In episode 095 we are making Creamed Corn that is made from fresh sweet corn. This is a killer side dish to complete just about any summer dinner. You only need 5 ingredients to make this side dish, and it starts with amazing sweet corn.
This Iowa native shares all the tips and tricks to pick amazing sweet corn this summer.
Transcript
Click for the full transcript.
Intro: Welcome to another episode of Let’s Make Dinner, your audio library of amazing dinner recipes you can always get on the table. I’m your host, Susie Weinrich.
Susie Weinrich: I am so glad that I am finally recording. I tried to record this episode three times. The first time I didn’t have it set to record. The second time my microphone was not on, and here we are, third time. Third time’s a charm. We are ready to go.
Happy Thursday everybody. We are making such a delicious side dish today. I know that normally I go over dinner recipes, but this time we’re going to talk about a side dish that’s going to complete your meal. I am an Iowa girl, so I feel like I have authority to talk about corn on the cob. We’re not just making corn on the cob, we’re actually going to make creamed corn. Maybe some of you say cream corn. When I was actually publishing this recipe and trying to get all the words right and everything, I realized that some people say creamed corn, and some people say cream corn. In my house where I grew up, we say creamed corn with a D on the end. So that’s how I’m going to say it. I hope you’re not bothered, and I hope you’ll stick around for the full recipe.
Tips and Tricks: So before we get to the full recipe, let’s talk a little bit about the ingredients. You actually only need five ingredients to make really, really delicious homemade creamed corn. Of course, the main ingredient here is going to be fresh corn on the cob.
I want to go over how to find really fresh corn on the cob. Of course it has its season. Corn on the cob is really great in late June, July and August, that’s when it’s going to be in season and fresh and super sweet. Like, so sweet that if you eat it on the cob, you don’t need any butter or salt. It’s its own beast. It’s so delicious. So, of course, in that timeframe, if you can buy corn on the cob from a local farmer, do it. Absolutely do it. So a lot of times, at least in Iowa, farmers will come in town and set up on a corner with their truck, and the back bed of the truck will be open and it will just be heaped full of corn on the cob. You go and you buy it by the ear, and it is usually absolutely delicious. So that’s how we do it. So if you can find somebody that’s selling it local or from a local farmer’s market, do that. It’s going to be really, really sweet and delicious.
Now if you’re buying it in the grocery store and it still has the husk on, here are some things to look for to make sure that you’re getting really good sweet corn. So the outside husk should be really green and vibrant and not dry and dead. The silk that’s coming out of the top should be a yellow tan color and be kind of damp. It shouldn’t be dry and dead. Now you’re going to want to grab an ear of corn and you’re going to peel back just the very top so that you can see that point of the corn cob and the kernels on that corn cob should be nice and juicy and go all the way to the top.
The tip of the corn should not be dry and dead with shriveled up little kernels of corn. This is going to be gross. I know we’re talking about recipes, but when you peel back the silk of the corn, look for bugs or worms on the corn cob. It’s very possible. I mean, it was out in the dirt. It was out in the country. So just look for that because you don’t want to get home and find bugs in your corn cob. Always use your nose when you’re in the produce aisle. Give it a smell. If it smells sweet, it’s going to be delicious. This is the true test. I don’t usually recommend this, but if you know you’re going to buy it, pluck a little kernel off your corn cob, taste it. If it’s sweet, the whole thing is going to be delicious.
Now that you’ve picked super delicious corn on the cob for your creamed corn, you’re going to need to remove the corn from the cob. There are two ways that I’m going to recommend you do this. The first way is using a bundt pan. So if you have a bunt pan, you know that you would make a bundt cake in, pop that on your countertop. Take a corn cob, pop it right in the, you know that center hole that comes up in the bundt pan? That’s a great little holder for your corn cob. Then hold it there and run the knife all the way down the corn cob and the bundt pan catches all the corn. If you can’t quite picture what I’m, what I’m talking about here, there will be a link to the recipe in the show notes. You can click through that link and there’s actually a picture of me using this method right in the post, so you can check it out.
The other way is actually just to lay the corn cob on a rimmed baking sheet and run your knife down the side of the corn cob. So you’re not standing the corn up, you’re actually laying it down, cutting the corn off, flipping it over, cutting the corn off, flipping it over, and cutting the corn off. That way works really well too, and I definitely recommend doing that on a rimmed baking sheet because when you do it, some of the corn kernels are going to fly all over the place, and by using the rimmed baking sheet, it contains all of that corn for you.
