Anyone who’s ever thought it might be fun to throw a popcorn kernel (or a 87) into the ground to see IF IT REALLY GROWS (!!!) knows…it does, in fact, grow.
And while you might have thought it quaint to grow your own corn, you should be warned that many a corn kernel leads to many, many, many a corn cob.
I learned this lesson as a little girl.
And while it seems like, well, great, we’ll just have corn every night – it’s actually not that easy. What is easy, though, is freezing corn! Totally easy! And what a great thing to have corn cobs for barbecuing and niblets for steaming at your beckon call!
How to freeze the whole corn cob:
The easiest method to freeze corn requires a slightly longer blanching time. As with most preserves, start with quality corn that is fully ripened and ready to eat.
Remove husks and trim stalks from the ears. Remove silk strings and wash the corn.
Prepare boiling water for blanching (what is water blanching?). This process will preserve the flavor of the vegetable when frozen.
Water blanch ears of corn based on their size: small ears will remain in the boiling water for 7 minutes, medium ears 9 minutes, and large ears 11 minutes.
Move ears into a bowl of ice water until they’ve cooled completely. Drain and package the corn cobs
Use either a vacuum sealing system like FoodSaver or simply put them in a gallon size freezer bag, removing as much air as possible. Pop them in the freezer and use within a year!
How to freeze corn kernels:
Similar to the above process, except you need to remove the kernels from the cob, first.
Stand the cob on it’s end, using a sharp knife, slice down, removing the kernels form the cob.
Water blanch kernels for 4 minutes, cool and drain.
Package the kernels using 1/2 to 1 inch headspace (kernels will expand when freezing). Seal and freeze.
