A corn shucking trick that makes silking easier

Nothing compares to actual fresh corn harvested from the stalk in late summer. It tastes just like boiled or steamed, with a bit of premium butter and maybe a pinch of salt. It can also be sweet and crunchy. It’s also great baked into a corn soufflé, scraped into Mexican street corn salad, or cooked into summer corn recipes like warm grilled corn and edamame succotash.

According to the State of Iowa, corn will lose its natural sweetness within 12 hours if it’s not stored properly, so it’s important to buy it as fresh as possible. A local farm stand or farmer’s market is a better place to get your buds if you want to make sure they are at their optimum sweetness. The problem is that when you buy it from the farmers, you have to suck your ears.

The green leaves are easy to remove, but if you are removing the corn silk strands one by one, it can be difficult to remove them all. There is an easy way, which is wonderful news. All you have to do is remove the cornsilk from each corn ear is a stiff-bristle vegetable brush or even a clean toothbrush. With just a few strokes, you can sweep all the cornsilk away without damaging any precious kernels.

Read more: 14 Mistakes You Might Be Making When Buying Produce

How To Brush Your Corn

Considering that corn is native to North America, it should come as no surprise that Americans consume it a lot. According to Statista, we’ll have eaten nearly 12 billion bushels of food in 2022 and 2023 alone—that’s pretty staggering. Since almost every state in the union grows corn, unless you’re allergic to it, you’ve probably spent your summers munching on corn on the back porch. If you cover your house with corn, you know how hard it is to get rid of the silk that clings to everything.

You can use a vegetable brush to remove the corn silk, instead of trying to do it with your fingers. Use a stiff-bristled brush to thoroughly sweep the corns from all sides.If you sweep around the corn, the stiff-bristle brush will collect all the tiny silk threads in less than 30 seconds. If you have a stack of corn, it saves a ton of time. Be the fastest sugarer in town with a brush in hand to remove corn silk.

Using this process, even a moderately stiff brush should not damage your corn kernels. Simply brush the entire surface of your corn until you see no more silky threads; You don’t need to push down too hard. If you don’t currently have a vegetable brush for cleaning dishes in the sink, you can find many types online and at kitchen stores for as little as $5 to $10.

Which Brush To Buy

To avoid piling up your cupboards with single-use kitchen gadgets, you can get a brush designed specifically for scrubbing corn. These brushes have slightly sticky bristles that help the brush stick to the corn silk. However, any vegetable brush will work just as well. Not only is a toothbrush useful for keeping dirt off mushrooms by the sink, but it can also be used to scrub vegetables if you don’t want to buy another kitchen tool and don’t have a special vegetable brush. After all, who wants toothpaste and dental germs on their corn?

There are many schools of thought on the proper way to plant ears of corn, and many state agricultural competitions to support their claims. As the State Journal-Register notes, corn shucking competitions were big business in the 1920s and 1930s. While there are no prizes for the fastest sugarer in your home kitchen, there are certainly more rewarding things than extracting every silk strand from the cobs.

Remember your brush technique and you’ll be golden (as will your corn) during the once-a-year corn season in the United States. And if you’re a parent who continues the practice of letting kids handle chores, let them couple of brushes before they start peeling, and hopefully, your ears will come back silk free.

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