Wednesday, August 20, 2014

Easy “Squeezy” Corn on the Cobb

I saw this technique on the Huffington Post a while back, and while it wasn’t the first time I’d seen, or used the micro-method, it was the first time I’d seen it in video form, thanks to the lovely and talented, Carl Blemming. By the way, I’m assuming Huff Po didn’t pay him anything for it, so to make up for that, neither will we.

This proves something that I’ve known for years…no matter how great a kitchen technique is, unless you use it regularly, you’ll forget about it. Usually, as soon as I get home from the store, I shuck the corn, and go from there, but as soon as I saw that ear go into Carl’s microwave, it all came back. Now I can forget about it all over again.

I’ve heard through the grapevine that some other food channels have also published this “hack” recently, but since I don’t watch anyone else, I can’t confirm those reports, but I couldn't have been the only one. The point is, it works. It works perfectly, and I hope you give it a try soon. Enjoy!

20 comments:

FSB said...

Did we see your reflection dancing in bunny-slippers and shorts there?

aaronchow said...

That's so smart!

Josh said...

Seriously, I love your wry sense of humor. Oh, the methods of today. I mean, the innovations of today. Have you ever wondered what folks did in the 1800s? I suppose that they all had split and broken kernels of corn. Them poor bastards! ;)

Angela said...

Wow! I am running to the farmers'market and getting some corn!

Chef John said...

I can't confirm or deny those are bunny-slippers and shorts.

Unknown said...

No cayenne? Sacrilege.

Unknown said...

Chef John, you haven't lived until you put fresh pepper on your corn along with the salt and butter.

massagemick said...

I do the 333 or 888 timing too.

Chris K. said...

How To Butter Corn On The Cob

Take a slice of white bread. Slather one side with butter. Holding it in your hand (dry side down), run your corn cob along the buttered side. Repeat as necessary.

When all the corn is buttered, eat the bread.

BOOM

That is how to butter corn on the cob.

Kris said...

I have the same microwave! Still have no idea what "Inverter Turbo Defrost" does, or what makes it Turbo or Inverter. I'm pretty sure their marketing team decided just plain "Defrost" didn't sound nearly edgy enough.

neil said...

We prefer to grill our corn with the husks on…we soak it in water and then grill it. Would this method work as well for corn grilled this way…or would it be better to cook in the microwave first then de-husk/silk and then put on the grill just enough for grill marks?

rancholyn said...

Will be trying this method tonight...how many ears of corn have you tried this method? is it 330 min. per ear?

Unknown said...

We've been microwaving, but first we'd take off the husk, and the strings, then wrap it in a wet paper towel. Geesh! This method is a much easier and a cleaner way to fix corn on the cob. Thanks for eliminating a lot of unnecessary steps.

fineman said...

Another way to cook corn. Get half kg table salt which is little garainy. Heat up in sause pan. And put the de-husk corn therein. Stir and when brown pu in palte and cool it down before eating.

Racer said...

Chef John, this post is a year to the day of the other posts. I just watched the video. Is the cook time 3:30 minutes per ear of corn, or just 3:30 minutes. I want to cook 6 ears at once. How long would that be?

Chef John said...

Never done more than one at a time. They stay hot a LONG time in the husk, so I just do they while working on the main course.

Cacar said...

I tried this last night and it worked perfectly, the corn was cooked to perfection with no nasty corn silk. It's also great if you just cooking for one.

Unknown said...

Hi, Chef John! I love your recipes and make them alot. Since I am a big fan of both your jokes and the old tv show MASH, I came up with this joke for you: You are after all, the Benjamin Franklin Pierce of your microwaved corn-cob ears!
Hope you like the joke!
Sincerely,
JocularityGirl

John said...

Three comments:

1. I have been microwaving corn for decades and never knew this clever tip for getting rid of the silk. Thanks.

2.My experience with all methods of cooking corn is that its done when it smells like corn. There is a lot of biological variability between corn from different sources and the state of hydration of the ears is probably also a factor. Sometimes 6 min is fine for 4 ears.

3. The very best way to butter corn is to put a stick of room temp butter on the table on a flat plate. Put the ear on corn holders and revolve it on top of the stick of butter until the ear is sufficiently buttered (maybe sufficiently buttered is an impossible goal). Any leftover butter can be used in cooking other things.

Racer said...

Hi Chef John, I have been saving your YouTube posts for quite some time. I like the way you walk us through the cooking process while adding a little humor in now and then. Just one suggestion for my way to butter corn. No matter how you cook it, boil, steam, or microwave.
Melt about 1/2 stick of butter, (depending on the number of ears being cooked) in a coffee cup. Stick the cooked ear of corn into the coffee cup and baste the ear with a small basting brush. Works great!