Cheese corn recipe: 59 photos
FAQ
A uniquely Korean-American creation, corn cheese is a dish inspired by two cultures. The simplicity of the ingredients — canned corn, mayonnaise and mild shredded cheese — yields a nearly effortless banchan, or side dish, that smells and tastes like comfort.
I would also recommend adding a generous pinch of salt to the butter bath — or, if you're feeling wild, using salted butter instead. My takeaway: Adding butter to your water bath is a great way to add extra flavor to your corn.
For a cheese dip or sauce, the addition of cornstarch serves a similar function: Starch molecules absorb water and expand, not only thickening the liquid phase of the sauce, but also physically preventing the proteins from binding into long, tangled strands and the fats from separating out and pooling.
According to one account, Edward Wilson noticed strings of puffed corn oozing from flaking machines in the mid 1930s at the Flakall Corporation of Beloit, Wisconsin, a producer of flaked, partially cooked animal feed. He experimented and developed it into a snack.
Corn was not always popular in Korean culture, but when American soldiers handed out cans of them to civilians during the Korean War, the country developed a taste for it (via Serious Eats). This introduction led to many creative dishes, and corn cheese was one of them.