Tuesday, December 21, 2010

Homemade Corn "nuts"



Sometimes I wonder how I could possibly be more weird. Don't answer that. I don't want to know. I do know however, that for the last week or so I've been truly, madly, deeply in love with these homemade corn nuts and cranking them out by the crate full. Thankfully...they are all organic and awesome. I'd be worried otherwise. So how do I make these little corn nuggets of love at home? Well...we start with this...a method I discovered several years ago for getting popcorn to make all "old maids" (It's Good to Be an Old Maid... ). My grandma used to call the popcorn at the bottom of the bowl that "almost" popped but was still super crispy and yummy an "old maid." I'm not sure why. Those where my favorite little pieces of corn. We'd fight over them. Really. So this corn nut method is very similar. Only today we use this corn...

You will need: Hard Organic Yellow Corn, water, a clean towel, Vegetable Oil, and a  Stainless Steel Popcorn Popper 


Step 1: Cover corn in water 24 hours.


Step 2:  Drain and towel dry.



Step  3: Cook on the stove. 
 I use this Stainless Steel Popcorn Popper

which is awesome to make fresh, classic style popcorn right on your stove at home. I love how strong it is. This bad boy is going to last forever. Much more so than the aluminum models. Stainless steel clad aluminum bottom disperses heat quickly & evenly without aluminum contacting the popcorn. It also has a large 6 Quart capacity...so on popcorn night, it's enough for the whole family. The popper has stay cool wooden handles and a vented lid for dry popcorn and optimum temperature. The hinged lid provides easy loading & dispensing. Pin and Clamp lid removal for quick and easy cleaning. Rotary paddle keeps popcorn moving. Also great for glazed almonds & nuts. However, I've found it most useful for making the homemade corn nuts.

Cooking Directions: I add 1/3 cup of olive oil to every one cup of towel dried corn (that was soaked 24 hours in water).
I usually only cook 2 cups at a time max. Just to be sure it cooks crisp.

Close the lid and rotate the handle for 3-5 minutes until very crisp. Drain on a paper towel. Season as desired. Personally we adore my Chef Tess All Purpose Seasoning generously sprinkled over the nuts. I may be a little biased though.


Waaaawhooo! There you go! An awesome way to use some corn. Gluten free and homemade. 

Always My Very Best,
Your Friend Chef Tess


11 comments:

Cheryl said...

Looks great! :o) Much better than those little bags that grab your eye in the check out line.

aswesow said...

So this will work if we use popcorn kernels?

Chef Tess said...

Oh yes! I started with popcorn kernels first. I loved the little half popped golden corn pellets at the bottom of the popcorn bowl. Yes. See the original post on "old maids". It will walk you through it.

txazlady said...

I'm really looking forward to trying this. We love corn nuts and these look so yummy.

Txazlady
The Solar Cooker
www.txazlady.wordpress.com

Unknown said...

wonderful blog tess! would this be fresh hard corn ?

Chef Tess said...

You can use fresh hard corn. Yes.

Mel said...

Awesome! May I post this on Pinterest?

Chef Tess said...

Yes. This is okay to pin.

Anonymous said...

Also, is this hard corn, just regular old corn or what? What kind of corn did you use? I only ask because it's hard to find fresh hard corn around me.

Chef Tess said...

It is regular hard corn: http://store.honeyvillegrain.com/yellowcorn50lb.aspx

Anonymous said...

And thank YOU, Internet, for playing a special role in finding me this post. These are EXACTLY what I've been searching for for somewhere around {ahem} 30 years! A u-pick farm near where I grew up sold these and I've craved them every summer since we moved.

Thank you! I'm super stoked!