Nothing says summer like biting into delectable, juicy sweet corn at a Fourth of July cookout. Whether boiled in a pot or charred over an open grill, savoring freshly picked sweet corn embodies the patriotic spirit of a midsummer celebration before fireworks light up the night sky.
The term “freshly picked” is used since sweet corn connoisseurs know that the greater the delay between harvest and consumption, the less sweet the corn will taste, said University of Missouri Extension horticulturist David Trinklein.
There is sound science behind this observation, Trinklein said. From the moment an ear of sweet corn is harvested, the sugar in its kernels starts converting into starch. At room temperature, up to 50% of the sweet corn's sugar can turn to starch within the first 24 hours due to enzymatic activity.
Accordingly, sweet corn picked far away, shipped great distances and allowed to sit on the produce counter for days can’t match the quality of freshly picked sweet corn. People who have not had the pleasure of eating fresh sweet corn do not know how tasty it can be, Trinklein said.
Sweet corn (Zea mays var. saccharata) is a mutant strain of corn that accumulates about twice as much sugar in its endosperm (storage tissue) than does field corn. Native Americans developed the original strains of sweet corn centuries before European colonization.
Source : missouri.edu