How to Cut Corn Off the Cob Without Kernels Flying Everywhere

No. Raw kernels come off cleanly with the flat-side method and stay crisp for salads and salsas. If you want cooked kernels, boil or grill the whole ear first, let it cool 5 minutes so you can hold it, then cut; cooked kernels release a little more easily.

About two thirds of the kernel depth, the figure the National Center for Home Food Preservation gives for whole-kernel corn. Deeper takes the tough bases with it; shallower leaves half the kernel on the cob. Scrape the milk off afterwards with the back of the knife.

A serrated blade saws through the kernel bases and leaves a ragged cut, and the teeth flick kernels sideways. A plain 8 in (20 cm) chef's knife with a sharp front third takes each strip in one stroke and keeps the kernels together.

The surface is smoother than wood and a wet cob is slick. The product page's fix is a damp cloth or a thin silicone mat under the board, which anchors it fully. Cutting one strip off the cob first so it sits on a flat face stops the roll at the same time.

After the kernels are off, hold the bare cob flat on the board and drag the back of the knife down it firmly, one side at a time. The milky pulp collects on the board, or in the groove of a grooved board, and goes into the pot with the kernels.

No. The board is uncoated, non-porous 304 stainless steel, so the sugary milk sits on the surface rather than soaking in, and the product page says acids, salt and citrus will not pit it. A hot wash or a dishwasher run clears it completely.

Yes, and it suits a bulk job of a dozen ears. The tool rides down the cob with a fixed ring blade, but it cuts at one depth only, it has a blade to wash, and it does not scrape the milk. For a few ears a knife on a flat-side cob is quicker start to finish.

Four to seven days after picking for most modern supersweet varieties, according to America's Test Kitchen, if you refrigerate the unhusked ears in a wet paper bag inside a plastic bag. Older or non-supersweet varieties lose sugar to starch much faster.

For longer storage, yes. The National Center for Home Food Preservation water-blanches whole ears for 4 minutes, cools them promptly, then cuts the kernels at about two thirds depth and packs them with 1/2 in (1.3 cm) headspace. Raw freezing works for a few weeks' use.

The grooved side. The channel around the full perimeter catches the milk and the strays, so the sweep into the bowl is one pass. Keep the flat side for dry prep and serving; flipping the board is the whole point of the double-sided design.

An 8 in (20 cm) chef's knife, sharp, using the front third of the blade. That section is long enough to clear a 4 in (10 cm) half cob in one stroke and narrow enough to follow the curve. A paring knife works but needs twice as many strokes.

No, but it helps. A whole cob is 7-8 in (18-20 cm) long and the far end wanders during a long stroke; a 4 in (10 cm) half stays put and the cut end gives a flat face to stand it on if you ever need to. Halving adds one cut and saves several.

Take one strip of kernels off first so the cob has a flat face, lay it on that face, then press down with the heel of the chef's knife at the middle. A cob is about 2 in (5 cm) across, so the blade goes through in one push.

The stroke that slices kernels off is a push, and if it slips it travels the way it was going. Holding the far end of the cob and cutting toward the near end keeps the blade moving away from the hand for all 4 in (10 cm) of the stroke.

Four to six strips per half, each about 3/4 in (2 cm) wide, so eight to twelve strokes per ear. Roll the cob a quarter turn onto the freshly cut flat face after each strip so it never sits on a rounded side.

A plate contains the kernels but the rim gets in the way of a low knife angle and the glaze chips the edge. A board with a groove around it does the same containing job with a flat surface; the Houseland board's groove runs the full perimeter of one side.

Yes, and cooked kernels release a little more easily than raw. Let a boiled or grilled ear cool for 5 minutes so you can hold it, take one strip off, lay it down, and cut as usual. Grilled ears with charred sides still need the flat strip to stop the roll.

The starchy liquid left in the kernel bases after the kernels are cut. Scrape it off the bare cob with the back of the knife; from 6 ears you get a few tablespoons (45-60 mL) that thickens chowder, creamed corn or a risotto without any flour.

The knife is cutting too deep, taking the tough bases and the connective layer with the kernels. Cut at about 2/3 of the kernel depth, the National Center for Home Food Preservation figure, and the kernels separate with a light press of the fingers.

Turn the tip half around so it faces you, hold the wide end, and take the last strips with the very front 2 in (5 cm) of the blade in short strokes. The tip kernels are small and close-set, so expect a few to stay behind; the cob goes to stock anyway.

