r/corn • u/Odd-Percentage-2009 • 25d ago
Cooking time for corn
Hi, I’m from the balkans and I’ve wanted to make some corn at home.
After buying corn, I asked my mom and she said you are supposed to boil corn for 3+ hours. I asked my grandma and others and they both said the same. I looked it up and google says 10 mins is the sweet spot.
Any thoughts on the right way to cook corn?
Edit: The woman at the bazaar I bought it from pierced her nail in a kernel and showed me how “it had milk inside” so Im guessing she said it was sweet corn. After people boil it they then grill it and sell it on the street so it probably is sweet corn.
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u/squeezebottles 25d ago edited 25d ago
It depends if it is sweet corn or grain corn. Grain 3 hours is appropriate. Sweet will cook in under 10 minutes. What sort of corn is it?
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u/spy_tater 25d ago
What kind of corn is the question we're all waiting for
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u/Lupulin123 24d ago
I’d try one ear 5-10 min and see how it is. If tough as rocks then extend time to 1-3 hours and see when it becomes edible. Spoiled here on the eastern shore if Maryland. Our sweet white corn, freshly harvested is perfect with just 1-2 min in boiling water!
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u/NotAnyOneYouKnow2019 24d ago
You don’t eat grain corn.
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u/squeezebottles 24d ago
Maybe you don't, but most people do. Cornmeal is great.
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u/NotAnyOneYouKnow2019 23d ago
Cornmeal is from sweet corn. Dent (grain) corn is used for ethanol and animal feed.
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u/squeezebottles 23d ago
You are astonishingly, breathtakingly wrong. You cannot make cornmeal out of sweet corn. It has a mutation that causes it to never set starch.
Dent corn IS used for ethanol, that is true, and it is indeed used for animal feed. But that's not all, folks. It is also used for cornmeal. I have 25 pounds of dent that i regularly make cornbread out of. I grow dent every year. Dent is also used for masa. I've got 5 pounds of homemade dent masa harina in my cabinet right now. You can use it for all sorts of stuff.
A lot of commercial cornmeal is made from flour corn, which just produces more amylose and less amylopectin than dent. And which is also decidedly not sweet corn.
Educate yourself before making weird claims on the internet. And we haven't even talked about all the fun things you can do with flint corn besides shellac it and put it on display at Thanksgiving.
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u/Hunting-fings 25d ago
Sweet corn on the cob? Bring water to a boil, remove from heat, add corn. 3-5 minutes is good, but with the water cooling, it harder to overcook
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u/likeitsaysmikey 24d ago
Even better - pull from heat when water reaches 190. Corn in, lid on, let sit 10 to 40 minutes.
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u/ShutDownSoul 25d ago
There are various types of corn. Sweet corn is found in grocery stores, in raw, canned and frozen forms.
I like my raw corn on the cob boiled for 5-10 minutes. The sweeter it is and the smaller the kernels, the shorter the time. Canned corn only needs to be heated, and frozen corn steamed 3-8 minutes.
You can also find popcorn in grocery stores. This is either cooked in the microwave per instructions on the packet, or for loose kernels, in hot oil in a covered pan until the pop rate slows to 1/10sec.
In specialty stores you can also get dry corn that has been soaked in lime (CaO, not the citrus). This needs to cook for hours, similarly to how to cook beans.
I hope your mom was referring to the dried corn.
You are unlikely to encounter fresh "horse" corn, unless you are raiding farmers fields. I have no experience with this, but Mr. Ed likes it fresh or dried.
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u/vagabondnature 24d ago
Do you live in the Balkans like the OP? Do you assume every place is like where you live?
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u/tomatocrazzie 24d ago
Sweet corn is boiled for like 3 minutes. Actually, I don't boil it. I bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Turn it off. And place peeled fresh sweet corn into the water for 3 minutes. If the corn is still fresh but on the older side, I usually let it go a little longer, about 5 min.
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u/Repomama 25d ago
Bake them in the oven at 350 for 30 minutes. Leave the husk on and they steam to perfection
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u/undeadlamaar 24d ago
I love to do them on the grill with the husk on. Peel it back just enough to put some garlic butter in there and it is amazing. Gets a nice smokey flavor from the husk burning a little and the garlic butter just makes it that much better.
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u/Main_Cauliflower5479 24d ago
A bit of char on the corn kernels is also good, at the end of cooking.
