Corn Ribs
Updated August 19, 2024
Christopher Testani for The New York Times. Simon Andrews.
- Total Time
- 45 minutes
- Prep Time
- 5 minutes
- Cook Time
- 40 minutes
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
Advertisement
Ingredients
4 ears corn, shucked
2 teaspoons kosher salt
2 teaspoons smoked or sweet paprika
1 teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon onion powder
¼ teaspoon black pepper
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
4 tablespoons salted butter, cubed, or garlic butter
Fresh parsley or cilantro (optional), chopped, for serving
Sriracha mayonnaise, ranch dressing or green goddess dressing (optional), for dipping
Preparation
- Step 1
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Prepare an ice bath by filling a large bowl with ice and cold water. Once water is boiling, add corn and boil for 5 minutes. Using tongs, remove cobs and transfer them to the ice bath until just cool. (Boiling the corn helps soften the cores so the corn ribs are easier to slice.)
- Step 2
Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine salt, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, black pepper and cayenne (if using). Heat a grill or large grill pan to medium-high.
- Step 3
Thoroughly dry the corn, then, using a very sharp, large knife, trim both ends of each ear of corn. On a flat, stable surface, stand up one ear of corn vertically and carefully slice it in half lengthwise. (Do this slowly, using a rocking motion. If you feel more comfortable, the ears can first be cut crosswise into two smaller cobs before this step.) Place each half on the surface, flat side down, and slice each in half lengthwise. Each ear of corn will produce 4 ribs (or 8 if they’re halved crosswise first, for ease).
- Step 4
Transfer corn ribs to a large bowl, drizzle with the oil and gently toss to coat. Sprinkle with the spice mixture and toss again.
- Step 5
Grill corn (covered, if using a gas grill), kernels side down, until charred in spots, 4 to 6 minutes.
- Step 6
Immediately return grilled corn ribs to the large bowl and gently toss with the butter until melted. Serve warm, sprinkled with fresh herbs and with a sauce for dipping, if desired.
Private Notes
Comments
Cutting corn cobs this way is dangerous. I once tried to slice a tall piece of chocolate this way, and sliced off some of my index finger when the nice slipped. Place the cob flat on a cutting board and cut it in half that way. Much, much safer.
As a chef for more than 30 years, with excellent knife skills, I really would not recommend trying to cut an ear of corn like this.
Fun way to eat corn! Follow the suggested tip of cutting ears half first - making two short ears of corn. Then you can stand each half up on its flat side and easily quarte the ears that way, reducing the chance of self injury.
BE CAREFUL how you cut this corn. I cut it in half, and then in half lengthwise, then I put it in the water. After it had its cold bath, then I cut in in half lengthwise (which is now quartered). I placed them on tea towels to dry. Followed the remaining steps. Turned out scrumptiously.
We LOVED these! Huge hit with the toddler. Opted for smoked paprika. We never boil corn and microwave in the husks for 4-5 minutes. Let them cook, chop off the end and pull the strings off! I mostly cut the corn horizontally and did the butter in the pan. Great component to veggies burgers.
First off these are super fun. However I shared the same concern re cutting upright as others. It would have to be lying flat for safety. My chef knife despite being sharp balked at the fibrous corn cob. Same with Japanese slicer, and the serrated knife. Voila the solution came to me. I had bought a German carbon steel harvest knife from an upstate garden store. I laid the cob down, inserted sharp point of knife into cob and sliced down - easy peasy. After all this is what the tool is designed to do, slice through stalks. And being carbon steel will sharpen easily. Beats a trip to the emergency room!