salgud wrote:
> Sheldon wrote:
> > salgud wrote:
> > > I made Mexican Corn Soup the first time a few weeks ago. Discussed it
> > > in a thread here. I used fresh corn-on-the-cob and it was delicious! I
> > > tried to re-create it using frozen corn, but the frozen corn didn't
> > > blend as well and while the taste was still good, there were little
> > > pieces of corn that you had to chew to eat the soup, not very good. I
> > > ate some of it, but threw half of it out. Wouldn't serve it to anyone
> > > else.
> > >
> > > Does anyone have any suggestions as to what to use for the corn? The
> > > cost of using fresh corn these days, even when it's in season, would be
> > > very high. And it would take an enormous amount of time to cut if off
> > > the cobs. And most of the year it's out of season and I couldn't cook
> > > it at all.
> > >
> > > Does anyone know if some of the premium brands of frozen corn would
> > > chop up fine enough in my blender?
> >
> > You answered your own question... you obviously used some really cheapo
> > frozen corn... probably generic, old tough corn with bits of cob. I
> > hate to bust your bubble but unless so-called fresh corn was picked two
> > hours ago it can't possibly be as good as any of the premium brands of
> > frozen corn.
> >
> > Sheldon Birdseye
>
> I did use the supermarket brand. Didn't know if there is any difference
> in expensive corn and low-priced corn.

There's a big difference in quality between the big national name brand
frozen vegetables and the supermarket/generic products (especially with
corn)... were they the same the consumer would not be willing to pay
the greater price.

>As far as corn on the cob being fresher
> than corn in a bag, I always assumed it was. It still seems unlikely to
> me that GG can harvest it, shuck it, strip it from the cob, freeze it
> and package it faster than a local farmer can throw it on a truck and
> ship it to King Soopers, but I guess it's possible.

Not only possible that's exactly the case. Frozen corn from the big
name packers is harvested, shucked, stripped, and processed entirely
mechanically, all in the field, less than one hour from harvest to
flash frozen.... plus they constantly test their corn electronically so
it's harvested at the peak of readiness. They also spend a LOT of
dollars researching the best type of corn and growing methods, and
processing methods. No-name corn is hit and miss, bought from various
small local growers, all mixed together and processed the old fashioned
way at small processing plants... by the time it's shipped and
processed it's no longer fresh, nor are very scientific methods relied
upon for growing, harvesting, and processing... there's little to no
consistancy, it's all hit and miss.

Supermarket corn on the cob is at least a week old, probably more...
even local farm stand corn is many hours old at it's best but typically
1-2 days since picked... and then who knows how many days the consumer
has it hanging around until they get-to-it.

I'll agree that if you can get locally grown corn on the cob that's
reassonably freshly harvested then that is best for eating off the cob
but then it's specifically of a type grown to be eaten off the cob, not
well suited to be used stripped from the cob. If you want corn niblets
to use in a recipe no corn is consistantly better than the big name
brand frozen niblets. Most years I grow some corn myself... it tastes
wonderful easten off the cob because I grew it myself and I was all
ready to cook it and eat it before I picked it... but for recipes
needing niblets stripped from the cob it's not nearly as good as
Birdseye.

Sheldon