Sweet, Sweet Corn on the Cob
Tʜᴇ ɪɴᴅɪɢᴇɴᴏᴜs ᴘᴇᴏᴘʟᴇ ᴏғ ᴛʜᴇ Tᴇʜᴜᴀᴄᴀ́ɴ Vᴀʟʟᴇʏ in Southern Mexico were thought to have been the first to domesticate corn—about 10,000 years ago. It was also thought that multiple, independent domestications coevolved to produce today’s linages.
But those understandings have been challenged.
A study reported on in 2002 indicates all corn evolved from a single instance of domestication arising in the Balsas River Valley which is adjacent to the Tehuacán Valley.
A single instance of domestication is particularly striking. Corn requires human intervention to propagate. This suggests one person is the father of all corn. (And you thought it was Larry the Cable Guy.)
Whoever and however, today, more corn is grown worldwide than wheat or rice.
Two great uses for corn are corn whiskey and popcorn.
Since popcorn gets stuck in my teeth and, to my knowledge, there is no corn wine, my favorite way to consume corn is on the cob. I skip the conventional slathering on of butter and lightly sprinkle the kernels with salt and pepper.
“No butter?” you exclaim.
Don’t make that face. Go ahead, try it. The sweetness of the corn stands on its own and you’ll save 70 to 100 calories without the butter.
Cooking corn on the cob is amazingly simple.
If you are already grilling something, simply pull off the husks and add the cobs to the grill turning them every few minutes. It doesn’t take long, maybe 7-10 minutes; make sure your cold beer is at hand so you don’t have to go off in search of it.
Another great way to cook corn on the cob is to leave the husks on and microwave it. Set the microwave to high. Cook two cobs for about three minutes, four for about five minutes. Squeeze them to see if the kernels are soft, if not add a minute or two.
Using a heavy knife, chop off the ends and the husk and the hair-like silk will nearly fall off.
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Servings: 1 cob Calories: 120 Satisfaction: 85