Over the past few weeks, my cooking has been sporadic at best.
For reasons I will not bore you with, we have been moving from house to house and kitchen to kitchen, so I’ve been without my usual line-up of spices, seasonings and favourite ingredients. Cooking has become simpler, and we have eaten a lot of corn: perfect, self-packaged, hot-weather food. In a fix, it needs nothing more than butter and salt.
Corn and risotto are not an obvious pairing, but after making this I wondered: why not? The sweetness of the corn and the creamy parmesan rice really show each other off. This risotto is perfect to cook when supplies are low, as the ingredient list is quite short and it requires just one pan and a hob.
We’ve also eaten cob after cob whole, with everything from grated cheese and chilli to Indian green chutney on top. This, though, was the winner – all the green herbs with butter, honey and lots of salt.
Quick honey-herbed corn on the cob (above)
Use a mixture of any soft herbs you have to hand. This is a great way to use up any odds and ends of bunches you might have left over. Dill, mint, coriander, fennel tops, tarragon, chervil, parsley, basil and even thyme would work.
Prep 20 min
Cook 5 min
Serves 4
4 corn on the cob
Flaky sea salt
100g butter
2 tbsp honey
1 large bunch mixed soft herbs (I used chives, dill, parsley and coriander), chopped
1 tsp hot chilli powder
If your corn is still in the husks, peel open and tie them back with a little string; they’ll help you hold your corn when you’re eating it (don’t worry if they don’t have husks).
Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil with plenty of salt. Once boiling, drop your corn into the water with the husks hanging out, if your corn has them, taking care to keep them away from the cooking flame if you’re cooking over gas. Cook for five minutes for juicy, crunchy kernels.
Carefully remove the corn from the boiling water and put them on a serving platter. While the cobs are still hot, dot them with butter and honey and turn in the buttery honey until coated. Sprinkle over the herbs and finish with a pinch of chilli powder and a good sprinkling of salt.
Corn and green chilli risotto
I love stirring a risotto – there’s nothing more comforting to cook or eat. I blitz some of the corn to a puree here to add creaminess without having to add quite so much butter and cheese.
Prep 10 min
Cook 60 min
Serves 4
3 corn on the cob
800g vegetable stock
Extra-virgin olive oil
1 stick celery, finely chopped
1 white onion, peeled and finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
Salt and black pepper
200g risotto rice (I use carnaroli)
250ml (a large glass) white wine
60g parmesan or vegetarian parmesan-style cheese, plus extra to serve
1 large knob butter
1 green chilli, deseeded and very finely chopped
First, cut the corn kernels from the cobs into a bowl, then chop the shaved cobs into three.
Pour the vegetable stock into a deep pan, add the chopped cobs and bring to a simmer, then keep warm on a low heat while you make the risotto, as you’ll want it to be hot when adding it to the rice.
In a food processor, blitz a quarter of the kernels with a tablespoon of stock, until smooth and creamy; set aside to add later.
Meanwhile, heat a little olive oil in a large pan, add the celery, onion and garlic with a pinch of salt and cook on low for 10-15 minutes, until everything is soft and sweet, but not browned. Turn up the heat, add the rice and stir for a couple of minutes to seal the grains, then add the wine and let it evaporate.
Once all the wine has evaporated, turn the heat down to medium-low and start adding the stock a ladleful at a time, allowing each ladleful to evaporate as you stir it in. When half the stock has been added, stir in the remaining corn, then continue adding the stock until the rice is cooked but still has a little bite to it, and the corn is tender. This will take about 30 minutes in total.
Remove the risotto from the heat and stir in the cheese, blitzed corn, the butter and some salt and pepper. Pop a lid on top and leave to rest for a minute or two, then serve immediately, topped with a little extra grated parmesan and the chopped chilli.
