Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I'd love to have some 1948 corn, to see how different it was. There were no varieties, corn was corn, and none came from Florida in February. It had a short shelf life, you had to eat it the same day it was picked, for it to be tasty and juicy. There was a well-fed worm happily munching away in almost every unpoisoned ear, that mom had to flick out with a knife when shucking the corn. It seemed yellower, and you had to chew it longer, and then floss. The silks were darker and more robust.
Seems to me like they were 25c a dozen in season. I bought some today at the supermarket at 5/$1.00, which is as cheap as it ever gets nowadays. I don't eat corn with the same gusto I had back then, and I think it is now excessively sweet, some varieties almost candy-like. It used to be a vegetable.
In some places, I think, country people ate what we called "horse corn", which was feed corn, and if picked early enough, were called "roasting ears" and humans ate them, but I don't think I ever had any, since I grew surrounded by sweet corn for canneries.
I've eaten street-corner corn in places like Romania and Guatemala, where there is not the kind of market demand that occurs in the USA, and specialized hybrids have not been developed for maximum yield under localized conditions. I suspect corn for humans in those countries is probably still pretty much like it was in the USA in the 40s and 50s, before the Americans started messing with it.
If you ever get a chance try Mirai sweet corn, it is the absolute BEST tasting sweet corn I have ever tasted. I was lucky enough to live within a 20 mile drive to the place that was growing it in northern Illinois. Twin Garden Farms
I love corn on the cob. I grew up in central NY state. Plenty of side-of-the road places to stop and buy corn and other veggies. When Dad sat down to eat corn he ate it going around the ear instead of back and forth (like a typewriter!). Our cat Skippy would jump up on Dad's shoulder and start nibbling on the other end. It was pretty funny and amazing that Dad tolerated it. He loved animals.
Once when I visited a friend at her camp her mother was soaking unshucked corn in salt water (I think overnight) and then would put them on open fire place (outdoor). Roasted corn was sooo good.
I grew up in Illinois and I remember taking Sunday afternoon drives into the country and stopping at farm stands to buy sweet corn, and yes, there was a time when you could buy it for 25 cents a dozen. It was delicious!!!.....We live out in Arizona now and the sweet corn does not taste the same. These days we always steam our corn in the husk, either in the microwave or on the grill. I do prefer the Midwestern grown sweet corn.
Best corn on cob is the corn thats picked and eaten the same day when its in season which up here in Montreal area is August into early September, For the rest of the year its back to canned corn which isnt too bad or those plastic wrapped ears of corn in the grocery store that usually taste like cardboard..
I'd love to have some 1948 corn, to see how different it was. There were no varieties, corn was corn, and none came from Florida in February. It had a short shelf life, you had to eat it the same day it was picked, for it to be tasty and juicy. There was a well-fed worm happily munching away in almost every unpoisoned ear, that mom had to flick out with a knife when shucking the corn. It seemed yellower, and you had to chew it longer, and then floss. The silks were darker and more robust.
Seems to me like they were 25c a dozen in season. I bought some today at the supermarket at 5/$1.00, which is as cheap as it ever gets nowadays. I don't eat corn with the same gusto I had back then, and I think it is now excessively sweet, some varieties almost candy-like. It used to be a vegetable.
In some places, I think, country people ate what we called "horse corn", which was feed corn, and if picked early enough, were called "roasting ears" and humans ate them, but I don't think I ever had any, since I grew surrounded by sweet corn for canneries.
I've eaten street-corner corn in places like Romania and Guatemala, where there is not the kind of market demand that occurs in the USA, and specialized hybrids have not been developed for maximum yield under localized conditions. I suspect corn for humans in those countries is probably still pretty much like it was in the USA in the 40s and 50s, before the Americans started messing with it.
I worked with a doctor from Romania who loved American groceries stores and the couldn't believe the variety when he immigrated here. He was amazed that coupons could be clipped from newspaper/flyers to save on food. He was horrified that we ate corn of any kind though, as corn was food for pigs only in Romania according to him. I don't know if this was a class thing or not.
I don't eat corn on the cob anymore since for me it's really just a medium to get the the salt, pepper and butter I love. Our family put black pepper along with salt with corn on the cob, but DH's family never used pepper, only salt.
We visited my grandparents in southern Indiana every year. Every year the corn had to be knee high or better by the 4th of July or it wasn't a good year.
I worked with a doctor from Romania who loved American groceries stores and the couldn't believe the variety when he immigrated here. He was amazed that coupons could be clipped from newspaper/flyers to save on food. He was horrified that we ate corn of any kind though, as corn was food for pigs only in Romania according to him. I don't know if this was a class thing or not.
I don't eat corn on the cob anymore since for me it's really just a medium to get the the salt, pepper and butter I love. Our family put black pepper along with salt with corn on the cob, but DH's family never used pepper, only salt.
We visited my grandparents in southern Indiana every year. Every year the corn had to be knee high or better by the 4th of July or it wasn't a good year.
Yes! From another native Hoosier (the state, NOT the college), I remember well the knee high by the 4th of July. I also had no idea that corn on the cob could be white, not yellow, until I moved to the east coast.
Interesting comment about the doctor from Romania because when I saw this thread I was going to write about my friend from Germany who was an exchange student with me in high school in Indiana. One of her stories about first arriving in rural Indiana was being served corn on the cob. She was shocked as that was only given to the pigs in Germany. Needless to say she learned a lot while here and we are still close friends 40+ years later.
I may be in the minority, but rarely eat corn. Too much sugar. Corn is a high carb food with little nutrition. I eat treats on occasion. Corn is not one of them.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
