Summer

Darra - Lebanese Roasted Corn

by:
July 31, 2011
0
0 Ratings
Darra - Lebanese Roasted Corn
  • Serves As many as you prepare ears for
Author Notes

Back home in Lebanon during the summer, one of the treats we had was when a funny little man would come to our village, setup his brazier with charcoal and sell Darra (Arabic for roasted corn). If you didn't get there early, it was gone.

Here's my take on it and while I don't have access to the Mediterranean for the salt water to soak the corn, it still smell/tastes the same.

I have on numerous occaisions taken the corn off the cobs after they have finished roasting and served them in a bowl with no additional adornment but it's not as good as right off the cob. —TXDjinn

What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • Ears of corn for the people invited
  • Large bucket of water to easily hold the corn
  • A handfull of sea salt
Directions
  1. Pull off the husks and remove the silk of each ear of corn.
  2. In the bucket which should be about 2/3 full of cold water, disolve the sea salt.
  3. Place the corn cobs - with the husks pulled back - into the salted water so that they're all standing with the stem end up. Let them soak at least an hour.
  4. Setup your brazier with charcoal and get it good and hot. I've tried this with a gas BBQ and while it worked, it didn't have that right taste.
  5. Take a few ears of corn out of the bucket and place them onto the the grille and keep turning them every few minutes to allow them to roast evenly (a little charring is highly encouraged) and then serve hot. There's no need for butter or anything else.
  6. Keep doing this until the ears are all gone and you've driven your guests crazy with the smell/sight of it.
  7. One variation is to keep the husks on during the soaking, roast the corn for about 10-15 min with the husks on which steams them, then pull the husks off and continue the roasting process.
Tags:
Contest Entries

See what other Food52ers are saying.

  • Panfusine
    Panfusine
  • TXDjinn
    TXDjinn
  • Kitchen Butterfly
    Kitchen Butterfly

Popular on Food52

4 Reviews

Panfusine
Panfusine August 1, 2011
Reminds me of eating 'butta' (corn ) during the rainy season in MUmbai.. It needs the charcoal brazier for that special aroma. The vendor would rub the corn with a mix of salt & cayenne pepper powder using a cut piece of lime.
 
TXDjinn
TXDjinn August 1, 2011
Thanks, can't take credit for the photo but that's what it looks like off the brazier. And I've also had it with fresh coconut chunks in Nigeria and it's definitely heaven :)
 
Kitchen B.
Kitchen B. July 31, 2011
Gorgeous photo too
 
Kitchen B.
Kitchen B. July 31, 2011
This reminds me of roasted corn back home in Nigeria where roadsides were replete with sellers during corn season. We always ate ours with fresh coconut chunks - heaven!