Southwest Creamed Corn

Southwest Creamed Corn – a savory treat

There are few things better in the life of a gardener that the season’s first ear of sweet corn. If you have a place nearby where you can get corn that has been picked the same day as you buy it, that is nearly as good. In either case, Southwest Creamed Corn can’t be far behind for corn lovers.

Creamed corn is not the same as ‘cream-style’ corn

You can buy cans of ‘cream-style’ corn in any supermarket. But, if you look at the ingredients, there is no actual cream, or any other dairy in there. It’s just corn, plus something to thicken it up a bit, sugar and salt. This is a completely different sort of corn recipe. It’s real, and it has real cream in it. Plus some other very delicious ingredients.

It starts with corn

Use the best sweet corn that you can find. Growing it yourself is always best, of course, but corn can be tricky to grow. It needs fertile soil and there are lots of things that attack it that can keep you from getting a good crop. The next best thing is a nearby farm stand where they grow their own corn and pick it fresh daily. Farmer’s Markets often have very fresh corn as well. A grocery store would be my last choice, but they can sometimes have local corn that can be quite fresh.

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Looking for other corn recipes? Check these out:

• Corn Fritters
• Corn Pancakes
• Jalapeno Bacon Cornbread

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How to tell if corn is fresh

The outside husks should be green, and tightly wrapped. The silks will have some browning on the tips, but should still look mostly yellow and fresh. Loosening husks, husks that are turning brown and dry looking, and very dry silks are signs of old corn. When we did Farmer’s Market, we didn’t care if someone wanted to look at the ear of corn, and didn’t mind if they pulled back the husks to do so. You will have to ask if it’s ok where you get yours. The kernels should look plump and full, with no dimples. It just takes experience to tell good corn, and finding someone you trust to buy it from.

Southwest Creamed Corn works even if your corn is a little too big

Ordinarily, you boil or steam sweet corn for 5 to 7 minutes. You cook this recipe a little longer than that, so even if your corn is a little bigger or older than is ideal, it will still be good. If you have leftover corn from previous meals, you can cut the kernels off the cobs and make this Southwest Creamed Corn with the leftovers.

The aromatics are important

The aromatics play a huge part in the flavor of this Southwest Creamed Corn. Because the garden is churning out a ton of fresh veggies right now, I had plenty of things to work with when developing this recipe. You can follow my recipe as closely as you like, and have the ingredients for. Definitely some garlic and onion. I also used celery, sweet red bell pepper and some hot peppers. I used some lighter green jalapenos that we were trying and some hungarian hot wax peppers. You can use whatever spicy peppers you prefer. Poblanos would be good, if yours are ready, but ours aren’t yet.

I like a cast iron skillet or non-stick pan for this dish.

How to make Southwest Creamed Corn

A perfect summer side dish

This is a wonderful side for summer grilling, maybe with Grilled Hot Wings or Chicken Thighs.