The benefits of corn silk
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What corn silk does
What this vegetable does
Held to clear excess heat from the body and help the passing of water.
How to eat it
Brewed as a tea, it helps replenish fluids in the summer heat.
A yakuzen note
Corn silk tea strongly encourages the passing of water and is used against swelling.
Corn silk is sweet and gentle in nature, held to move excess fluid out of the body and settle trapped heat. It suits daily care when the circulation of water is on your mind, or when you want to feel clear in the hot season, and it has long been loved brewed as a tea. It is the part worth keeping rather than discarding when you eat sweetcorn.
TOC
When corn silk is in season, what marks it out, and how to choose
If you want to bring in what corn silk does, deliciously, knowing the season, what marks it out and how to choose makes it easier to use. It is the soft, silky part that wraps the ear of corn, and it has long been loved as a tea.
In season in summer, the silk of the corn
Corn silk is the part called kenshi, the silk that grows from the tip of the ear, and it is the pistil. Each strand connects to a kernel, and the number of strands is said to be about the same as the number of kernels. It is in season with sweetcorn, in summer, roughly June to September, and a fresh corn bought whole comes with its silk. In kampo it is called nanbange or gyokubeishu, and brewing it as a tea is the known use. In some countries, such as Korea, corn silk tea is widely drunk.
Fresh silk and dried silk
Corn silk can be chosen by the form you use.
| kinds | What stands out |
|---|---|
| Fresh silk | The fresh silk that comes with the corn. Dry it before use |
| Dried silk | Washed and dried. It keeps, and is brewed as a tea |
| Shop-bought corn silk tea | Roasted tea bags and the like. Easy to drink |
When you buy sweetcorn, drying the silk rather than discarding it lets you use it as tea with nothing wasted. When you want something easy, a shop-bought corn silk tea or a blend is handy. Made by hand from fresh silk, you get the aroma of something just made.
How to choose it and how to prepare it
When choosing good corn silk, these points make it easier to tell.
- A generous tuft, moist and juicy
- Little brown, dried or damaged material, and pale in colour
- Fresh corn, sold in its husk
To use fresh silk, remove the brown, dried part at the base and wash the soft part gently under running water. Spread it out to dry in the sun, or dry it thoroughly in a frying pan over a low heat or in the microwave. Once dry and crisp, it is ready to brew. A light roast brings a roasted note and makes it easier to drink.
How to use corn silk
Corn silk is used mainly as tea, and works in cooking too. Here are the standard ways.
As corn silk tea and in blends
What brings out the most in corn silk is brewing it as tea. Put the dried silk in a pan, bring it up from cold and simmer gently for about ten minutes, and you get a pale golden tea, roasted in aroma and faintly sweet. Chilled, it is clean and refreshing in hot weather. Blended with barley tea, Job's tears tea or hojicha it is easy to drink, and a little honey gives it a gentle sweetness. It has little to object to, which makes it easy to bring into your daily drinking.
In soups and kakiage
Corn silk works in cooking too. The soft part, chopped into a soup, carries the sweet aroma of corn across. Used with the kernels in a corn soup or a stock, it brings the savour forward. Fresh silk, battered and fried with the kernels as kakiage, gives a crisp texture to enjoy. Silk left after brewing can be chopped into a soup or a stir-fry, so nothing is wasted. It is worth knowing as a way of making the most of the whole corn.
How to keep corn silk
Fresh corn silk spoils easily, so preparing it the same day is what to aim for. If you will not use it soon, dry it thoroughly, put it in an airtight container or bag and keep it somewhere cool and dark, away from damp. Well dried, it keeps a long time and is ready to brew whenever you want it. It moulds easily if it takes up damp, so a sachet of desiccant with it is a safeguard. Shop-bought corn silk tea also keeps its aroma if sealed and used soon after opening.
Alongside this, it is worth knowing about The benefits of sweetcorn which the silk comes from, and one likewise held to settle the circulation of water, The benefits of Job's tears as a guide for a summer table and for making tea.
Corn silk, in season in summer, is an ingredient worth keeping rather than discarding, for corn silk tea, blends, soups and kakiage. Dry fresh silk and make it yourself, or choose a shop-bought tea: bring it in to suit how you live. For daily care in the hot season, when the circulation of water is on your mind, bring corn silk in.
