First, we cheat and buy our corn at the market. I have yet to find a suitable local replacement for Wilson Farm in Lexington, MA, where you show up, hand over your money and get handed in return a bag of wonderful fresh Butter and Sugar corn to cook in whatever way you like. My Aunt Buzz used to pooh-pooh this as well – maintaining that the only PROPER way to have corn was to visit your friends with a farm who raised it, have a cocktail, put the water on to boil and only THEN go out and pick your corn right from the field.
Lacking my Aunt’s agrarian connections; this is what we’ve worked out for grilling (boiling corn is another issue entirely – and I am of the STRONG conviction that, like turnip, corn should be boiled in sugared water).
We’ve tried the whole soak-the-corn-in-the-husk-in-water-then-grill-the-suckers bit; and I think it just makes for a big mess when everyone is ready to sit down to dinner but has to shuck their own hot corn. Quite frankly, at that point, I have better things to do. We shuck the corn, then soak in sugared water for about thirty minutes, then Rich takes over and grills ‘em on medium for about thirty minutes, turning often. I have softened spiced butter (cayenne, garlic, grill seasoning, chives, whatever you like) ready to apply at the very end.
We are toying with the idea of slathering the ears with spiced butter and/or mayonnaise and then grilling them – a la the corn-on-a-stick vendors in the city. Has anyone tried this?