Can I Eat This? Corn on the cob edition
July 21, 2013 5:12 PM Subscribe
I bought some fresh yellow sweet corn about a week ago, shucked it and stored it in a plastic bag in my fridge. Tonight I boiled it for supper and when it came out of the pot, several kernels on each ear had turned brown. Some are light brown, some are a bit darker and some are nearly black. The corn looked and smelled fine when I put in the pot. Why did this happen? Is it safe to eat?
Totally fine. I would just cut off the brown parts.
And for future, you can leave them in the husks and put them in the oven at 350 (husks and all - on the wire rack). Put them in for 20-30 minutes. They are ready when you smell the corn smell. Take them out, let them sit until you can handle them and then shuck. The silks dehydrate in te oven and shrink back making it so much easier to shuck. I just learned this method and I'll never go back to boiling!
(This is assuming an electric oven. For gas, you'd obviously want to make sure the husks are far enough away from the flames.)
posted by dawkins_7 at 5:49 PM on July 21, 2013 [5 favorites]
And for future, you can leave them in the husks and put them in the oven at 350 (husks and all - on the wire rack). Put them in for 20-30 minutes. They are ready when you smell the corn smell. Take them out, let them sit until you can handle them and then shuck. The silks dehydrate in te oven and shrink back making it so much easier to shuck. I just learned this method and I'll never go back to boiling!
(This is assuming an electric oven. For gas, you'd obviously want to make sure the husks are far enough away from the flames.)
posted by dawkins_7 at 5:49 PM on July 21, 2013 [5 favorites]
Yes, just cut off the brown parts and eat the rest.
Per the person who sells us fresh corn at the local farmers market, in the future, store the corn in its husks, keeping the husks as intact as possible. Store the corn still in its husks in a bag in the fridge, with the stem ends toward the open end of the bag rather the reverse. Shuck it right before you are going to cook it. A week is kind of the upper end of the time to keep it, even in the husk; we usually cook fresh corn within a few days of purchase. I would not shuck and keep corn more than a day, if that.
(Note that I grew up in an area full of corn farms, so I'm pretty picky about freshness.)
posted by gudrun at 6:07 PM on July 21, 2013 [1 favorite]
Per the person who sells us fresh corn at the local farmers market, in the future, store the corn in its husks, keeping the husks as intact as possible. Store the corn still in its husks in a bag in the fridge, with the stem ends toward the open end of the bag rather the reverse. Shuck it right before you are going to cook it. A week is kind of the upper end of the time to keep it, even in the husk; we usually cook fresh corn within a few days of purchase. I would not shuck and keep corn more than a day, if that.
(Note that I grew up in an area full of corn farms, so I'm pretty picky about freshness.)
posted by gudrun at 6:07 PM on July 21, 2013 [1 favorite]
Even faster than Dawkins_7 method - just put unshucked corn in the microwave and cook for 2 -4 minutes depending on your microwave. Similar shrinking of the silks for easy removal and Voila - instant dinner
posted by insomniax at 7:23 PM on July 21, 2013 [3 favorites]
posted by insomniax at 7:23 PM on July 21, 2013 [3 favorites]
The article I've linked below is about canning, but your experience may be due to overcooking a "super-sweet" variety rather than the corn going bad:
My sweet corn turned brown during canning
There are a couple of reasons why corn turns an unappetizing brown after processing. The most common is that the corn is one of the newer super-sweet varieties. Plant or buy a variety of corn that is not "extra sweet" or "unbelievably sweet." One popular variety sold is Kandy Korn, a super-sweet best seller. It is very good, eaten fresh. But it is a poor choice to can. I've done it with mixed results; some batches are fine, others turn brown.
Another possibility is that the corn was processed at too high a temperature. This often happens when a person fails to monitor the pressure gauge while the corn is processing. If you should be processing at 10 pounds pressure, don't assume that 15 will make it "better."
Make sure that water covers the corn well and that you use the correct headspace recommendations.
If you do end up with unappetizing brown corn, it is fine to eat. Most folks won't want to eat it as a side dish because of its appearance, so just use it in your recipes.
posted by 445supermag at 7:42 PM on July 21, 2013
My sweet corn turned brown during canning
There are a couple of reasons why corn turns an unappetizing brown after processing. The most common is that the corn is one of the newer super-sweet varieties. Plant or buy a variety of corn that is not "extra sweet" or "unbelievably sweet." One popular variety sold is Kandy Korn, a super-sweet best seller. It is very good, eaten fresh. But it is a poor choice to can. I've done it with mixed results; some batches are fine, others turn brown.
Another possibility is that the corn was processed at too high a temperature. This often happens when a person fails to monitor the pressure gauge while the corn is processing. If you should be processing at 10 pounds pressure, don't assume that 15 will make it "better."
Make sure that water covers the corn well and that you use the correct headspace recommendations.
If you do end up with unappetizing brown corn, it is fine to eat. Most folks won't want to eat it as a side dish because of its appearance, so just use it in your recipes.
posted by 445supermag at 7:42 PM on July 21, 2013
Response by poster: I wound up throwing it out as it just didn't look appetizing. I appreciate the info on fresh corn storage/cooking as I will know for next time.
You'd think I might know this as I also grew up in corn country, but I was raised by wolves and apparently didn't learn anything about how to fix it.
posted by Serene Empress Dork at 7:53 AM on July 22, 2013
You'd think I might know this as I also grew up in corn country, but I was raised by wolves and apparently didn't learn anything about how to fix it.
posted by Serene Empress Dork at 7:53 AM on July 22, 2013
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(I generally would not store shucked corn more than two days, it will get tough and mealy though it can still be eaten.)
posted by DarlingBri at 5:48 PM on July 21, 2013 [1 favorite]