It’s June and in Louisiana that means sweet corn is ready to harvest! Farmer’s Markets, roadside fruit and vegetable stands, grocers and home growers are busy bringing in that beloved summer treat – fresh sweet corn. We get lots of calls and questions at the Rapides Extension Office regarding how to prepare and preserve it properly. Corn is so versatile and can be used in a huge variety of dishes, my personal favorite is on the cob and straight to the grill. If you want to put some away for later use, here is how you go about freezing it:

Freezing Corn

• Preparation - Select only tender, freshly-gathered corn in the milk stage. (Milk stageoccurs about 20 days after silking as kernels develop a buttery yellow color and are full ofmilkywhite fluid.) Shuck and trim the ears, take care to remove all silks, then wash.
• Corn-on-the-cob - Blanch small ears (1¼ inches or less in diameter) 7 minutes, medium ears (1¼ to 1½ inches in diameter) 9 minutes and large ears (over 1½ inches in diameter) 11 minutes. Cool promptly and completely in an ice water bath to prevent an “off” taste. Drain, pat dry and package. Seal – remove as much air as possible and freeze.
• Whole Kernel Corn - Blanch 4 minutes. Cool promptly and completely in ice water bath, drain and cut from cob. Cut kernels from cob about 2/3 the depth of the kernels. Package, leaving ½-inch headspace. Seal and freeze.
• Cream Style Corn – Blanch 4 minutes. Cool promptly and completely in ice water bath; drain and pat dry. Cut kernel tips and scrape the cobs with the back of a knife to remove the juice and the heart of the kernel. Package, leaving ½-inch headspace. Seal and freeze.

(Adapted from "So Easy to Preserve", 6th ed. 2014. Bulletin 989, Cooperative Extension Service, The University of Georgia, Athens. Revised by Elizabeth L. Andress. Ph.D. and Judy A. Harrison, Ph.D., Extension Foods Specialists.)

For step-by-step instructions on how to blanch various types of vegetables, visit this helpful link from the National Center for Home Food Preservation: Freezing/Blanching

We have also provided a wonderful recipe for Sweet Corn Relish!

For more information on home food preservation, please call the Rapides Parish Extension Office of the LSU AgCenter at 318-767-3968. You may also email Area Nutrition Agent, Quincy Vidrine at qvidrine@agcenter.lsu.edu.