Grilled Corn on the Cob with TABASCO® Butter

Grilled corn on the cob only needs two things to go right: real char, and enough salt and acid to stop it tasting flat. Corn is sweet, and sweet on its own gets boring by the third bite.

That is the job TABASCO® Original Red Sauce does here. It is mostly vinegar, salt and red pepper, so it cuts the sugar in the corn and the fat in the butter at the same time. You can mash it into a butter, which is the version below, or just pour it straight over a hot cob like a normal person at a barbecue.

Ingredients

• 4 corn cobs, husks removed
• 60 g butter, softened
• 1-2 tsp TABASCO® Original Red Sauce, plus more to serve
• 1 garlic clove, minced (optional)
• 1 tbsp chopped parsley or cilantro
• salt
• lime wedges, to serve

Preparation

1. Heat a grill or barbecue to medium-high. A ridged griddle pan works too, as long as you get it properly hot first.
2. Mash the butter with the TABASCO® Original Red Sauce, garlic, herbs and a pinch of salt. Leave it somewhere warm so it stays soft.
3. Grill the corn for 10 to 12 minutes, turning every few minutes, until the kernels are tender and charred in patches.
4. Brush the hot corn generously with the butter so it melts down into the kernels rather than sitting on top.
5. Serve with lime wedges, and put the bottle on the table for anyone who wants more.

Notes

If the barbecue is crowded, boil the cobs for 5 minutes first, then give them 4 or 5 minutes over the fire purely for color. You get char without holding up the queue.

For a street corn version, skip the butter and use mayonnaise, crumbled feta, lime and a dusting of chili powder instead. Same cob, different direction.

TABASCO® Original Red Sauce is the bottle for this. If you want smoke rather than sharpness, Chipotle in the butter is very good on corn, and you can see how the two compare on our Scoville scale.

Keep reading

• Black bean salad, also good with grilled corn
• More things to cook with TABASCO®
• Shop TABASCO® Original Red Sauce