Old time creamed corn in its purest form needs just a little salt and butter. Learn how to make it the traditional southern way. You will never eat canned corn again.
I hesitate to call this a recipe. It's more of a tutorial, because the star ingredient is the fresh corn itself. Just a little salt and butter are added to taste, but you could actually make delicious southern style creamed corn with nothing but corn. If you're looking for something with a little more bang, try our Blackened Corn. This corn soufflé casserole is also a great side option, especially during the holidays.
No flour, no milk or heavy cream, no corn starch out of a box or can. You are using corn starch in its purest form. Let us show you how.
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These marvelous tools are called..... are you ready for this? Corn Creamers. I inherited one of mine and the other one I've had over 40 years. Where I am from in North Florida we used to buy them at the local hardware store. Maybe you still can, but I've found them on Amazon for you.
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This link takes you to a wooden corn creamer. I guess I'm an old-fashioned purist because I prefer my wooden one but if you like stainless steel you can order one here.
Shuck and Clean the Corn
For true rookies, I want to go over briefly how to shuck corn. You grab a bit of the corn silks (that hairy stuff) sticking out the top and the top of the husks next to it and pull down.
Keep moving around the ear of corn until you've pulled all the husks down and as much of the silks as possible. Then grab that whole wad of husks and silks and break off the bottom.
Go back and pull off remaining silks. You will need to wash the corn and brush between the kernels for stubborn silks that are hiding from you, but it's easiest to get as many off as possible while the corn is still dry.
Cream the Corn
Now, comes the fun part. Prop the creamer in a large container. You start running the ear of corn down the creamer. Keep going over it until no juice comes off the cob.
That last bit of milky goodness is what thickens your corn, naturally. You have to put a decent amount of pressure on the ear of corn to get it all.
This is a pretty messy job. The corn splatters as you're creaming it. If at all possible, wear an apron and work on the porch. And, you want a glass of sweet tea close by. This process is a labor of love, but it is SO worth it.
For a standard sized dutch oven and I creamed 10 ears of corn. It made about 5 servings of old fashioned cream style corn, but that's going to vary with the size of ears of corn.
How to Cook the Creamed Corn
In the raw state the liquid is very milky -- opaque, in fact. At this point you can freeze it in bags, and anytime you want that fresh, creamed-corn taste pull out a bag to thaw and cook. On the farm, bushels of corn are "put up" on the same day. It's an all-hands-on-deck family affair.
For cooking, you can heat it up over medium heat, but once it's good and hot, reduce to medium-low. Cook, stirring constantly. Be sure to scrape the bottom of the pan often to prevent sticking and scorching.
After it's hot the corn will cook in 10-15 minutes. The way you know it's done is when the liquid thickens and becomes more translucent. I add about a teaspoon of salt for every 10 ears of corn, and at the end stir in a tablespoon of butter.
The real old fashioned southern way to season creamed corn is with bacon grease instead of butter.
You can use sweet corn (like silver queen) and it's equally delicious, but sweet corn tends to not thicken as much. I would love to hear how it turns out when you try it, and don't forget to get your corn creamers.
Order the Stainless Steel one here. and theWooden Corn Creamer here
FAQs about how to make creamed corn:
The key is scraping the ear of corn very thoroughly. By doing so you are incorporating the natural corn starch and that will thicken your corn.
No. Sweet corn is a type of corn (the kind with white kernels) and creamed corn is a method of preparation that we have detailed for you here.
Yes. Another method often used by southern cooks is this: Take a wide, sharp knife and cut the very tops off the corn kernels. After going all the way around the cob turn the knife over and use the dull side to scrape. The results are similar to what you will get with the corn creamer.
Absolutely! Cook it up to 2 days in advance. Just refrigerate and then heat it up when ready to serve. If it's too thick you may have to add a little water at the time as it heats.
Fresh corn should be stored unwashed and unpeeled in a sealed plastic bag in the crisper drawer of your fridge. This will keep it fresh for 5-7 days.
For a quick and fun look at this recipe be sure to check out the Google Web Story.
For a look at all things Southern Food, you'll want to check out this article. It's about the history, the origins and a peek into what the future may hold for our favorite cuisine.
📖 Recipe
Old Fashioned Creamed Corn
Ingredients
- 10 ears corn
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1 Tbsp. butter or bacon grease
Instructions
- Cream corn with corn creamer
- Heat in saucepan over medium heat
- Reduce heat to medium-low
- Add salt
- Cook, stirring constantly, being sure to scrape bottom for 10-15 minutes
- Corn is done when thickened and translucent
- Add butter and stir until melted
Notes
Nutrition
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Taylor Kiser says
Great tutorial!! This creamed corn looks so delicious!
