Easy methods to Boil Corn on the Cob

Everybody has their technique for boiling “excellent” ears of candy corn. My in-laws have sworn for years that the most effective technique is to drop the corn right into a pot of boiling water, return it to a boil, then shut off the warmth. At this level, they are saying it is prepared, however they declare you’ll be able to depart the corn within the coated pot so long as the subsequent day and it will nonetheless be nice.

After cooking extra greater than 60 samples of corn, I’ve discovered that their technique wasn’t far off—however the perfect, most foolproof means includes no boiling in any respect. Now wait—wait—as a result of a few of you might have most likely heard this line earlier than and are questioning why I am writing it as if it is one thing new. For many who do not know, the “greatest corn is not boiled” line is kind of equivalent to the recommendation Cook dinner’s Illustrated has lengthy given, however my technique is totally different in small however necessary methods, and after I say no boiling, I imply it. Actually no boiling. Not earlier than the corn is put within the pot, and never after.

In all my testing, although, I’ve come to the conclusion that there are a pair different worthy strategies of cooking corn on the cob. One in all them is, in all honesty, the best way I most frequently prepare dinner corn at residence, particularly after I desire a cob for myself after a visit to the farmers market: the microwave. In side-by-side assessments, I’ve confirmed it’s a nice technique that may produce glorious outcomes. The opposite technique that works fairly properly is steaming, which does contain boiling, however fortunately it is a a lot smaller amount of water, which is a plus each when it comes to time and vitality use.

What Is “Good” Corn on the Cob?

What’s “excellent” corn on the cob? I have a tendency to love mine just a little on the much less completed facet, even having fun with a uncooked ear on occasion, whereas others need theirs totally cooked and tender. Some individuals choose the ultra-long-lasting-sweetness of contemporary corn hybrids, and others will swear that what we have gained in sustained sweetness has been on the expense of the extra strong corn taste of older varieties.

I feel we will all agree, although, that what we do not need is corn that is left to swelter till shriveled and mushy, its taste misplaced to the pot and warmth. Typically talking, we wish corn on the cob that’s candy, not starchy, with kernels which might be plump and tender, and never in in the slightest degree shriveled or mushy.

To a big diploma, corn high quality begins on the market, so earlier than we get to cooking strategies, let’s go over a couple of buying and dealing with suggestions I depend on to ensure I am setting myself up for achievement earlier than the cooking begins:

Buying and Dealing with Ideas for Corn on the Cob

Corn famously loses sweetness as quickly because it’s picked, its pure easy sugars changing into much less candy, extra complicated starches with every passing minute and hour. In actuality, trendy hybrids maintain up significantly better than they used to so far as sweetness longevity goes—not do you need to race from area to cooking pot to lock within the sugars earlier than they fade. However time nonetheless is not in your facet, so that you wish to be sure to choose recent ears of corn on the market, then keep away from ready lengthy earlier than cooking.

This is what to search for:

• Moist silks: The silks are among the best indicators of how not too long ago an ear has been picked. Search for corn silks which might be moist and tender, not brittle and dehydrated.
• Completely developed measurement: Apply the Goldilocks rule to assessing corn maturity—you need ears which might be neither too small and underdeveloped nor too giant and overdeveloped. There is a behavior amongst some corn customers of tearing cobs aside, stripping away the husks to check your complete ear earlier than deciding whether or not to place it of their bag or not. Do not do this. It not solely makes a large number and ruins the corn for subsequent customers, nevertheless it’s additionally pointless. If you wish to test the standing of an ear, gently pull again the husk solely on the tippy high of the ear to peek on the kernels simply on the tapered finish. That is ample for sussing out whether or not you have obtained an immature ear with underdeveloped kernels or an older one which’s grown chunky and difficult with time. Numerous occasions, you’ll be able to even simply really feel it in your hand by means of the husk—does the cob really feel reasonably substantial with out being a lumpy brick or a scrawny featherweight? If the reply is sure, you are seemingly holding a very good ear.
• Don’t be concerned about bugs: I am not saying you can purchase ears of corn which might be riddled with worms, however caterpillars will discover their means into candy ears of corn and it is actually not the top of the world. If something, it is a signal the corn is tasty—actually the caterpillar thinks so.

As soon as you have accomplished your buying, as talked about above, strive to not wait too lengthy earlier than cooking the corn. I usually attempt to eat by means of my market haul inside a day or two on the absolute most; in case you do have to attend, the colder temperature of the fridge will assist protect sugars longer.

