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Hulled Corn

Hulled corn is a dish of corn kernels that have been boiled in lye, washed, salted, and cooked until tender.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 4 ingredients
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Hulled Corn

Hulled Corn

Ingredients

Directions

Nixtamalize

  1. Boil the corn in strong lye for about 1.5 hours until the hulls loosen.

  2. Test a few kernels by rubbing them; if the hulls come off, remove the corn from the fire.

  3. Wash the corn in several waters to remove the hulls and lye.

Cook and serve

  1. Return the corn to a clean kettle with plenty of cold water.

  2. Season with salt and cook for 5 to 6 hours until tender.

  3. Skim out the corn and serve warm or cold with milk or cream.

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.

Photo for illustrative purposes only · Contact us to use it

Explore the science

What each ingredient does

Field corn
Provides the starchy kernels that soften into the dish's tender, chewy texture.
Lye
Loosens the hulls and softens the kernels so they become tender during cooking.

The step that matters

Testing the corn in the lye. Lye can keep working if the corn boils too long, so checking whether the hulls slip off by rubbing a few kernels helps avoid overcooking. Removing the corn at the right point keeps the kernels intact.

“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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