No. Scissors cannot get under a strip of kernels lying flat, and snipping them one by one takes 10 minutes an ear. A chef's knife on a flat-sided cob takes about a minute.

Put a damp cloth or a thin silicone mat under it, which the steel board listing gives as its own fix. A wet cob on a smooth board on a smooth counter is two slippery layers; the cloth removes one and a 3/4 in (2 cm) flat strip on the cob removes the other.

Yes, both sizes, and that is the point for a sugary, starchy job like corn. The board is uncoated 304 stainless steel with nothing to soak or warp, so it goes straight in the dishwasher and comes out with no film.

The large, 15.4 x 11 in (39 x 28 cm), takes two halved cobs side by side with room for the pile of kernels. The medium, 12 x 8 in (30.5 x 20.3 cm), fits one ear at a time, which is fine for two or three ears.

Faster than on wood; the product page says steel is harder than wood or plastic and dulls an edge sooner than an end-grain block. Corn is a light job, a dozen strokes per ear, so a few ears cost little edge, and a 30-second hone afterwards puts it back.

No. The surface is non-porous 304 stainless steel with no coating, and the product page says acidic foods, salt and citrus will not pit it. Corn milk dries to a sticky film on wood; on steel it wipes off or washes out in a 1-minute rinse.

You can, but the milk and stray kernels run onto the counter. The grooved side has a channel around the full perimeter that holds them, so the kernels stay inside the 15.4 x 11 in (39 x 28 cm) rectangle and the sweep into the bowl is one pass.

Sweep them with the flat of the knife, spine first, into a pile, then tip the board over the bowl. On the grooved board the milk in the channel pours out with the kernels. Sliding a board 15.4 in (39 cm) long over a 10 in (25 cm) bowl takes one tilt.

About 6 minutes with the flat-side method once the first ear is done, roughly a minute per ear. The upright method is not faster; the time goes into chasing kernels off the floor afterwards.

Not while frozen; the kernels shatter and the knife skids. Thaw it in the fridge for 8 to 12 hours or boil it first, then cut. Frozen cobs are already blanched, so the kernels come off softer than raw.

Worse. The centre tube of a bundt pan is about 1 in (2.5 cm) across, so a blunt or wide-tipped cob cannot seat in it and rocks on the rim. That is the wobble the pan is known for, and the flat-side method removes it by putting the cob down.

It contains kernels but the inner bowl's curved floor gives the cob no flat seat and the outer rim forces the knife to a steep angle. Any upright method drops kernels 7 in (18 cm); the flat method drops them 1 in (2.5 cm).

Only for bulk. The ring-blade tool rides down the cob and takes kernels at one fixed depth, so it suits a dozen ears for freezing. For 2 or 3 ears the knife is faster start to finish and there is one less blade to wash.

America's Test Kitchen microwaves 3 or 4 unshucked ears for 30 to 60 seconds, then shakes each one so the husk and silk slide off together. For one or two ears, snap the stalk end off and peel the husk down in two grabs.

Rub the shucked ear with a dry kitchen towel from tip to base, or brush it with a clean vegetable brush. The microwave shucking method, 30 to 60 seconds for 3 or 4 ears, brings most of the silk off with the husk.

Weigh it rather than trust a rule: ears vary from 5 to 9 in (13 to 23 cm) and kernel size varies with the variety. Cut one ear, measure the kernels in a cup, and scale the recipe from that number rather than from a generic figure.

America's Test Kitchen presses the kernels through the husk; they should feel tightly packed, plump and firm. Green, damp husks and pale sticky silk mean an ear picked within a day or two. Skip ears with dry brown husks or dents you can feel through them.

In the fridge, in a wet paper bag inside a plastic shopping bag, which is the America's Test Kitchen method. Modern supersweet varieties stay sweet four to seven days that way; older varieties lose sugar to starch within a day or two.

Yes. Raw kernels keep in a covered container in the fridge and are best used within a day; past that the cut faces dry and the flavour goes starchy. Cutting 6 ears the night before saves about 6 minutes of a busy dinner prep.

Spread them in a single layer on a baking sheet, freeze for 1 hour, then transfer to a zipper bag and press out the air, which is the America's Test Kitchen method. The kernels pour out loose instead of coming out as a block.

