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Flavour of the month: 13 ways that local chefs are cooking with corn

By Eric Vellend
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Flavour of the month: 13 ways that local chefs are cooking with corn
(Image: My Yen Trung)

We love what Toronto chefs are doing with corn this season. The sweet summer staple is showing up on menus not just boiled and buttered, but grilled, ground, pureéd, roasted, even nitro-zapped. Here, the best places to get your fix

CACHAPAS Corn is grilled, then ground to make Venezuelan flapjacks.Hot off the griddle, they’re topped with salty queso fresco. $10.50. Arepa Café, 490 Queen St. W., 416-362-4111.


CEVICHE WITH FREEZE-DRIED CORN Leaving vapour trails from a quick dip in liquid nitrogen, icy niblets add a cool crunch to lime-cured shrimp. $14. Origin, 107–109 King St. E., 416-603-8009.


CORN CHOWDER Cream-enriched corn and potato soup gets a smoky hit from chorizo. $6. Relish, 2152 Danforth Ave., 416-425-4664.


GRILLED COBS Every Wednesday, Dustin Gallagher grills cobs and slathers them in lime butter and a salty secret spice mix. $2.50. Grace Upstairs, 503 College St., 416-944-8884.


ROASTED CORN HUSH PUPPIES Savoury fritters are goosed with jalapeño and come with a zingy chipotle mayo for dipping. $10. Paramour, 94 Ossington Ave., 416-953-2356.


LINGUINE WITH CORN Grilled corn and Laughing Bird shrimp are tossed with a light cream sauce and tomato concassée. $24. Oro, 45 Elm St., 416-597-0155.


POLENTA Jason Cox cooks down puréed and strained corn into a puddle of fresh “polenta,” as a gorgeous accessory to briny butter-poached lobster. $42. Opus, 37 Prince Arthur Ave., 416-921-3105.


CORN PONE Skillet corn bread is studded with kernels, aged cheddar and jalapeño, then plated alongside a crispy Cornish hen. $37. Canoe, 66 Wellington St. W., 54th flr., 416-364-0054.


CORN PUDDING WITH TARRAGON Anthony Rose makes this fluffy soufflé-esque side to pair with his ribs and pork belly. $24. The Drake, 1150 Queen St. W., 416-531‑5042.


CORN RISOTTO Both niblets and fresh puréed corn figure into this rich risotto of chanterelles and porky bits of guanciale. $17. Splendido, 88 Harbord St., 416-929-7788.


PAN-ROASTED COBS Golden ears are cut into mini-cobs, pan-roasted in dill butter and gratinéed with tangy sheep’s milk queso fresco. $10. One, 116 Yorkville Ave., 416-961-9600.


CORN SALAD Cob meets cobb in a colourful salad of charred corn, tomato, avocado and blue cheese in a bacon vinaigrette. Part of $49 prix fixe. Ruby Watchco, 730 Queen St. E., 416-465-0100.


CORN TART Mark Cutrara purées and strains raw corn, transforming the resulting “milk” into a silky custard tart. Served with ripe peaches and crème anglaise, it’s a double entendre dessert. $9. Cowbell, 1564 Queen St. W., 416-849-1095.

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