Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Enigma]

I teach mostly adults and so sometimes they'll bring me food. The other night one of my students brought me 3 cobs of corn (already cooked, still warm). I tried it after class and I could only choke down half of one cob. It was so rubbery (probably no the best word for it, but I don't know how else to describe it) and there was nothing appealing about the taste.
Don't get me wrong, I definitely appreciate the gesture, but that's probably the 3rd or 4th time I've been given corn here, and every time it's tasted terrible. I grew up in the Fraser Valley area just outside Vancouver, and we get fantastic fresh corn there every summer/fall and so maybe I'm spoiled, but I don't know how people could willingly eat the stuff I've had here. So I'm wondering if all Korean corn is that bad, or have I just been really unlucky.
Any of you had good corn here?

[nora]

Sure, plenty of good corn around. It's called SWEET corn.

Remember, Korea is not a corn producing country. Corn requires loads of water and extreme heat/sun, both things that Korea lacks. If you read the fine print where you can, you'll see that a lot of corn here is imported from China. Also, sweet corn does not stay sweet for very long. Unless you're getting it fresh, as in picked the day you eat it, it won't be too good. Sweet corn gets worse daily. Ergo, if you pick an ear in China, it's got to be in Korea within 1-2 days and you have to eat it within 1-2 days or else it's just not worth eating.

That said, if you want good sweet corn in Korea, it's not hard to find. Go to the country or to the local markets and see what they have. Get out of Seoul if you have to. Just this last weekend I took the Jungang line down towards Andong and saw plenty of corn growing in fields.

Last thing - sweet corn is sweet because it's still growing. This means you cannot get sweet corn in September/October (unless it was planted late). NOW is the time for it to start appearing and it'll mostly be gone by mid to late August. This is a rough estimate, again based on when the crop was planted, but by and large it'll be fairly accurate. Good luck with your corn hunt.

[byrddogs]

Ah, yes, the old rubber cob. You described it perfectly. Corn on the cob is one of my favorite things. The Korean version is abysmal. I don't know if it is a problem with what is available there; does seem to be, but the cooking method kills the corn for sure. Sweet and white corn is all over the place here in Shanghai right now. I buy it fresh every couple of days from the farmers' market and boil it up to perfection myself. Brush on some butter and a little season salt and I have corn nirvana. Sorry to hear about your dilemna. I feel your pain, having lived there for 5 years.

[zombiedog]

this happens to be corn season in Korea. so they were trying to be nice by bringing you something that was fresh in season. it's simply a different variety of corn that you are used to, not inherently bad because it is korean.

[Captain Corea]

[rainman3277]

[northway]

It's not inherently bad because it's Korean, but it's still an inferior product. The corn generally found in Korea is what we call "cow corn" where I'm from: chewy and flavorless, not crisp and sweet. It's an inferior food product in the same way that strawberries in the middle of winter are generally an inferior product. If you were to give any respectable chef a choice between the sweet corn we're all advocating and the stuff you get in Korea, every one would choose the sweet corn.

[Mix1]

Comparing regular corn to the corn here is the equivalent of comparing a nice juicy steak to a piece of dried up Slim Jim jerky.

The locals don't know how bad the corn is here, because most have never tried the crisp, sweet, juicy variety that is eaten in many other places.

My girlfriend went to the states and loved the corn. Should have seen the look on her face after the first bite. It's not just that it doesn't taste as good, it's that it's like an entirely different food.

[toby99]

[Mix1]

[ttompatz]

At home it would be referred to (at home) as "cattle corn" (waxy corn) rather than the "sweet corn" that you get for regular consumption. (different subspecies of corn).


Flour corn � Zea mays var. amylacea
Popcorn � Zea mays var. everta
Dent corn � Zea mays var. indentata
Flint corn � Zea mays var. indurata
Sweet corn � Zea mays var. saccharata and Zea mays var. rugosa
Waxy corn � Zea mays var. ceratina
Amylomaize � Zea mays
Pod corn � Zea mays var. tunicata Larra�aga ex A. St. Hil.
Striped maize � Zea mays var. japonica

.

[lemak]

Korean corn is absolutely horrid. Agreed. Makes sense that it's essentially cattle food.

[schwa]

This annual Daves discussion.

Corn here is essentially a different food from the sweet corn you're accustomed to back home. They dont compare. A lot is grown in my region of Korea & available fresh. Its grainy tasting, chewy, & has some nutritional value. I quite like it.

But if you bite in expecting something it isnt, you're likely to be disappointed.

[soomin]

I'm not really a fan of corn, but I've seen that at the outdoor markets, some ajumma will have "찰옥수숫" (glutinous corn?) rather than just 욱수수 (corn)... Is the glutinous corn the one you all are talking about? I was curious about it, but now... not so much, lol

[Kimchifart]