A childhood favourite - a hot cuppa Corn Soup
This luscious, rich corn potage is my personal favourite from Ayah’s vast repertoire of soups. It’s perfect for a cold, rainy day or for those days when all you want is an easy to make, simple but comforting meal to get you through that deadline you have to meet…
If there was one gastronomical quirk that Aiyah was remembered for, it was his passion for soups. Of course, there was his other one – his choice of McDowell’s over fancy whiskey, but little shall be said about that... Anyway, rain or shine, at the dot of 7, when Aiyah returned from his evening walk and gossip session with the verandah mafia at the Madras Club, his hot cuppa was ready for him – in time for his dictation session with his long-time typist, Srinivasan. Many a visitor to the Muthiah household has been plied with hot cuppas from the seemingly bottomless pots of soup that Ayah produced over the years.
Aiyah and Ayah brought the darling daughters up with the belief that a cup of soup a day kept the doctor away. The 7 pm soup ranged from the lentil based South Indian soups made with whatever vegetables were in season (cauliflower to drumstick / murungakkai to okra / ladies finger to sundakkai / turkey berry) to the spicy kozhi rasam (chicken rasam) to cream soups and Asian style clear soups. The two of them, and the extended family, loved their packet soups as well – for years, the younger generation living overseas was tasked with bringing back as many packets of soup as they could fit into their luggage!
Meals at restaurants always began with a bowl of soup followed by more appetisers than mains and ended with a touch of dessert. While Aiyah loved to dine out on his overseas trips, the one thing that he didn’t understand was the dearth of soups on modern menus outside of India. The concept that soup was served as a meal in itself rather than as just a course was alien to him, and so, rather than listen to a lecture about uncivilized people, we souped him up before we left home!
Ayah’s daily lunch menu was rich in vegetables, either as a poriyal (South Indian simple stir fry) or a masala poriyal (a spicy dry dish of curried vegetables). However, she always believed in parboiling the vegetables before using them. The newly health conscious young me once asked her about losing all the nutrients by boiling the vegetables. The response came in a jiffy: “we reserve all the boiled water and use it as stock in our soups, so don’t you lecture me on nutrition!” So, myth or not, Ayah and Aiyah continued to believe that soups were the ultimate nutrient dense energy boosters.
As a child, the kitchen master’s favourite comfort food was soup and rice – a taste that my children have inherited but hers, unfortunately, have not. No amount of coercing would budge the young apprentice who declared that his young cousins would be better taste testers for the soup kitchen. And so, from the testing kitchen in Singapore, we bring to you my childhood favourite – the luscious, rich corn soup that kept me company through many cold, wintry assignment nights at grad school. Serve it chunky, like we do, or creamy – either way it makes for a good hot cuppa for the evening or a meal in itself.
Note:
1. Ayah used to make this recipe with canned sweet corn, however, since the overseas versions we get are too sweet, we have substituted with canned corn kernels. You can also use defrosted frozen corn kernels or fresh boiled / steamed corn kernels.
2. The version we bring to you in this recipe is a chunky soup. If you'd prefer a creamier, smoother version, refer to our recipe notes.
3. This recipe makes 4 generous portions. If you'd prefer to make less, you can halve the recipe too.
Ingredients:
1 can (425 gm / 15 oz / 1 ¾ cup) corn kernels, drained and washed
1 tablespoon salted butter
1 tablespoon plain flour / maida
½ cup milk
3 cups vegetable or chicken stock
Salt to taste (about 1 tsp)
Pepper powder to taste (about 1 tsp)
Optional:
½ cup grated carrot
1 spring onion, sliced thin
Note: If you don’t have any vegetable or chicken stock, substitute with 1 tablespoon of vegetable / chicken stock powder dissolved in 3 cups of lukewarm water.
Method:
1. Melt the butter in a thick bottomed saucepan.
1 tablespoon salted butter
2. When the butter is almost melted, add the corn kernels and sauté for two minutes, until mostly dry.
1 can (425 gm / 15 oz / 1 ¾ cup) corn kernels, drained and washed
3. Add the plain flour and stir in for about a minute until the raw smell goes away.
1 tablespoon plain flour / maida
4. Remove from the flame and add the milk – keep stirring while you pour in the milk otherwise the sauce will start clumping up. Once you have a smooth sauce like consistency, return to the stove on a low flame.
½ cup milk
5. Add the stock and salt and pepper and adjust to taste. Bring to a boil and turn off the flame.
3 cups vegetable or chicken stock
Salt to taste (about 1 tsp)
Pepper powder to taste (about 1 tsp)
6. Remove half the corn from the soup, let it cool and blend coarsely – use the pulse option in the blender if possible.
Note: I like some texture in the soup, so I only coarsely blend the corn. However, if you’d prefer a smoother texture, feel free to strain the soup and blend all of the corn to a smooth paste.
7. Add the coarsely blended corn back to the soup, turn on the stove and bring to a boil again.
8. If using carrots, add at this point and let it cook for about 30 seconds or so, until carrots are partially cooked.
Optional: ½ cup grated carrot
Note: If you are non-vegetarian, substitute the carrot with some shredded roast or boiled chicken.
9. Remove from heat, garnish with thinly sliced spring onions and serve hot, with some green chilli sauce on the side.
Optional: 1 spring onion, sliced thin
Serves: 4 persons
Apprentice rating: NIL, but trust me - this is very easy to make.
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