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Corn with Acid

A method for preserving cooked corn in jars using a tartaric acid solution and baking soda, then seasoning it with cream or butter, pepper and salt.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 9 ingredients
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Why it works: Corn and pepper are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 11% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 5,324 recipes. Both carry 2-nonenal, which smells fatty, green. The science ↓

Corn with Acid

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare the acid solution

  1. Dissolve tartaric acid in water.

Cook and can the corn

  1. Cut the corn from the cob and add enough water to cook it properly.

  2. When cooked, add 2 tablespoons of the acid solution for every quart of corn.

  3. Can it immediately; seal securely and store in a cool, dry place.

Serve

  1. To use, stir 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda into 2 quarts of corn and let it stand briefly before cooking.

  2. Do not cook in tin to avoid discoloration.

  3. Season with cream or butter, pepper, and coarse sea salt to taste.

Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Corn + peppertop 11% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together5,324 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).

  2. Cream + peppertop 23% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together21,449 recipes

    Shared aroma: acetic acid (sour, vinegar).

  3. Corn + creamtop 25% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together2,532 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-heptanol (bitter, floral).

Cream and pepper barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 21,449 recipes: they work on texture and structure more than aroma.

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Tartaric acid
Acidifies the corn, helping it keep its color and texture during canning.
Baking soda
Raises the pH when used, softening the corn in the final cooking step.
Corn
Main ingredient, provides the sweet flavor and texture of the dish.

The step that matters

Adding the acid solution after cooking. Acid added to the corn before it is canned lowers the pH, which helps preserve the product and protects its color. Measure it per quart so the corn is acidified evenly.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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