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Kitchen Myths
Facts and fiction about food and cooking, by Peter Aitken
Don’t store fresh corn on the cob in the fridge
Posted by on July 20, 2013
Fresh corn on the cob is, of course, best cooked as soon as possible after picking, but that’s not always possible. How should it be stored? Many people say not to refrigerate it, but that’s a myth. Put it in the fridge – after all, the chemical reaction that causes corn to lose its sweetness is slowed down by cold, just like almost all chemical reactions. Corn can still be wonderful after a day or two in the fridge, although not as good as really fresh.
By the way, an easy and energy-efficient way to cook corn is to put the husks and trimmings in the bottom of your kettle, pile the ears on top, and add an inch of water – instant steamer! Cover and boil for 4-10 minutes depending on the corn and your preferences. By not bringing a full pot of water to the boil, you save time and energy.
Kitchen Myths 
great idea for the steamer. tx.
I love boiling my corn on the cob with a stick of better and a cup of milk. It’s incredible. Bring the water to a boil first, and then put the corn in, and bring to a boil once again for 2 min. and walla…..great corn.
I’ve heard of this, I’ve tried it and it is fantastic
What kind of pot do you use, and when do you put the butter and milk into the pot.
Or do they just happen to appear in the pot at the time that you take the corn out of the pot??
Put an ear of corn with the husk still on it in the microwave, on high, for 4 minutes. Peel with protective towels or some such because it’s HOT. Absolutely delicious, all nutrition still in there. Haven’t figured out how to do more than one — what the timing would be.
You can take off the husk and wrap in wet paper towel. Microwave 4-5 minutes.Same result. Delicious and preserves nutrients.
Or wrap it in wax paper– two ears for four minutes. Yum.
I do this in microwave only 2 minutes per ear up to four ears at a time.It comes out perfect every time. Cut the ends off as close to the ear as possible, grab the silk tops and give it a firm shake. Slides out clean as a whistle every time ! Hint: if it doesn’t come out, cut more of the end off. This amazes every one when i do it this way. We never had corn on the cob, until I learned this trick. I hated the silk mess.
3 1/2minutes/ear. Only works well for a single layer.
3 for 5 min. Comes out perfect
It’s 3-4 minutes per ear. I’ve cooked 3 ears at a time like this. That’s all that fits in my microwave. So 3 ears = 9 mins. Yum! When making enough for a crowd, I steam them in a stock pot with just a few inches of water on the bottom. Also yum!
Best method: microwave in the husk, 4 minutes per ear, can do 3 ears at a time. And here’s the trick: use a serrated knife, cut through the ear at bottom, sacrifice one row of kernels, using oven mitts, shake from silk end and presto all the silks come off with the husk!
Can I put in the freezer after the 4 min. microwave and getting the husk off. If so how to re-heat?
Sure you can freeze it, but the quality may deteriorate. Reheating in the MW is probably best.
Why the heck would anyone microwave when it takes the same amount of time to steam it??!! Who knows what microwaves really do to our bodies… or our food for that matter…
I totally agree. We don’t microwave.
You guys are kidding, right?
The residual radiation in microwaved food suppresses pituary and ovarian function. For god sakes I don’t even know anyone who owned a microwave anymore!
You could just voluntarily go on chemo- I can’t imagine what could possibly go wrong!
There is absolutely *NO* radiation in microwaved food. This is one of thos nonsensical myths that will not go away. Sheesh! https://kitchen-myths.com/2011/04/01/microwave-cooking-is-radiation-and-makes-foods-poisonous/
Oh, oh–I do! They don’t do anything. Billions of people have been using microwave ovens for almost a century now. Time to stop believing your grandmother’s horror stories.
Do you really believe that manufacturer’s and health agencies don’t test these things?
Microwaves do not cause cancer. The only way they could cause a bad burn is if you were directly exposed to them. The only way that would happen is if you put some part of your body in the oven.
Yes, 2 minutes per ear husked and wrapped in wax paper in the microwave. Perfect! I always remove husk because for the potential of worms. Just tonight I husked 3 fresh ears and sure enough, there was a live worm. I know, I know, a little extra protein, but yuk! I also wash the ears before I put the wax paper on.
You remove the husk because of worms why? So you don’t kill or cook the worms? Think about that, seeing as how the worms are going to die anyway. When you remove the cooked worm, it’s sterile. Continue with the husk and silk, butter and eat. A moment of silence for the worms which are pretty good fried in some bacon fat.
The wax in wax paper will melt in the microwave. Mmmmmmm warm wax on my corn.
If you don’t husk the ears, and use the microwave to cook them, any worm will be dead and will most probably come out when you husk them. So no big deal. You didn’t mention what kind of worm that you found when you were husking your corn???
The worm is actually the caterpillar of a moth. The female cleverly lays only a single egg on each ear, assuring that the caterpillars are not competing with siblings. Presence of a caterpillar is a sign that the corn is organic, or at least was not subjected to lots of pesticides. Just flick it off and cut of the part of the ear that it munched.
Everyone should watch the Utube video of cooking corn in the microwave! Amazing!
The comments on this thread are hilarious! I don’t even have a nuker but my old mama loves this tip. It’s too late to convert her. I prefer steam or on the bbq wrapped in bacon yum! Not a fan of the worm but yeah I’m thinking that sounds like some good organics 🙂
Susan Sept.10, 2017
2 min. per ear (husk/silk removed )in micro, no wax paper, just place as many as will fit on micro-safe plate…perfect every time!
3 minutes per ear, husk and silk in place just like you’d roast it. There is no other right way
Microwave in husk for 90 seconds