Friday, May 9, 2014

Buttered corn

How do you butter your corn on the cob? Do you just use a knife? Or do you just roll it around on a stick of butter?

Either way, you're doing it wrong.

Here's how you do it:  You take a slice of bread, the ends work well for this, and you spread a lot of butter on it, like half a stick. And then you hold the bread in one hand and you roll your corn on the cob around on it. It  molds to the corn and coats everything and you still get a lot of butter on your corn without wasting any. It's clever, right?

Right.

Except that no one else seems to know about this trick. My whole life this is how it's been done in my family. And whenever I've been to other places with corn on the cob and there isn't buttered bread I'm initially confused. Because it's the most logical way to do it. But people look at me funny when I suggest it.  In fact, I'm bring this up because Camille got mocked at work for telling people this is how it's done. What if I told you that Martha Stewart suggested this on one of her shows and tried to pass it off as one of her ideas. I hate to break it to you Martha but LaRue Knecht was doing it before you were even born!

If you're using a flat knife on a curved surface you're going to have dripping clumps of butter in some spots and nothing in others. And if you're rolling the corn around on a stick of butter than you're wasting butter. And if you're not putting butter on your corn than you're really, really doing it wrong. Butter and salt and a whole lot of pepper. So much pepper that your lips burn.

Ok, so have you heard of this? And if you don't do it this way how do you do it? And since we'll soon be entering corn on the cob season, will you promise me that you'll give it a shot? Because I care about your happiness.

11 comments:

Amanda said...

Actually, in WI they have Corn Fest and they do it the right way. They have big vats of melted butter. You just dip the corn in and Blam, life changed. Of course if you don't have big, butter vats, bread would work.

sarahgurl said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
sarahgurl said...

I have been a corn-on-the-cob lover since the days of my babyhood. I thank the magical Mr. Decker on Riverside Dr for that. yes this method seems perfect and I can't believe I've never heard of it. I insist you put up a youtube video of you demonstrating and it will be so popular and beloved you will end up on the Ellen show

Laura said...

I have heard of this. It really is genius. My family always had the stick of butter and rolled the corn on their. I never ate corn on the cob as a child. I didn't like how it got stuck in my teeth. I still don't like that. I tend to cut my corn off the cob to eat it. So that way, you just put it in a bowl with a giant glob of butter and eat it with a spoon. Glorious.

I do have to admit that when Amanda wrote the phrase "big vats of melted butter" my heart skipped a beat! That phrase is almost as good as "big vats of melted chocolate"!

Camille said...

Laura, I felt the same way when I read "big vats of melted butter." Great minds think alike.

Sarah, Mr. Decker made us all corn lovers.

Mariah said...

My Dad does this with his corn. He's from Ohio (it seems relevant?). But he never insisted that we all follow suit. Now I use a knife (I know it's wrong, you can tell when you're doing it) or we don't put any on at all.

Rob & Linder said...

It isn't a Crenshaw thing. We have done this in our family as long as I can remember. It seams we had bread at every meal(Ok it was always fresh Italian bread)and we used it.

Tessy said...

I have NEVER heard of this. I feel like my life has just changed...

Hannah said...

Huh. It's like no one has even SEEN War Games.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=btZi6EiIXbY

Rach said...

Blam. Mind blown. I am going to start this in my family. It seems a lot less messy and then you can just eat the bread later. Thanks. Also, "vat of melted butter" also spoke to me deep in my heart.

Rach said...

Also, I swear I didn't even notice that the word Blam had already been used. I must have copied Amanda subconsciously because it's a good word when you're talking corn on the cob.