Freezing corn off the cob

[randyjl]

I am getting various results Googling freezing corn cut fresh from the cob. I want to freeze the corn along with the scraped off milk. Some site say to blanch some say it's not necessary. My parents froze it every year but I don't think they blanched it. I don't remember any bad results, but that was 45 years ago. Any advice or experience to share?

[kengk]

It's easier to cut off if you blanch it first.

http://nchfp.uga.edu/how/freeze/corn....

[Kchallis]

You can also microwave the corn in the husk (8 min for two husks I believe), cut off the whole bottom of the husk, slide the corn cob out, and easily cut the cooked corn kernels off. None of the silky threads to mess with. Careful, they're hot.

[jujuthomas]

As a kid I remember helping my parents and grandparents freeze corn. it was quite the assembly line of husking, cleaning, blanching, cutting and bagging. the reward, "chewing the ends" of the cobs where the knife didn't quite get everything.

What ingredients would I add to the cobs to make a corn stock?

[LindaWhit]

Water. Some add chopped onions, but I don't think you need to do so. I have a link at home, but can't find it here at work. Here are a couple. Oh wait - I *think* the first one is the one I used last year.

http://localkitchenblog.com/2011/09/12/corn-cob-stock/

http://www.saveur.com/article/Recipes/Corn-Stock

http://christinecooks.blogspot.com/20...

[jujuthomas]

thanks, Linda!

[smtucker]

I freeze a lot of corn at the end of each season when the prices are at their lowest. I strip the cobs raw, and then freeze whatever I get in big plastic bags. These bags are the basis for baked corn for Thanksgiving. I have never blanched the corn.

I do make a stock from all those cobs to use as the basis for soups such as carrot with corn.

[coll]

That's exactly what I do every September, freeze the raw kernals for Thanksgiving and maybe another dish or two over the winter. It gets cooked after it's thawed.

[LindaWhit]

Agree with making corn stock. Makes my chicken corn chowder even cornier. :-)

[geminigirl]

Just made corn cob stock today, so excited to create soup tomorrow, thinking white bean and something...

[LindaWhit]

Make sure you add the corn as well - perhaps a corn, crumbled and cooked sausage and white bean stew of sorts?

[geminigirl]

Yes, some of the corn is definetely going in! I may base it off of this, which I find is a good base soup that takes well to add ins. I also froze the water I boiled my potatoes in last thanksgiving....as its supposed to be good soup water, so that's what I cooked the cobs in. Sausage sounds like a good add in as well, thanks.
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/in...

[LindaWhit]

The corn stock will be very nice with that soup of Ina's. Perhaps the sausage could be a garnish on top.

[geminigirl]

Would you share your baked corn recipie? Thanks

[smtucker]

I start with Ruhlman's recipe and then riff depending on the rest of the meal:

http://ruhlman.com/2012/09/a-staple-b...

[geminigirl]

Interesting, thanks. Just curious, how do you change it for your thanksgiving dinner, adding spices or "ingredients" or both? Thanks

[smtucker]

Oh, Thanksgiving is all about the corn. I basically bake the corn with some butter. There are so many other flavors on the table, the corn doesn't need any adornment. People are just thrilled to have this taste of Fall on the table.

[cheesymama]

I blanch it simply because when I tried cutting it off the cob without blanching I had kernels flying everywhere. Then one day we had a couple of extra cobs that had already been cooked. I knew they wouldn't get eaten over the next day or 2 so I decided to cut off the kernels and freeze. I couldn't believe how much less of a mess it was!

[redgirl]

may i ask how long you blanch it for? 2 min or less?

[LindaWhit]

I normally cook my COTC for only 3-4 minutes anyway, so it still has a "good bite" to it. So 2 minutes in boiling water is fine.

[coll]

I got a tip here that works pretty well: Put one end of the cob in the hole of a bundt pan, then cut off the kernals into the pan itself. No mess.

[skivi]

I have found that using an electric knife works the best - can't get much faster!!:)

[LVLisa]

I blanch it on the cob, then let it cool before cutting it off then freezing.