The Scope of Testing

The query I am attempting to ask right here is: What’s one of the best ways to boil an ear of corn? That is the literal query, however what I am actually after is just not a selected technique, however a selected consequence, so my testing included not solely boiling but in addition another technique that delivers a consequence akin to boiling. This implies I additionally examined microwaving, steaming, and cooking at sub-boiling temperatures. What I did not take a look at have been all the opposite methods to prepare dinner corn, so this isn’t a information to grilling, roasting, air frying, deep frying, sautéing, or anything.

I additionally did not embody sous vide in my testing, although it arguably produces a like-boiled consequence. I stored it out for 2 causes: First, as a result of we have already got Kenji’s in-depth guide to sous vide corn, and second, as a result of it is a way more impractical technique that wastes plenty of plastic (you must double bag the corn). If you wish to prepare dinner your corn sous vide, by all means please do, nevertheless it requires extra planning, time, and supplies and due to this fact is not the type of on a regular basis answer I am after.

The Science of Cooking Corn

The target of cooking corn on the cob is twofold. We wish to gelatinize the starches within the kernels, swelling them up in order that the corn loses the milky starchiness it has when uncooked. On the identical time, we wish to decrease the breakdown the corn’s pure pectin, which contributes to its mobile construction. That breakdown of pectin is basically liable for the shriveled kernels of overcooked corn.

The difficulty is that on the excessive temperatures of simmering and boiling, each starch gelatinization and pectin degradation are occurring on the identical time. This was exactly the problem Cook dinner’s Illustrated had recognized in their article on perfect cooked corn, they usually rightly concluded that cooking the corn at a sub-boiling temperature someplace within the zone of 170 to 180°F was the candy spot—excessive sufficient to gelatinize the starches however low sufficient to keep away from an excessive amount of harm to the pectin. This fundamental reality can also be why Kenji set his sous vide corn recipe to 183°F—it is just under the temperatures at which pectin breaks down.

My targets at this time are not any totally different, and I knew going into this that I would be sniffing across the identical temperatures and strategies that Cook dinner’s Illustrated and plenty of others have earlier than me. I simply landed in a barely totally different place as soon as I used to be completed.

The Finest Strategies for “Boiling” Corn

Let’s soar proper in. Listed here are all of the strategies I attempted and my outcomes. (Word: As with all Severe Eats assessments, I standardized all attainable variables, together with water quantity and corn portions.)

Primary Boiling

The query is “what’s one of the best ways to boil corn” so I clearly needed to strive straight-up boiling. I introduced a big pot of water to a rolling boil after which dropped my shucked ears in and began a timer straight away (earlier than the water had returned to a boil). The water returned to a boil about two minutes later, and I then started pulling ears of corn out each minute beginning at 4 minutes (the shortest beneficial time I noticed in boiling recipes) and all the best way as much as ten minutes.

Simply primarily based on visible inspection alone, I may see the indicators of the excessive warmth on the corn: Whereas delicate on the three- and four-minute samples, all of the corn had seen wrinkling of the kernels, indicating the pectin was breaking down and the corn was shrivelling.

The four-minute samples have been fairly good—in case you served them to me with no remark, I would fortunately eat them and and never suppose twice about it—however all of the samples from 5 minutes up have been more and more overcooked, with a much less candy, extra pasty taste and texture.

Verdict: Boiling corn for a really brief interval of about three to 4 minutes (timed from the second the corn is added to the boiling water) produces decently good corn, however indicators of the kernels shriveling are seen. Something longer than 5 minutes is just not beneficial. General, truly boiling boiled corn is just not excellent.

The Lower-and-Wait: The Cook dinner’s Illustrated Most popular Methodology

I’ve seen this technique with slight variation over time, however it’s primarily based on some variant of the concept it is higher to let the corn sit off-heat than to constantly boil it. The strategy goes one thing like this: Deliver a pot of water to a boil; reduce off the warmth; add your corn; cowl after which look forward to it to prepare dinner off warmth for some minimal time as much as some most time. For Cook dinner’s Illustrated, that is a minimal of 10 minutes as much as a max of half-hour.

Their clarification for why their technique works is that the corn instantly lowers the temperature of the just-boiled water to the best zone of round 180°F, the place it then can hang around till completed. This can work, nevertheless it’s not foolproof and it isn’t versatile. That is as a result of the Cook dinner’s Illustrated recipe specifies a water quantity (4 quarts), and numerous ears (six). That is an issue, although, as a result of not all of us all the time wish to boil precisely six ears of corn in 4 quarts of water.

