Natural form

Fresh sweet corn ears in their husks, silk tassels intact at the tip.

Shows exactly what to look for when selecting corn — husk color, silk condition, and ear shape.

Produce

Corn

Sweet, juicy kernels on the cob — grill, boil, or char

Sweet and juicy, fresh corn grills to a smoky char, boils tender, and cuts off the cob into salads and salsas. Eat it soon after buying, when it's sweetest. Keep it cold.

Sweet corn is summer on the cob — plump, juicy kernels bursting with sugar that's at its peak the moment it's picked. Grilled until smoky and charred, boiled and slathered in butter, or cut off the cob into salads, salsas, and chowders, it brings sweetness and texture to the warm-weather table. The one rule that matters most: eat it as fresh as possible, because its sugars begin converting to starch the minute it leaves the stalk.

Measured in: piece
Storage: Refrigerate
Shelf life: 5 days

Find it in

Produce

Types & varieties

Yellow sweet corn

Classic golden kernels; sweet and juicy

White sweet corn

Pale, tender, often extra-sweet

Bicolor (peaches and cream)

Mixed yellow and white; sweet and popular

Field / dent corn

Starchy, for flour, cornmeal, polenta, and animal feed — not for the cob

How to choose

Want ears with bright-green, tightly wrapped husks, golden and slightly sticky (not dry and brown) silk, and a heavy, firm feel. Peel back a corner to check the kernels are plump, milky, and packed all the way to the tip — but don't strip the whole husk, which dries the corn out. Freshness trumps everything.

How to store

Corn loses sweetness fast as its sugar turns to starch, so eat it the day you buy it if you can. Keep it cold in the husk in the fridge to slow that conversion, and use within a couple of days. Don't shuck it until you're ready to cook. For longer storage, blanch and freeze the kernels.

Sweetness fades fast — eat it fresh
Keep cold and in the husk until cooking
Blanch and freeze kernels to keep

How to cook and cut

Cook it briefly — sweet corn needs only a few minutes boiled or steamed, and it shines grilled (in the husk for steamy-tender, or shucked for char). To strip kernels, stand the ear in a wide bowl and run a knife down the sides; scrape the cob afterward for the sweet 'milk.' Add the cobs to stock or chowder for extra corn flavor.

Common uses

Grilled corn on the cob (elote)Corn salad and salsaCorn chowderCornbread (fresh kernels)SuccotashCreamed cornTacos and tamalesFritters

Tips & pitfalls

Cook it the day you buy it — sweetness drops by the hour off the stalk
Grill shucked for char, or in the husk to steam tender
Don't overcook; a few minutes is plenty for sweet corn
Scrape the stripped cob for the sweet 'milk,' and simmer cobs for stock
Char kernels in a dry skillet for smoky salads and salsas

Nutrition

86kcal

Energy

360 kJ · per 100 g

Where the calories come from

Protein 13%Carbs 76%Fat 11%

Protein

3.2g

6% DV

Carbs

19g

7% DV

Fat

1.2g

2% DV

Fiber

2.7g

10% DV

Sugars

3.2g

of which

Sodium

15mg

1% DV

Notable micronutrients

Thiamin (B1)17% DV

Folate12% DV

Niacin (B3)11% DV

Magnesium9% DV

Vitamin C8% DV

Phosphorus7% DV

Source · USDA FoodData Central · Corn, sweet, white, raw

View on FDC →

In the shops

Matched grocery products

Sweet Corn
Hacendado · 450 g · Mercadona
€1.55
Sweet Corn Bonpreu
BONPREU · kg · Bonpreu
€1.59
Sweet Corn Bonpreu
BONPREU · kg · Bonpreu
€2.49
Bonduelle Sweet Corn
BONDUELLE · kg · Bonpreu
€1.99
Pickled Corn Kernels
RIOVERDE · kg · Bonpreu
€2.99
Sweet Corn on the Cob
2 ud · Mercadona
€3.15

Good to know

Peak season: Summer (peak); best eaten the day it's picked
Flavor: Sweet, juicy, milky; smoky-sweet when charred
Origin: Mesoamerica; domesticated from teosinte ~9,000 years ago
Nutrition: ~86 kcal/100g; fiber, B vitamins, lutein; a starchy vegetable
How to buy: Bright-green tight husks, golden moist silk, plump kernels to the tip

Substitutes