Chicken and creamed corn, cobs and all
The cobs go in the pot. That is the whole secret.
At a Glance
Story
This leans on maque choux, the Cajun sauté of corn, peppers and celery that is often finished with cream. The stripped cobs simmer along in the pot like a stealth stock, giving up their sweet corn milk for hours, then leave before anyone notices they were the ones doing the work.
Ingredients
- 3 ears cornshucked, kernels cut from the cobs, cobs reserved
- 2 lb boneless skinless chicken thighs
- 4 cloves garlicsmashed and chopped
- 2 stalks celeryfinely chopped
- 1 red bell pepperfinely chopped
- 1 shallotfinely chopped
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter
- 1 tbsp kosher salt
- ½ tsp ground cayenneplus more for serving
- black pepper
- 1 cup full-fat Greek yogurt
- 3 scallionssliced
- 1 limejuiced
Method
Fifteen minutes of knife work in the morning buys you a pot of Cajun-leaning comfort at six. The kernels wait until the end so they keep their pop.
- Lay the stripped cobs in the bottom of a 6 to 8 quart slow cooker. Add the chicken, garlic, celery, bell pepper and shallot, and plop the butter on top. Season with the salt, cayenne and a good grind of pepper. Cook on low 4 to 4½ hours, until the vegetables are soft and the chicken is collapsing.
- Fish out and discard the cobs, thank them for their service. Shred the chicken coarsely right in the pot with tongs or two forks. With the cooker off, stir in the raw corn kernels, the yogurt, scallions and lime juice. Yogurt sulks if it boils, so off means off. Taste and adjust the salt, pepper and cayenne. It should hum, not shout.
Serve in bowls as is, or over buttered toast or split biscuits if the day demands it. More cayenne at the table for the brave.
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