There’s a great blog I read called Eat Drink Daily that has a bunch of excellent recipes and some beautiful photos. A couple of weeks ago Irena posted a recipe for BBQ Corn with Mexican Spicy Butter and Lime, which of course, is right in my wheelhouse. I love the flavours she’s used and have used her recipe as the basis for my own grilled corn. Rather than using coriander only as a garnish I wanted to get that fresh, crisp taste right into the corn so blended half a bunch in with the melted butter, paprika, chili, cumin, garlic, sugar, lime juice, salt and pepper. I agree with Irena when she describes it as being a ‘festive mix of sweet, salty, spicy and sour’. Don’t discard the coriander stems as they will come in handy later.  Also, I add the butter right at the end as I don’t want any of the delicate flavours to burn on the hot coals.

I like to grill the corn in it’s husks. Leaving the husks intact protects those sweet, tasty kernals from drying out while the corn cooks and also as the husks char and burn they impart a mild yet wonderful smokey flavour to the corn. First they must be peeled back to remove the silk and then have the cobs soak in cold water for 10 mins. This allows the husks to moisten and prevents them from catching fire when you put them over the charcoals. When on the grill it takes about 5 minutes of turning and jockeying the cobs until they’re cooked. The husks are then pulled back and the corn is giving a small amount of char which gives the corn a wonderful ‘popcorn’ taste. It’ll only take a few minutes of continual turning if your coals are hot enough.

I removed the corn from the grill and grabbed the coriander stems and bruised them up a bit. I use the stems to brush on the melted butter mixture as it adds that extra element of flavour that you’re not going to get using a silicone brush. The spicy butter is a real winner! The paprika and cumin bring a warmth in flavour, the zesty lime and coriander bring a freshness and of course the chili, brown sugar and corn kernels bring the heat and sweet. Add all that to come slightly smokey, charred sweetcorn and this is a dish I will be making again and again. Thanks Irena!