Silky Creamed Corn

By Ali Slagle

Updated Nov. 11, 2023

Silky Creamed Corn
Christopher Testani for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.
Total Time
30 minutes
Rating
4(207)
Notes
Read community notes

The original creamed corn likely did not have any cream at all: Native Americans scraped the cobs of their milky, starchy juices and simmered them with kernels until everything was thick and creamy. This recipe — which works with any frozen, canned or fresh corn — builds a similar silkiness by blending some of the cooked corn. Half-and-half adds richness, but not so much that it mutes the sweetness of the corn like heavy cream can. There’s no one way to flavor creamed corn; you can add herbs, cheese and peppers to make maque choux, or add nothing at all.

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Ingredients

Yield:4 servings
  • 2tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 2tablespoons finely chopped shallots, yellow onion or scallions
  • About 4½ cups corn kernels (see Tip)
  • ⅔cup half-and-half, plus more as needed
  • Pinch of cayenne or 1 teaspoon thyme leaves (optional)
  • Salt and pepper
  • Grated Parmesan or chopped parsley, chives or tarragon (optional), for serving
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)

293 calories; 13 grams fat; 7 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 4 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 44 grams carbohydrates; 4 grams dietary fiber; 7 grams sugars; 8 grams protein; 495 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    In a large pot, heat the butter over medium. When melted, add the shallots and cook until softened, 1 to 3 minutes. Add the corn, half-and-half and cayenne or thyme, if using; stir to combine. When you see bubbles around the edge of the pot, reduce heat to medium-low, cover and simmer until the corn is tender, 5 to 10 minutes for frozen and canned corn and 10 to 15 minutes for fresh corn. (Do not add salt yet; it will toughen the corn.) Remove from heat.

  2. Step 2

    Transfer a third of the corn (about 1 cup) to a blender and blend until very smooth. (Add 1 or 2 tablespoons of half-and-half to get things moving in the blender, if necessary.) Stir the purée back into the corn mixture. If the creamed corn is too loose, simmer uncovered over medium-low until thickened. If the creamed corn is too tight, thin with more half-and-half.

  3. Step 3

    Season to taste with salt and pepper, then top with serving additions, if desired.

Tip
  • For 4 ½ cups corn kernels, use 30 ounces frozen, thawed corn; 3 (15-ounce) cans of corn, drained; or kernels from 4 to 6 ears (scrape the cobs with the back of a knife to retrieve the milky juices).

Ratings

4 out of 5
207 user ratings
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Cooking Notes

myself

Creamed corn (what my part Cherokee mother called "fried corn") is not made with whole kernels. Fresh ears of corn, preferably the day they are picked, have the kernels cut from the cob with the sharpest possible knife, just cutting off the tips of the kernels. Then, with the blade of the knife turned perpendicular to the cob, scrape from one end of the cob to the other, scraping out the contents of the kernels. Repeat this all around the cob. Cream that. Use cream or butter.

Aunt Geddy

Geez, girl! There's no corn growing in my yard, just a bag of it i my freezer. Can't wait to try this one tonight.

Andrew Lee

While this looks delicious, for Thanksgiving I need to keep at least some of my sides simple. I found a much simpler creamed corn dish, which, while similar, simply omits the blender/blending of any ingredients.

Lori B.

Sautée chopped onion and diced red pepper in the butter first

Evelyn Pearl

I made this dish for a Friendsgiving and was overall happy with the outcome. I decided to use frozen corn for ease but think this version badly needed the “corn milk” from fresh corn. This wasn’t as creamy as I would have liked and will modify accordingly the next time. The addition of cayenne pepper brought some nice heat and flavor, too.

Jess

Great recipe, but a little bit bland. Might be the type of corn kernels we used. We added sugar to the recipe.

fallonc

So delic! Definitely making an appearance on my thanksgiving table. I used heavy cream because that’s what I had on hand. I thought it was fantastic, creamy, and richly sweet. I added more throughout as the recipe said. Thyme and cayenne worked well. Next time I will try adding maybe a 1/2tsp of sugar.

Aunt Geddy

Geez, girl! There's no corn growing in my yard, just a bag of it i my freezer. Can't wait to try this one tonight.

myself

Creamed corn (what my part Cherokee mother called "fried corn") is not made with whole kernels. Fresh ears of corn, preferably the day they are picked, have the kernels cut from the cob with the sharpest possible knife, just cutting off the tips of the kernels. Then, with the blade of the knife turned perpendicular to the cob, scrape from one end of the cob to the other, scraping out the contents of the kernels. Repeat this all around the cob. Cream that. Use cream or butter.

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