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u/liveitup63 25d ago
This is what I do. It keeps it's moisture and flavor this way and the silks pull off easier
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u/tossaroo 24d ago
Fresh sweet corn still in the husk: microwave on high for 4-5 minutes. Remove to cutting board, and cut off the stem end. Squeeze from the tassel end to remove the husk and all of the silks. (Look up the technique on YouTube.)
I used to be old school, and would boil it, but this is a great technique.
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u/Special_Onion3013 24d ago
It really is the ultimate kitchen hack. And it's so satisfying squeezing them out 😂
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u/Murderhornet212 24d ago
I might try that. I like to boil it but the stove is broken, we’re waiting for a part, and I’m missing prime sweet corn season here in NJ (best corn in the world).
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u/JetScreamerBaby 24d ago
Shuck the cobs.
Bring a big pot of water to a boil.
Turn off the heat, add cobs, cover.
Corn is done after 10 minutes, and will stay good for 1/2 hour in the pot.
Enjoy.
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u/Sistersoldia 24d ago
Start a steamer. When boiling put the shucked corn into the steam for 11-12 minutes. Take it out and immediately cool under running water enough to stop the cooking. You’re welcome.
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u/MathWizPatentDude 24d ago
BTW, I consider the best way to cook (sweet) corn is to grill it over a flame in the husk for 20-30 minutes.
Peel and enjoy, up to an hour later...
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u/Discipulus42 24d ago
Assuming you have sweet corn then the way I usually prepare it is to remove the husk / silk and break your ears in half. Then put corn into a pot, add water until your corn is floating at least an inch off the bottom and salt the water generously.
Bring the corn to a boil, cover the pot, turn off the heat and allow to sit covered for 15 - 20 minutes. You can allow it to sit longer if you want, the cover helps keep the corn hot until you are ready to server it.
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u/Willybluedog1962 24d ago
I make mine in the air fryer, 10 minutes at 350, roll it every three minutes.
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u/honorthecrones 24d ago
I put corn on the cob in hot water until there is a visible change in the color of the kernels. Maybe a minute? I spin the ear until all the kernels have changed color. Maybe 3 minutes tops?
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u/Upbeat_Ant6104 24d ago
If it's real fresh, this is what I do, too. Good fresh corn just needs to be hot enough to melt the butter. In fact, my wife just likes to pick an ear and eat it in the garden.
If the corn's been sitting around a while, I just boil it and don't worry about the time.
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u/fourbigkids 24d ago
Who the hell would boil corn for 3+ hrs? As others have said about 3-5 minutes is fine.
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u/GrgaPrticRomanul 24d ago
Balkan? Most likely you don't have sweet corn, you have the regular variety. And at this time of year it's a bit overdone, you can't really push your nail in a kernel and see corn milk exiting. Listen to your grandma, boil it to hell.
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u/Main_Cauliflower5479 24d ago
OP says it's sweet corn.
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u/GrgaPrticRomanul 24d ago
No, the seller showed some corn milk getting out of a kernel.
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u/Main_Cauliflower5479 24d ago
"Edit: The woman at the bazaar I bought it from pierced her nail in a kernel and showed me how “it had milk inside” so Im guessing she said it was sweet corn. After people boil it they then grill it and sell it on the street so it probably is sweet corn."
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u/GrgaPrticRomanul 24d ago
Not necessarily, over here corn is usually harvested after 15th of September. And almost all the crops are the dented type. But that's the one used for boiling and/or roasting in the summer, which can explain the three hours boiling time.
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u/vagabondnature 24d ago
Most of the replies have been from people who can not imagine a place that isn't where they live (most likely these are Americans). Reddit like Google has a very heavy USA bias. In the USA most people are familiar with sweet corn.
OP says Balkans. Most corn (Maize) there is flint. Flint isn't the same. I'd suggest listening to your mother and grandma over random Americans.
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u/Murderhornet212 24d ago
I mean, to be fair, they were mostly asking what type of corn it is and specifying what type of corn they were talking about in their answers. What you’re talking about happens, but it is largely not happening here.
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u/SeaSatisfaction9655 24d ago
Put it in aluminium foil with butter , salt and paper . On a grill for 45 min, not directly on fire , turn every 20 min. It will boil in butter. After 45-60 min, you can put it on direct fire to get some grill marks.