For storage beyond a few weeks, yes. The National Center for Home Food Preservation water-blanches whole ears for 4 minutes, cools them promptly, drains, then cuts the kernels at about two thirds depth and packs them with 1/2 in (1.3 cm) headspace.

After. The National Center for Home Food Preservation blanches the whole ear for 4 minutes, cools it, and then cuts. Cutting first loses the milk into the blanching water and the loose kernels are harder to cool and drain.

America's Test Kitchen brings the water to a boil, shuts off the heat before adding the ears, covers the pot, and leaves it about 10 minutes, at which point the corn is between 150 and 170 °F (66 and 77 °C). Then cut or serve.

Simmer them for stock. America's Test Kitchen cuts 8 cobs into quarters and simmers them for a yield of about 7 1/2 cups (1.8 L). It is sweet, light, and the right base for chowder, corn risotto or a summer vegetable soup.

Three to four days in the fridge in a sealed container, or 3 months frozen. Freeze it in 1 cup (240 mL) portions so a single chowder or risotto can use one without thawing the lot.

Sugar in sweet corn converts to starch after picking, and cutting speeds it up by exposing the kernel interior. Keep ears unhusked in the fridge until you cut them, and cook cut kernels within a day; supersweet varieties give you the four to seven day window.

Yes, and kernels off the cob are easier to manage than the ear. Cook the ear first, cut the kernels at two thirds depth so the tough bases stay behind, and for a child under 3 chop the kernels or mash them, since a whole kernel is a small round choking size.

Cut slightly deeper than two thirds, closer to the cob, so a thin layer of the base holds each strip together, then break the strips into 1 in (2.5 cm) clusters by hand. Grilled ears hold clusters best because the charred side is firmer.

The knife angle is too steep. Bring the blade down until it is nearly flat to the board, almost parallel to the cob, so the kernels are shaved off sideways rather than flicked up. Halving the cob to 4 in (10 cm) shortens the stroke and calms the spray.

No. The cob is round, 2 in (5 cm) across and tapered, so it cannot ride a mandoline bed, and the kernels shear rather than cut. The mandoline's guard does not fit it either. A chef's knife on a flat-sided cob is the right tool.

No. The stroke runs toward your palm and the wet cob can twist. Put the cob on the board, cut one strip so it lies flat, and cut away from the guiding hand; a board with a groove catches the kernels as well as a 10 in (25 cm) bowl would.

Wipe the blade on a damp cloth between ears, then wash in hot soapy water and dry within 5 minutes. Silk winds around the heel of the blade; pull it off by hand rather than running it through the dishwasher, where it wraps around the basket.

No. The product page says no oiling, seasoning or soaking, ever. Wash it in the dishwasher or with hot soapy water, dry it, and stand it upright in a cabinet gap; the slim profile fits a narrow slot.

Wash it between the two jobs. The steel board is non-porous and dishwasher safe, so a full cycle or a hot soapy wash of 1 minute between the chicken and the corn is the rule. Do the corn first if you can, since it is the raw-eaten food.

Do not; grill the whole ear first. Loose kernels fall through the grate. Grill the ear 8 to 10 minutes, turning, until charred in spots, cool it 5 minutes, then cut the kernels off flat-side down. The charred kernels come off in clusters.

Cut the kernels shallow, at about half depth, then scrape the cob hard with the back of the knife to bring out the milk and the kernel hearts. The National Center for Home Food Preservation describes cream-style as cutting shallow and scraping, unlike whole-kernel at 2/3 depth.

Poor pollination, usually dry weather or a small planting. The last 1 to 2 in (2.5 to 5 cm) of the tip has small or missing kernels; snap it off before you cut, which also gives the cob a second flat end to stand on.

1/2 in (1.3 cm), the figure the National Center for Home Food Preservation gives for packaged whole-kernel corn. Kernels expand slightly as they freeze, and a full-to-the-brim container pops its lid.

Yes, and a wood board is kinder to the knife edge. The trade-off is that corn milk soaks into the grain and dries sticky, so a wooden board needs a hot scrub straight after, while the steel board goes through the dishwasher and holds the milk in its groove.

Tip the groove into the bowl every 3 or 4 ears. The channel on the large board is shallow, so a dozen ears will overrun it if you wait to the end. Pouring it off as you go keeps the cutting surface dry and the cobs from sliding in their own juice.