Weekend evenings in our flat often tend to be finger-food nights – whether that’s a full-scale tapas feast, or just some chicken wings and other assorted tasty bits to nibble on in front of the TV. I like to include at least a concession to vegetables in there somewhere, so when I saw this Tom Kerridge recipe for spiced corn on the cob with burnt onion ketchup in my Dad’s copy of Best Ever Dishes over Christmas, I mentally bookmarked it.
The accompanying ketchup was the bit that took the longest, starting off with chopping and charring batches of onion. They made the flat smell a bit like a fairground, which is no bad thing.
After that, I threw the onions in a saucepan along with the sugar, vinegar and seasonings. Despite my best efforts, the mix kept catching a bit on the bottom – even when I added extra water as directed. This was the point at which I cursed the fact that the only heavy-bottomed pan I possess is a vast maslin one. It meant that the ketchup, once anchovied-up and blended, had a bitter edge that I’m not sure was meant to be there and that – if I’m honest – ruined it a bit. Note to self: buy better saucepans.
On a far happier note, if there’s anything more pleasing than whipping butter, I’m not sure I can cope with it. This was a paprika-heavy blend that was punchy and smoky, with just a hint of spice – a bit like that wonderful oil you get when you pan-fry chorizo.
Silly muddlehead that I am, I managed to completely miss the line of my shopping list that contained tinfoil, so I made do and mended by wrapping them up in some greaseproof paper. I don’t think things suffered as a result. Baking the cobs basically en papillote sealed in all the moisture and kept them wonderfully sweet and juicy. The spiced butter stood up to the corn without overpowering it, and was a brilliantly simple variation on a plain dish. I might not put the time in on the ketchup again, but the corn is welcome to stay in the finger-food repertoire. After all, there are a lot of weekends out there.
Something New Each Week 