What You'll Need
Fresh corn on the cob
1 very large pot
Water
2 large bowls
More water
Ice (1 bag of ice per dozen ears of corn)
Large freezer bags (the bags should be specifically labeled "freezer" bags)
1 sharp knife
How To Freeze Fresh Sweet Corn
1. Gather your fresh corn on the cob.
Tip: The corn is ripe and ready to harvest when the silk has turned brown and dried up. Another way to test corn's
ripeness is to peel back the tip of the husk and pop a kernel. If it is watery - give it time; if it's creamy - it's ripe.
If there is a delay between harvesting and freezing, place your fresh corn in the refrigerator or put it on ice
until you can properly freeze it. Otherwise the sugars will breakdown at room temperature and your corn will lose much of its sweetness.
2. Shuck the corn and remove as much silk as you can (a soft vegetable brush makes this process quick and easy).
3. Use a sharp knife to cut each
cob in half.
4. Fill the largest pot you have 3/4 of the way with water and bring it to a rolling boil.
5. Fill 2 large bowls with ice and cold water and set aside.
6. To preserve flavor, color, nutrients, and texture blanch the corn by placing each ear in the pot of boiling water (this water
can be used up to 5 times). Return to a boil (this should take a minute or less, if not, see note). Cover pot and cook
for 5 minutes.
Note: If it takes several minutes to return to a boil after adding the corn, you added too much corn or are using to small a pot so adjust accordingly.
7. After blanching, drain immediately and quickly place corn in the large bowl of water and ice to prevent
overcooking. Continue to add ice to keep corn cool. Allow to cool for 5 minutes then drain thoroughly.
8. Skip this next step if you are you are freezing the corn
on the cob. Slide a sharp knife down each ear of corn to
separate kernels from the cob. They will come off in strips but will easily separate into individual kernels once they are placed in the bag.
9. Place corn in a freezer bag. Remove excess air and seal.
Tip: To easily remove excess air from the bag before sealing and freezing corn, fill your sink with water.
Place the freezer bag (with corn inside) into the water until the water reaches the part of the bag where the seal begins.
Be careful not to let any water into the top of the bag. Seal the top of the bag and remove from the water.
10. Label each bag with the freezing date and type of corn and place in the freezer. Later, when you want to serve the corn
(whether on the cob or just the kernels) just heat it up in the microwave for 3 - 4 minutes.
