasco.
later this week we will have it in a chicken with cheese-n-corn sauce. because i am from the midwest, and nothing can’t be made better with a nap of cheese. woot.
I also just bought bag(s) of those lucious smokey kernels. I used them in a fantastic Spicy Shrimp/Corn salad…and then morphed the salad into an awesome soup.
In a large bowl toss 2 bags of the corn kernels, 1 finely diced english cucumber, 1/2 sliced red onion, 2 red bell peppers-julienned, the juice of 2 limes, 2 avocados -diced, one bunch of cilantro leaves, hot sauce to taste, salt, and a pound of shrimp (marinated in old bay seasoning and beer, and then grilled).
It was a wonderful main dish salad, particularly tasty with an ice cold beer.
However, the leftovers morphed into something even better the next day. I fished the shrimp out of the salad, tossed the entire mix (sans shrimp) into the blender, added 1 diced garlic clove, 1/2 bunch cilantro, 1 tablespoon hot sauce, 1/4 cup sour cream, and 1/2 cup milk and blended (adding more milk to thin it as necessary). To serve, I floated the spicy shrimp on the cold roasted corn soup. Amazing.
Kristel, that sounds so good.
The smoky niblets appeared tonight in chicken tikka masala sandwiches. That is, leftover chicken tikka masala (homemade), stuffed into homemade flatbread (Iris and I made it), with corn. Top quality sandwich.