Once I ran my assessments on this technique, having learn the Cook dinner’s Illustrated technique however lacking the vital six ears half, I put 4 ears of corn into Dutch oven full of about 4 quarts of just-boiled water, after which watched because the water did not fall wherever even near 180°F. After one minute, it was up at 200°F; after three minutes, it was right down to 190°F; and after 5 minutes at was nonetheless within the excessive 180s. Solely on the 10-minute mark, after I eliminated my first pattern, did the water attain 180°F.

When it comes to precise outcomes, these ears have been higher than boiled corn, however not excellent: The ten-minute pattern was good, however from 11 minutes and better, the corn confirmed minor indicators of shriveling. Almost certainly, I’d have had higher outcomes had I used six ears. However this fundamental reality satisfied me to maneuver on. I wished a way that labored persistently regardless of the quantity of corn you are going to prepare dinner, and largely regardless of the amount of water.

Verdict: Should you observe the restricted parameters precisely, this will work, however why decide to a way that solely works in case you boil six ears of corn in 4 quarts of water? We are able to do higher.

Chilly Begin (The Winner)

If temperatures above boiling are an issue for “boiled” corn, a logical query follows: Why boil the water in any respect?

To seek out out, I dropped all my ears right into a pot of chilly water, then put it over excessive warmth and introduced all of it as much as 180°F collectively, which was straightforward to test with an instant-read thermometer. Then I coated the pot, turned off the warmth, and let it stand.

This technique completed a pair issues. It prevented the necessity to overshoot the best temperature of the water by bringing it to a boil, saving time and vitality, and eradicated the imprecise technique of utilizing the chilly or room-temp corn to drop a too-hot pot again right down to the best zone. In my cold-start technique, every little thing within the pot went as much as 180°F collectively, after which all of it stayed in that zone till I began pulling samples at 10 minutes and persevering with each minute as much as 25.

This corn was superior. All of the samples have been completely plump and tender, with a candy, juicy pop. None of them confirmed indicators of puckering apart from the 25 minute pattern, which had very, very minor indicators of it (on the 25-minute mark, the water was right down to 155°F, at which level the corn was not cooking a lot in any respect and as a substitute simply being stored heat in an aqueous atmosphere.

Verdict: This technique was the most effective, producing corn that was completely cooked however nonetheless bursting with off-the-stalk vitality. Even higher, because it’s primarily based on extra exact temperature management, it really works throughout a large batch sizes and pot sizes: So long as you get your corn and water as much as 180°F after which let it sit in that water for not less than 10 minutes, it’s going to be excellent. This technique affords glorious flexibility on time, since there is a a lot bigger window for nice outcomes; I possibly would not let my corn hand around in the water for greater than about 25 or half-hour, although it’d most likely nonetheless be fairly good even after that.

Steaming (One other Winner)

One other good query is: Why not skip the entire submerging-corn-in-water-thing and steam it as a substitute? To seek out out, I introduced a pot to full steam, added the corn on a steaming rack, after which let it steam, pulling my first pattern at three minutes after which each minute after that as much as seven minutes.

I used to be shocked by how properly this corn turned out. Regardless that steam is the temperature of boiling water (212°F at sea degree) and is at an elevated vitality degree, it is much less dense than water, which ends up in very even however extra mild cooking. In impact, which means that although steam is hotter than the best temperature for boiling corn, it produces profitable outcomes, particularly on the shorter finish of the time spectrum at three to 4 minutes (longer-cooked samples have been additionally good however beginning to lose some vibrancy).

Verdict: This can be a good and environment friendly choice, and the small quantity of water required speeds the cooking time up in comparison with conventional boiling—it is a lot faster for an inch of water to achieve the boiling level than to warmth an entire pot. I nonetheless just like the chilly begin extra for its giant margin of error on the cooking time, and for its general precision throughout the excellent cooking temp zone, however steaming is a legitimate different.

Microwaving (But One Extra Winner)

Final thought—why use water in any respect apart from the pure water of the corn? That is the place the microwave is available in. Merely pop the corn, nonetheless within the husk, in a microwave and run it on excessive energy for a couple of minutes. Precisely how lengthy is determined by what number of ears of corn you are cooking and the facility of your microwave, however I discover that two to a few minutes is nice for a single ear, whereas 5 to 6 minutes may be good for about 4 ears directly.

