fitfool | Chili-Lime Fried Corn Off the Cob

I love corn on the cob but for some reason, it's not something that my boyfriend gets excited about. He'll eat it but it's nothing special for him. But me? I can easily munch away on 2 or 3 ears of corn. Maybe it's because I grew up with corn growing in our backyard garden and I remember the days spent hoeing and weeding, clods of dirt crumbled between my fingers. I loved walking through the stalks, selecting which ears to pick for dinner in an hour. Well, I loved it until I read that creepy short story by Stephen King called "Children of the Corn" anyhow. After that, my enjoyment was marred by an intermittent wave of nervousness.

Anyhow....How could I make corn into something my boyfriend could get excited about? Because once summer corn hits and it goes on sale for 5 or 6 ears of corn for a single dollar, all I want to do is eat corn. Settled on Fried Corn Off the Cob. I thought cutting the ears off the cob would be a pain, but it's not too much hassle after all.

He liked Fried Corn Off the Cob better than boiled corn on the cob but still wasn't all that excited. But then I added chili powder and lime juice. And now? Now he likes it so much he'll cut the kernels off the cobs for me lest I decide to skip it and just boil the corn.

Chili-Lime Fried Corn Off the Cob

2 ears of corn
1 Tbsp butter
salt
pepper
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp lime juice

Cut the kernels off the corn cob. Then run the back of the knife and then with a spoon to scrape out all the little bits of corn and juice out of it. Set the corn kernels aside.
Heat 2 or 3 teaspoons of butter in a skillet and let the butter melt and bubble slightly.
Add back all the corn and stir around a lot to mix the butter with the corn kernels. Add some salt and pepper to taste. If you stop at this step, you've got the regular Fried Corn Off the Cob that I started with.
Add 1 tsp chili powder and 1 tsp lime juice to the mixture. Stir. Fry for a total of about 5 minutes.

Fried Corn Off the Cob

Chili-Lime Fried Corn Off the Cob

Adapted from this recipe:
http://recipes.pauladeen.com/index.php/forums/viewthread/1914/

Thread at vegrecipes: http://community.livejournal.com/vegrecipes/1681722.html

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

I love how you're finding compromises to suit both your food preferences.
Manolo and I both prefer corn on the cob and very fresh...We can't get corn on the cob here. That is so sad. Just canned and frozen.
:(

so it really is a crop from the New World? :)

Wikipedia says France is among the top 10 producers for corn. Seems a shame they can't send some of that corn on the cob to you. Wait...but at least you spend summers where you can get lots of corn :)

Yes, it is American all the way.
Corn was never a big "people food" in Europe and nobody realizes how good it is fresh on the cob.
Most of the corn produced is animal food and what isn't field corn is canned or frozen only. Every once in a while I see two small ears looking all old and wrinkled packaged in the "fresh" produce section. Ick.

But yes, we will have lots of corn this summer!
:)

perfect icon!

:)
Thank you!

I have the same problem here in Germany. It's so depressing! There's ton of corn around, but it's all feed corn for the animals, no sweet corn. What I can get is yellow (and not fresh, and expensive). I much prefer white.

Yes. It's exactly the same situation here in Spain.

...I need to try this immediately!

I love it when I see a recipe that makes me want to try it right away. Hope you like it!

Unfortunately, in practice "immediately" will probably be more like "in a week or so when I can acquire some corn and the time in which to mess with it." But still!

oh...the impulse is there but gratification can be quite delayed for weeks, even years! Yesterday I finally found nutritional yeast, an ingredient for a recipe that I had marked "TRY THIS NOW" back in February.

Made this today, and it was amaaazing. Thank you for the recipe! Definitely going into the rotation.

Mmmm, this looks so good and it's so simple!

that sounds and looks awesome!

I love fresh corn on the cob, but that looks awesome. I have some non-local corn in the fridge, in fact... hmm.

A few years ago, we went to a wedding in VT where they roasted a heap of corn on coals in a big metal trough. I think I ate five or more ears, damn that stuff was good.

Definitely snagging this one! I *love* fresh corn and I love trying new recipes. OM NOM NOM!

PS. Living in "corn country" I know just what you mean about that dratted short story (and films!) by Stephen King too.

I live in a town which has the joy of being home to a family that decided to put their children through college by growing and selling sweet corn every summer.
They put up these little stands all over half the state, and deliver corn to them every morning. Most of the time, if you don't get there before noon, you are too late, unless you call and order some to be held for you.
I have no idea how big their acreage is, but they can barely keep up, even ten years later! I'd imagine it has made them a small fortune, by now! They also cut a maze into it every year at halloween, after the harvest is over.

Every recipe you post looks sooooooooo delicious. My mouth is watering!

I love corn right off the cob too and I often don't even butter it. This sounds lovely too. What's the easiest way to get the kernels off of the cob? Just run a knife behind them?

Yeah...I often skip buttering the corn too when eating it on the cob. Surprises me since I had loved smothering corn with butter when I was a kid.

There's a nice guide over at Simply Recipes:
http://simplyrecipes.com/recipes/easy_tip_for_getting_corn_off_the_cob/

I didn't have a bundt pan so I've just been setting the tip of the cob in a cast-iron skillet and cutting it into the pan. I grasp the stump end with my steadying hand and then use a sharp knife to cut the kernels off.

Edited 2010-06-08 20:06 (UTC)

I used to butter and salt it when I was a kid but now it tastes just fine on it's own, especially that butter and sugar variety. Yum!

And we're growing corn in our back yard right now! I'm going to try this, thanks!

I've been contemplating picking up a couple ears of corn - I grew up where "having corn for dinner" was a treat we got a couple times a year in August when local corn on the cob was ready. We would boil up a couple dozen ears of corn, and sit down to a meal of corn on the cob, with butter and salt.

But this looks good too - maybe I'll get an extra couple ears and make some up like this after I boil the others....

Mmmm... looks and sounds tasty! Coincidentally, I just picked up some fresh corn at the Farmer's market. I may have to give this a try. Thanks for posting the recipe!

I'm a corn girl myself! We have loads of corn on the cob in Denmark during the season (but I have heard of it being difficult to find in Germany), and I've eaten it thrice already this month. Luckily we both are quite happy to eat them lightly boiled, since I would be too lazy to cut off the kernels. :p

Glad you have easy access to corn :) In winter, I had been making this with frozen corn kernels. Still pretty good but not nearly as good as with fresh corn cut off the cob. If you do feel up for it, I highly recommend trying it some time. It was easier to cut off the cob than I had expected (though not sooo much easier that I don't still just eat it lightly boiled sometimes)

Hmmm, if it's not too much of a hassle, I might give it a try. :)

Chili-Lime Fried Corn Off the Cob

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