Freeze corn.

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Freezing fresh summer corn makes for a tasty winter side dish. Fresh frozen vegetables are significantly tastier than those found in a grocery store’s freezer case. It also saves you a few dollars since summer corn is cheap and plentiful.

To get the best frozen corn, get the best fresh corn. The freshest will come straight from the farm. For those who live in an area that isn’t near a farm, try a produce market or organic grocery store. The key is to freeze the corn as close to the time it pops off the stalk as possible. The longer it sits on a shelf or in a bag, the more flavor is lost.

To preserve that flavor, corn also needs to be blanched. When a fresh vegetable is exposed to heat for a few minutes, it kills the enzymes that would otherwise alter the flavor of the vegetables in the long run. Those who choose to freeze corn without blanching will notice a significant difference in the flavor of their vegetables within a few months of freezing.

Boiling is the easiest way to blanch any vegetable. Choose a very large pot and bring the water to a boil. Moisten the corn and remove all the silk. Add as much corn as possible to the boiling pot and then bring the water to a boil.

Meanwhile, fill a large bowl with ice water. This will be used to quickly chill the corn after blanching to avoid overcooking. Allow the corn to boil for 4 to 6 minutes, then quickly remove and immediately place in the ice bath. Ears need to sit in this bath for another 4-6 minutes.

Once the ears are cool, the kernels can be removed from the cob if desired. Typically, those who freeze corn remove the kernels because corn on the cob will retain texture and sweetness better than corn on the cob. To cut the kernels, hold the ear at the end and run a knife along the side of the ear. The knife should remove most of the kernel from the cob. Be careful not to pierce the kernel too much or the corn will become creamier than crunchy.

The corn will appear as strips of kernels after it has been scraped off the cob. Place these strips in a freezer bag and don’t worry if they don’t separate during this step, as they will when reheating. Some people prefer to use vacuum bags to freeze corn, but both methods are perfectly acceptable. The last step in freezing corn is to place the bags in the freezer.

To reheat corn, simply microwave or heat the bags in a pot of simmering water. An alternative is to put a half cup or milk in a pot and heat until hot, being careful not to boil the milk. Add a touch of salt and pepper and put the corn in the milk to defrost and warm it up. This method tastes a little creamier than corn.

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