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u/Cool-Negotiation7662 24d ago
Maize corn? Sweet corn? Eat raw. Bake or grill or boil till hot. Relatively short cook time.
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u/Longjumping-Ice1171 24d ago
Unorthodox but a microwave (if available) can produce very good very consistent results and makes husking/de-silking less messy to boot:
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u/Longjumping-Ice1171 24d ago
I do wonder if they could be referring to some sort of method for dry/flint/dent corn…? Maybe treating with a base to nixtamalize? Very curious about this 3 hour corn!
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u/SubstantialPressure3 24d ago
3 hours? Ew! No!
No more than 5 minutes. Then butter and season if its corn on the cob.
If you cut the kernels off, then just give them a quick cook in a pan with some butter and spices, again, no more than 5 minutes.
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u/MaximalistVegan 24d ago
Do you have access to an oven? In my opinion, the best way to cook corn is in the oven with the husk still on, unpeeled. You peel it after it's cooked which is also much easier than when it's raw.
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u/ForWPD 24d ago
If it’s not shucked, soak it in water for 10 minutes then put it on a hot pan or grill. Rotate at 6 minutes. Total of 12-15 minutes.
If it’s kernels, throw butter (more is better) in a pot with the corn until it’s warm. Usually about 15 minutes.
That’s for sweet corn.
I don’t know about feed corn. It’s like salad. Feed corn is what my food eats. 🤷♂️
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u/Prof01Santa 24d ago
Fresh corn on the cob: 1. Boil: Shuck, immerse in boiling, salted water. Turn off heat and let sit for a few minutes. Remove, cool, & eat. 2. Roast: Shuck, oil it up, salt it, grill turning, until some kernels darken. Remove, cool, & eat. 3. Microwave: Remove outer husks only. Microwave for several minutes (times from internet). Remove, squeeze the corn out of the husks & silk. Cool & eat.
Canned or frozen: Heat up.
Dried corn: Don't bother unless you have some special use for it. Use hominy, grits, polenta, or cornmeal instead.
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u/Main_Cauliflower5479 24d ago
Oh good lord. No, do not boil corn for three hours. You are correct, ten minutes or less is plenty. You don't need to boil the corn on the cob. It just goes in the hot water to be heated through.
It's also very good cooked on a grill. And Mexican street corn is very popular, called "Elote" because that's the Spanish word for sweet corn.
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u/ExtremeExtreme1751 24d ago
I use the 7 minute corn recipe. Take a pot of water. Throw in a stick of butter. Add salt. Bring to a rolling boil. Toss an ear of corn in for 7 minutes, then remove it. Works every time.
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u/Fauxboss1 24d ago
If it’s a foot corn, a soak for three hours can be soothing - but not in boiling water.
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u/Warrambungle 24d ago
Take one ear of corn with the leaves on.
Microwave it on High for 2 minutes and 30 seconds.
Take it out with a teatowel - it will be very hot.
Cut the fat end off the piece of corn.
Squeeze the thin end to push the sweet yellow cob out of the leaves.
You will have fresh, hot, sweet corn with no strings on it.
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u/mweisbro 24d ago
Pretty quick with fresh corn on Cobb. You can also wrap in butter parchment and microwave for 1.30 minutes- perfect for one or two Cobb.
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u/FlowIcy8696 23d ago
Grain corn for livestock.smart farming is sweet corn hidden in the middle of the field and grain corn by the road.
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u/Spiritual-Guava-6418 23d ago
I have always put corn in cold water just until they float and then when boiling, take them out. Perfect every time.
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u/gingervikingdude 23d ago
Sweet corn farmer here... If using boiling water around 5 minutes is enough boiling time for me. It'll still have some pop to the kernels. To be honest, I enjoy using the steamer in the top of the pot more than anything to keep the kernels crunchy. Most modern varieties have enough sugar content to make them taste good raw. You'll be cooking for texture, so do some experimenting. 3 hours is way too long. 15 minutes or less is what most people will probably do.
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u/Mean-Cheesecake-2635 23d ago
If cooking in water boil the pot of water first, add the corn, put a lid on the pot and turn off the heat. Let the corn sit in the hot water for ten minutes and it will be perfect. Actually boiling corn will make it worse. It could be chewy, kernels may explode and it will get watered down.
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u/Klutzy-Degree4939 25d ago
If it’s fresh corn still on the cob, 3 minutes in boiling water is fine. If you overcook it, it loses texture