The other thing, when you’re cutting the corn from the cob, after you have all the corn off of the cob, turn your knife over to the blunt side and run it down the corn cob and the cob will actually release what is called corn milk, or at least that’s what I call it. It’s a super flavorful juice that is in the cob underneath the corn kernels. So that just adds a little bit more corn flavor to your creamed corn. We actually use this method in our corn chowder as well.
Creamed Corn Recipe: All right, so now that we’ve got those little tips and tricks out of the way, you need to grab your five ingredients, which are going to be 12 ears of fresh corn on the cob with the corn removed like we just talked about, one cup of buttermilk. Four tablespoons of butter, one teaspoon of kosher salt, and half a teaspoon of onion powder. So let’s get started. You’re going to start by removing all of that corn from the cob. Then in some boiling salted water, you’re going to boil that corn for about 10 minutes, and that’s just going to get it cooked and tender.
You’re going to drain that just like you would pasta, and then scoop out two cups of that corn and add it to a blender. Pour in one cup of buttermilk into the blender, and then blend it up until it is smooth. That’s your cream part of your creamed corn. So we’re not diluting that really delicious sweet corn flavor. We’re actually adding to it. That kind of high tangy note of the buttermilk is what is going to really enhance the flavor of your corn.
Now pour that mixture back in with the whole corn, and then you’re going to add in the four tablespoons of butter, the one teaspoon of kosher salt and a half a teaspoon of onion powder. Warm that over low heat for about five minutes and it is ready to go. Oh my gosh, you are going to love this. This is not your canned creamed corn. This is so incredibly delicious.
So now that you have your side dish, here are some things that I recommend serving with the creamed corn. Really, anything that comes off the grill is going to be perfect here. You’re talking about a grilled pork tenderloin, barbecue ribs, hamburgers. We love a roasted chicken or rotisserie chicken with this creamed corn. Or pulled pork sandwiches with a little barbecue sauce on top is excellent.
All right, so that does it for this full recipe. As always, I will link all of the recipes that I talked about in this episode, right in the show notes so you can find it, you can pin it, you can cook right from the recipe card. You can even print the recipes. Or if you’re going to the grocery store and you’re on your phone, you can even text yourself the full ingredient list and a link back to the recipe.
Outro: So until next week y’all, I hope this episode of Let’s Make Dinner makes your dinner time a little bit easier. See ya.
Double Dip: I am drinking coffee, y’all, and it is knocking my socks off. I am 100% addicted to coffee, and this coffee is freaking delicious.
All right everybody. Welcome to the Double Dip. Every week, you can stick around after the episode and hear what we’re going to make next week on Let’s Make Dinner and then you can have the groceries ready and know what we’re going to make. You’ll be ready to make dinner with me next Thursday. So since we are in summertime, if you’re listening to these episodes real time, we are taking advantage of all of the summer bounty. Next week we are making a pasta with a roasted cherry tomato sauce. Really good, really fresh. If you grow tomatoes, this is a perfect recipe for you to take advantage of all of those yummy, fresh tomatoes.
So what you’re going to need is one pound of spaghetti or spaghettini, angel hair pasta, some kind of pasta that you like. One and a half to two pounds of cherry or grape tomatoes, half a cup of delicious, extra virgin olive oil. Four plump garlic cloves, one and a half teaspoons of kosher salt, red pepper flakes, two teaspoons of balsamic vinegar and one teaspoon of sugar. Then optionally, when you serve this, you can make a little breadcrumb mixture for the top. If you want to do that, you’ll need half a cup of panko breadcrumbs, one tablespoon of butter, some fresh basil. Fresh grated Parmesan cheese and just a little bit of extra virgin olive oil to make everything nice and crispy. So that’s it. I will link this recipe in the show notes for you. So if you want to take a look at it before you make it for dinner, you can go ahead and click through that link. But until then, I hope you guys have a wonderful weekend and week ahead and I’ll talk with you next Thursday.
Recipes Mentioned
- https://momsdinner.net/homemade-creamed-corn/
- https://momsdinner.net/instant-pot-pulled-pork/
- https://momsdinner.net/instant-pot-boneless-pork-ribs/
- https://momsdinner.net/whole-roasted-chicken/
- https://momsdinner.net/corn-chowder/
Next Week
I hope you will join me every Thursday for a new episode and fresh dinner idea. Next week we are making a Cherry Tomato Pasta, perfect for your summer tomatoes.
Subscribe to our newsletter and never miss and new episode or new recipe! https://momsdinner.net/subscribe/
Subscribe To Stay Connected!
Sign up for the Mom’s Dinner Newsletter, delivered every Sunday morning, straight to your email inbox. It includes all the new recipes, videos, dinner ideas for the week and fun kitchen tips and tricks.
Comments
No Comments