Pam says
Thanks, Taylor!
Luci says
I love creamed corn! It's a delicious dish and so easy to make! I will definitely be making this for our BBQ this week!
Pam says
Hope you love it like we do!
colleen says
Thanks so much for sharing this. My only experience with creamed corn was from a can as a child and I hated it. This recipe looks delicious and I want to try asap.
Pam says
From a can is totally diffferent. You're going to love the real thing!
Jackie Edwards says
We always grew sweet and field corn. My favorite is field corn, Golden Dent, to be exact! We have always frozen our creamed corn but I’m wondering if I could pressure can it. Any wisdom anyone can share?
Pam says
Field corn is my favorite too. I'm not sure about the pressure cooking. Maybe another reader can help.
Ann says
I cooked some creamed field corn and it just doesn’t taste good to me. Don’t know what I did wrong. I used buttermilk like I do with my sweet corn, salt and butter. Cooked in the microwave for about 20 minutes. Help!!
Pam says
I'm not sure Ann. I have never heard of putting buttermilk in creamed corn. As you can see in our recipe we believe in keeping it simple and letting the corn stand pretty much on its own. Maybe you'd like to give our method a try.
Terry Faith says
My grandma was a professional cook from South Georgia and her recipe was the same as yours. The exception was that she didn't have a corn creamer tool. She would remove the kernels with a knife, then she would scrape the cob to get all the water and starch off the cob. She'd even wring that cob to get the starch. Thank you for posting your recipe! I make look for the corn creamer on Amazon.
Pam says
Yes, Terry, I've seen my Mama make it that way too. In fact, we just posted a corn photo on Instagram last week and mentioned how some people did it that way. Thank you for visiting!
Adrianne says
There is so much detail here, it is great to read. I am a huge corn fan and this recipe is right up my alley. Can't wait to give it a go.
Pam says
You're going to love it!
Anjali says
This was such a helpful guide to making creamed corn!! Love your tips about scraping the ear of corn to get natural corn starch too - that's so cool! I can't wait to try your recipe this week!
Pam says
Hope you enjoy. Thanks, Anjali!
Kay says
I have got to get myself a corn creamer so I can try this recipe out. I’m from the UK so Never tried creamed corn before.
Pam says
We predict you'll love it!
Sara Welch says
Enjoyed this for dinner yesterday and it does not disappoint! Your post was very informative and the recipe is not only delicious, but easy to follow to boot!
Pam says
Awww... thanks for letting us know, Sara!
Julia says
Ohh gosh! My moms favorite thing in the world is corn! Can’t wait to make this for her this weekend!
Pam says
She'll love it!
Ivette says
Thank you showing real cream corn, not something with kernels in it. This dish is creamy and delicious. My husband is from North Florida and this is how his mother made it. Again thank you for sharing.
Pam says
Awww.... thank you Ivette! We are from north Florida too, so I guess that explains our love of creamed corn!
ANNE B GLASS says
Love creamed corn! wish I could find the field corn like we used to make when i lived on a farm. When we 'put up" corn, we poked holes in the top of a mayonnaise jar lid with an ice pick and used that to scrape the corn. Just wish I could figure out how to make the non-field corn less sweet.
Pam says
I've never heard of creaming corn that way but I can see where it would work. Thanks for taking the time to stop by with a star rating and comment. It means a lot to us!
Linda Martin says
Field can is the best for cream corn, the mayo jar lid is how I cream my corn. Today the real field corn is hard to find.i cook my corn slow for 3 hours in butter sometimes bacon grease like my grandmother did. I would like to jar mine this year I can't find anyone that knows how. Any advice. Thanks
Pam says
Agree on field corn, Linda, but unless you know a farmer it is hard to find. We've always frozen our corn, and we don't do waterbath canning, so I'm afraid we'd be no help with that. Good luck!
Kathy Moresi says
Hi,
This sounds exactly like what my mom would make growing up in South Georgia, except she put hers in the oven and baked it. I can't remember how long she baked it or on what temperature. Would you have an idea?
I know she would put the a slightly thawed container of the creamed corn she had put up from the freezer in the baking dish and put it in the oven. Once it had thawed and could be stirred, she'd add her butter, salt and pepper. Then stir all together and bake.
I guess I'll just have to experiment. But if you'd know anything about this method, I'd love to hear from you.
Pam says
We wish we could help, but we have always cooked ours on the stove top.