I was struggling with ideas for new side dishes to make for the July 4th weekend. My friend Ashley Venable told me about one of her favorites called “Corn Maque Choux”. Sadly, I cannot say it or spell it, so I’ll make it simple and call it Cajun Corn. She said it’s best when prepared with fresh corn cut straight off the cob. Ashley is married to my State Farm friend, Carl. We met a hundred years ago when Carl was my assigned claims adjustor. He later became an agent as well, and that’s when I met Ashley. Ashley is from Louisiana so I’m sure she can pronounce the name of this dish properly. They have 3 daughters, and their Isabelle and our Lucy were roomies their freshman year at Ole Miss. They are the sweetest little family. I prepared this corn for lunch on July 4th and the bowl was cleaned. Everyone loved it! There is a lot of scraping and stirring involved, but don’t be discouraged. The sugar from the corn makes the best tasting little giblets of burned sugar throughout the dish. I promise it is very tasty!
Cajun Corn
Ingredients:
1 stick of butter
7 cups of fresh corn cut off the cob (about 17 ears) or frozen corn kernels
1 cup onion, finely chopped
1 cup green bell pepper, finely chopped
1 cup chicken stock
2 teaspoons sweet paprika
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 egg yolks, beaten
1 cup milk
1/2 cup sugar
Directions:
In your Dutch oven combine the butter, corn, onions, bell pepper, chicken stock and all seasonings. Cook over medium high heat for about 20 minutes stirring often. A thin crust may form on the bottom. Continue to scrape well. When the mixture becomes very dry, lower heat to low. In a separate bowl, combine the egg yolks with the milk and stir until the mixture becomes a little frothy. Gradually add the egg mixture into the corn while stirring continually so the eggs won't scramble. Bring the heat back to high and the mixture is boiling. Continue to stir and scrape. Add in the sugar, cover the pot, and reduce the heat to medium. Cook about 20 more minutes stirring and scraping often. Lower the heat if it’s sticking too much. Serve immediately.