Grilled corn on the cob is one of summer's great luxuries, on par with ice cold beer and push pops.
During its peak season, corn tastes different from the imported ears you can scrounge up the rest of the year—it's so pure and sweet that covering it up with a mess of mayo and cheese seems wrong.
But just how one goes about the actual process of grilling the stuff is the subject of much debate. Do you boil it before it hits the grates? Should the husk and silk come off first, or does keeping it on make for a better end result?
I hopped into the Epicurious Test Kitchen with Associate Food Editor Anna Stockwell to set the record straight.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, food styling by Anna Stockwell
BLANCHED, THEN GRILLED
One school of thought dictates that the best results come from cooking corn in boiling liquid before it ever makes its way onto the grill.
We experimented with two different methods here. In one test, we blanched the corn in a mixture of whole milk and water (1 cup to 2 quarts, respectively) as suggested in this New York Times recipe. The other test was conducted without milk in plain boiling water.
While the milk led to corn that was slightly sweeter, both blanching methods produced a similar result: corn that tasted as though it had been boiled and not grilled, despite the fact that it was riddled with charred bits. We were unable to detect any of that deep, smokey flavor that's the hallmark (and, really, the point) of grilled foods.
HUSKED, THEN GRILLED
Next, we removed both the silk and husk from the corn and grilled it. While the corn definitely picked up more flavor from the grill this time around, it picked up a little too much flavor. By time the corn cooked through, a portion of the kernels burned, masking its delicate sweetness with the not-so-subtle flavor of char.
SIMPLY GRILLED
So, maybe the corn's husk and silk play a vital part in protecting the corn from the grill? This time—aside from telling the corn it's special—we did absolutely nothing to it before grilling. The husks charred, but the corn steamed, without picking up much flavor from the grill.
