Hello! This week I have a soup recipe for you that is exactly the kind of thing I feel like eating as Spring begins to appear. It’s fresh and light but still filling enough to make you feel warmed through. It also involves the eating of corn on the cob, as all meals involving corn should.
Corn in soups is classic in many cuisines. Chinese chicken and sweetcorn soup, Mexican pozole and Trini corn soup are some of the big dogs. There’s chowder too, of course, but something about a roux-based corn soup doesn’t light my fire.
I wanted to make a soup where corn was the star, with its sweetness being enhanced by Tajín’s hot and tangy savouriness. Tajín is a Mexican seasoning available from Mex Grocer, whose primary ingredients are chilli, lime and salt. I am a big fan, and think it makes a great ingredient beyond simply being a garnish. It pairs brilliantly with both sweet and savoury dishes, as I hope this recipe will show. You’ll also have spotted it in my Blue Cheese Mac ‘n’ Cheese.
Leaving some of the corn chunks whole and being able to pick them up and eat off the cob at the end is, for me, what makes this soup. It makes the meal so much more satisfying than if it were merely a slurp-able chain-of-events. Most of the best food moments happen when you eat with your hands, if you think about it. Naan with curry, pasties, chips, sandwiches, burgers, deep fried things, pizza, scarpetta. Psychologically speaking, using your hands makes a meal taste better. So, I had to incorporate that here. The corn chip accompaniment adds an extra layer of fun too.
Because the Tajín brings the heat and the acidity, there are relatively few ingredients needed here. The green pepper and onion soffrito offers a base that has plenty of vegetal bitterness to counterbalance the sourness. Hope you enjoy!
This recipe is sponsored by Tajín, which is available from MexGrocer. A big thank you to them for supporting WTYCT.
Tajín Corn Soup
2 tbsp neutral oil
4 corn cobs
1 onion, finely diced
1 green pepper, finely diced
1 green chilli, finely chopped
1 tin of chopped tomatoes
1 tbsp Mexican oregano
½ tbsp Tajín chilli and lime seasoning, plus extra to taste
850ml vegetable stock
To serve
A handful of fresh coriander
Thick cream or sour cream (optional)
Corn chips
In a heavy bottomed pot, add the oil and sweat the onion and green pepper with a pinch of salt for 10 minutes. Add the green chilli and garlic and cook for a further 5 minutes.
Slice 2 of the corn cobs vertically in half then in half again horizontally so you have four sides each with one flat edge and one curved edge. Slice all the kernels vertically off the other 2 corn cobs, onto a chopping board or into a bowl. Save the cores.
Add the tinned tomatoes, stock, dried oregano and Tajín to the pot then bring to the boil and add the corn half moons and the cores to the pot. Simmer gently for 20 minutes.
Finally, add the corn kernels and cook for a further 5 minutes or until the kernels are tender to your liking. Serve with the fresh coriander corn chips and cream if desired.
NB: if topping with sour cream, please note that the Tajín is already bringing plenty of acidity, so the soup will be extra tangy. Go for thick cream if too much acidity is not for you!