Some individuals like so as to add a step by which you chop off the underside of the corn simply above the stem as a way to extra simply slip the ear out of the husk as soon as it is cooked, supposedly free of virtually all its silks. I have not had nice luck with this little trick, however possibly that is simply me. Maybe with just a little extra observe I can nail the dismount.

You are additionally more likely to see this technique beneficial two methods: One requires microwaving the corn in its husk, the opposite has you shuck the corn first, then wrap the ears in damp paper towels for the microwaving half. Let me prevent the time proper now: The shuck-first technique is to be prevented. Not solely does it needlessly waste paper towels, nevertheless it does away with the right pure steam jacket for every ear—its personal husk—in favor of a much less efficient synthetic one.

For the document, that is the tactic I take advantage of at residence essentially the most: It is simple, it is quick, and it really works even for particular person ears of corn, which I scarf down whereas standing over my kitchen sink in the midst of the most popular days of summer time.

Verdict: That is one other nice, low-effort, high-efficiency technique for shortly cooking smaller quantities of corn. It is important to microwave the corn in its husk, which is the higher, extra pure, much less wasteful approach to entice steam round every ear. This technique will probably require some tinkering at residence with your personal microwave and corn, however as soon as you determine your most well-liked cooking occasions, you may be very proud of the outcomes.

Salt and Flavorings

Earlier than wrapping up my testing, I had one small remaining query, which needed to do with seasoning the cooking water for the strategies that contain submerging the corn. Actually, the large query was whether or not it made sense so as to add salt or not, however I additionally had a (considerably unusual) thought that possibly the husks may add a deeper taste if tossed into the pot with their ears (I feel possibly I used to be riffing on the truth that corn grilled in its husk is so good and flavorful and wished to see if that translated to different cooking strategies, however I admit it was a stretch). Whereas the water is also flavored with numerous different issues like herbs, I did not go down that testing highway; it felt too finicky and troublesome for the common-or-garden boiled ear of corn.

To look as soon as extra at that Cook dinner’s Illustrated corn article—I am not attempting to choose on them, they only have one of the in-depth and science-based discussions of corn boiling on the market, so it is onerous to not reference them right here—they declare that salting the corn cooking water makes no distinction. Of their assessments, they discovered that the salt was unable to penetrate the kernels until they ears have been allowed to take a seat within the water for an extreme period of time. The reason they gave was that the salt can solely actually work its means into the kernels by being absorbed by means of the cob first, which is a gradual course of. Their conclusion: Do not trouble salting the water, simply season the corn afterwards once you serve it.

To test on this, I made a 2% salt answer and cooked my corn in that following the cold-start technique I would already recognized as my favourite. After cooking, I tasted a chunk of the corn and located it properly seasoned. Maybe, I believed, the salt is simply on the floor and if I rinse the cobs I will not style it any extra—that’d align with the Cook dinner’s Illustrated discovering. So I ran my corn below operating recent water for about ten seconds, then tasted it once more. And it was nonetheless very clearly seasoned with salt!

What’s this about? I believe Cook dinner’s Illustrated is kind of proper about salt not likely stepping into the kernels shortly or simply, however even when they’re proper, my testing signifies that at the same time as a floor remedy, salt is ready to cling to the corn and burrow down into the the tight areas between the kernels such that even washing will not totally take away it. Does that imply salting the water is invalid simply because it is a floor remedy? Not in my e-book! It looks like a great way to get even seasoning everywhere in the corn with out overly salted spots or bits of undissolved salt sprinkled on it.

On the identical time, although, I do not suppose salting the water is crucial. Including salt to the cooking water is extra wasteful of salt, as a result of the one approach to get it salty sufficient requires including sufficient to season not simply the corn however all the water—similar to once you cook pasta. Most of that salt finally ends up taking place the drain with the water once you dump the pot out.

I also needs to observe that I noticed no ailing results of salting the cooking water. I say this as a result of we already know that brining corn is a really bad idea. However it appears that evidently the cooking time for the ears of corn is brief sufficient to not trigger the corn to dry out.

As for cooking the corn with the husks within the water, it was a dumb thought, let’s neglect I even tried it.

Verdict: Salt could be a floor remedy that does not penetrate into the kernels of corn shortly sufficient, nevertheless it’s nonetheless a floor remedy that works. Salt your cooking water if you wish to (ensure that the water tastes properly seasoned, similar to pasta), or do not and save the salt for serving time. Works both means.