Baby corn
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Baby corn (also known as young corn, cornlettes, child corn or baby sweetcorn) is a cereal grain taken from corn (maize) harvested early while the stalks are still small and immature. It typically is eaten whole—including the cob, which is otherwise too tough for human consumption in mature corn—in raw, pickled, and cooked forms. Baby corn is common in stir fry dishes.
Production methods
There are two methods for producing baby corn: either as a primary crop, or as a secondary crop in a planting of sweet corn or field corn. In the first method, a seed variety is chosen and planted to produce only baby corn.<ref>Template:Citation</ref> Many varieties are suitable, but those developed specifically for baby corn tend to produce more ears per plant.<ref name="r746">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> In the second production method, the variety is selected to produce sweet or field corn. The second ear from the top of the plant is harvested for baby corn, while the top ear is allowed to mature.<ref name='PNW0532'>Template:Cite report</ref>
Baby corn ears are hand-picked as soon as the corn silks emerge from the ear tips, or a few days after. Corn generally matures very quickly, so the harvest of baby corn must be timed carefully to avoid ending up with more mature corn ears. Baby corn production mostly occurs in Asia, as it is a specialized form of corn farming often requiring hand picking, which is generally not compatible with mechanized corn agriculture practiced in the United States.<ref name="Kearns">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Baby corn ears are typically Template:Convert in length and Template:Convert in diameter.<ref name="PNW0532" />
Uses
Baby corn is consumed worldwide.<ref name="fao">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> They are often associated with Chinese-American food such as stir-fry, though they are not as widely used in China.<ref name="d942">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Baby corn forage can also be fed fresh or ensiled to livestock animals.<ref name="fao" /><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
References
External links
- What Is Baby Corn? Pamphlet from Washington State University