New Foodsaver, and End of the Corn !


 
D

D Larsen

TVWBB Super Fan
Okay, so I finally bought a Foodsaver....and "corn season" here in MD is coming to an end...we've had some REALLY good corn this year !

Any recommendations on how to "save" some great corn to enjoy in the cold months ? I saw Bryan S.'s post re: corn chowder, etc, but I was looking for something that would taste like "fresh" COTC in Feb (if there IS such a thing !)
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The FS Guide says veggies must be "blanched" first for 7-11 minutes (for COTC) and then pre-frozen. We usually steam our corn for 20 minutes, so how do you re-heat COTC prepped that way ? Also, what about fresh corn, stripped from the cob ("niblets" ?) ?

Thanks for any advice !

Dean...
 
Blanching is essential. Supersweets require less time than sweets (7-11 is too long, imo.

Bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil. Meanwhile, shuck and silk the corn. Set up a pot or bowl with water and ice.

You want the water to return to a boil fairly quickly so don't load the pot. Add a few ears to the pot and start your timer. For supersweets, blanch cobs that you plan on cutting the kernels from for 4 min. Blanch cobs that will be left whole for 5.5 min. When the timer buzzes immediately remove the corn from the pot and plunge into the iced water. Add new corn to the pot and reset the timer. Chill the corn in the ice water for the same amount of time it blanched. Remove it and allow to drain then transfer blanched corn to the ice water; repeat till done. (Add ice as needed.)

Dry the corn well. Load bags with the whole cobs and vac--stopping the vac just before the plastic gets tight around the cobs. Freeze. Reheat in the bag in a pot of hot water, as you would butt--or nuke.

For kernel corn, after blanching, chilling and drying cut the kernels off the cob, package and vac, also stopping the vac just shy of tight.

For sweet as opposed to supersweet, blanch 1 min longer for kernels, 1.5 min longer for cobs.
 
Great recommendations (IMO) Kevin. The only thing I would add is; as much I like "corn on the cob" from a practical (storage wise) and I think, even flavor wise; remove from the cob. It's difficult to stop the enzymatic action completely back and through the cob without the longer blanch time. Consequently the corn kernels graduate to being fully cooked. If you remove the kernels I think that you can even then shorten the blanching to two min. (assuming a true rolling boil) and then ice bath, remove. That gives will give you an "essentially" raw crisp and favorable corn to do with as you'd like. In my personal experience I've been happier with "sweet corn" as opposed to the super sweets for freezing. Also, I have a whole bunch of "smoked corn" bagged in for the addition to my black bean, smoke roasted, corn salsa!
 
Thanks, Kevin and Marc, for the responses ! You all have given me good info on how to proceed
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Could you expand a bit on what you mean by "sweet" and "supersweet" ? I assume it's the "variety" of the corn.....any tips on how to identify that, short of asking the guy who's selling it, in the husk, out of the back of his truck ?
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If I remember correctly, the corn that's white, and has small kernels, is generally sweeter....true ?

Dean...
 
Hi,

When vacuum saving foods like corn off the cob, fresh blueberries, or any small fruits and veggies, first place them in a single layer on a sheet pan and freeze before bagging. This way you wont have a large lump of frozen, stuck together food.

Al
 
Yes 4 min in boiling water and plunge into ice water. Then yes to cut it off the cob. Vac seal and freeze.
 
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