Date: Fri, 01 Jun 2007 20:58:58 -0400
To: WSFA members <WSFAlist at KeithLynch.net>
Subject: [WSFA] Re: No shucking, please
From: Eva Whitley <eva.whitley at gmail.com>
Reply-To: WSFA members <WSFAlist at KeithLynch.net>

Ted White wrote:
> samlubell at verizon.net wrote:
>
>>> From: "Mike B." <omni at omniphile.com> Date: 2007/05/30 Wed AM
>>> 09:38:56 CDT To: WSFA members <WSFAlist at KeithLynch.net>,
>>>
>>  WSFA members <WSFAlist at KeithLynch.net>
>>
>>> Subject: [WSFA] Re: No shucking, please
>>>
>>> At 5/30/2007 07:39 AM, dicconf wrote:
>>>
>>>> I don't think there's a solution.
>>>>
>  >>
>
>>> Well, yes, there is.  More than one in fact, but all have various
>>> downsides.
>>>
>>  Other solutions: Improve the freshness so that people don't have to
>>  open the corn to avoid getting a bad ear
>>
>>  Pre-shuck the corn, (and you can charge more in the same way stores
>>  charge more for precut and washed salads)
>>
>
> These are ignorant solutions.  How do you "improve the freshness"?  The
> only possible way is to get it from the field to the store in less than
> an hour.  Good luck with that.
A smart solution (for a number of vegetables, not just corn) would be
for grocery stores to contract with local farms to sell their produce
directly. I've never actually seen it done, but my neighbor back in
Uniontown started her farm growing potatoes, discovered how freakin'
heavy a lot of potatoes are, and the farmer's market shoppers weren't
that interested. Somehow, she was able to make contact with high end
restaurants, and ended up growing baby vegetables that started the day
in the ground, and ended the day on someone's plate.

As I drove (lost) through parts of Montgomery County I had never seen
before today (well, until I made that turn onto 108 East, I think I've
been there before) I saw farms cheek by jowl next to McMansions, and
thought there was a marketing opportunity that needed to be exploited.

> The "Silver Queen" solution is probably
> smarter, since the no-longer-fresh ears still contain enough sugar to
> *taste* fresher.  Pre-shucked corn (displayed in sealed packages) won't
> keep well, but is being done in some stores.  Invariably when I've seen
> such corn on display, it has been way too maturely picked, with fat
> kernels crammed next to each other, a guarantee of tough and tasteless
> corn.  Sadly, far too many consumers *look* for such ears, thinking
> they're getting the best bargain.  (These are also the kind of ears of
> corn found cooked -- usually cut in half -- in carnivals, at fairs, at
> Coney Island, etc., usually thickly bathed in butter.  *Sigh*....)
>
> -
>

What the stores need to do is educate the public that boiling corn is
wrong, wrong, wrong, and what they need to do is cook corn on the grill.
And to do that, it has to be covered with the husk.* If you discover
that parts of it are underdeveloped, well, nothing in life is certain.
Freshly grilled corn is worth the risk. (BTW, the Union Mills Corn Roast
is scheduled for August 4th, if anyone wants to join me.) --Eva Whitley

*A lot of home ec types will make a big deal about soaking the corn, and
removing the silks, and tying the de-silked husks around the corn but
that's totally unnecessary. When you grill corn, it steams the corn, so
the silk adheres to the husks. And 21st Century Corn has many
generations of breeding for sweetness, so you could eat it raw, if you
wanted to.