Grow your own tiny corn cobs for Chinese cooking and casseroles. Harvest delicious tiny, tasty sweet corn, cobs and all, fresh from your garden - so much tastier than the tinned variety. Baby corn are harvested before pollination just as the 'silk tassels' begin to show.
Sow in mid spring 4 weeks before last expected frost in your area, singly ½in deep in 3in pots of compost. Germination usually takes 6-10 days at 70-75F.
Keep free of weeds and water regularly. Harvest the tiny cobs when the silks first show above the husks. What you are harvesting is the immature corn on the cob. Under ideal conditions each plant should bear 4-6 cobs. If you forget to harvest on time a normal sweet corn will be produced but you will have prevented the plant from developing more cobs throughout the season.
A typical sweetcorn cob contains less than 100 calories. Cobs are gluten-free and are a good source of fibre and Vitamin B.
Ideal raw, steamed, stir fried or with dips. Also very tasty cooked, then tossed in parsley butter or served with a cream sauce.