Sweet Fresh Corn Soup
A comforting Chinese home-style soup made by grating fresh corn kernels to release their natural starches, creating a silky, slightly thickened broth. The addition of rock sugar and goji berries gives it a subtle sweetness and beautiful color.
Story
This recipe relies on the starch naturally present in fresh corn kernels. When you grate the corn, the released starches thicken the cooking liquid into a silky soup without needing any additional cornstarch or flour. The trick is to keep grating until you reach the fibrous core of the cob.
Ingredients
2 ears fresh sweet corn
about 300g with husks
800ml water
or chicken broth
2 tablespoons rock sugar
or to taste
1 tablespoon dried goji berries
optional
1/4 teaspoon salt
just enough to balance sweetness
Instructions
1
Prep the corn
Pull off the outer husks and silk from the corn ears. Rinse briefly under cool water. Hold the corn at an angle and rub the kernels firmly against the large holes of a box grater or use a food processor with the grating blade. Continue until you've scraped all the milky pulp from the cobs and only the fibrous core remains.
2
Start the soup
Transfer the grated corn and any liquid collected in your bowl into a medium saucepan. Add the water or mild chicken broth and stir to combine. Bring to a gentle boil over medium-high heat, then reduce to a low simmer.
3
Simmer and thicken
Let the soup simmer for 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally. The starches from the grated corn will naturally release and thicken the liquid into a creamy consistency. The soup should coat the back of a spoon when ready.
4
Sweeten and finish
Add the rock sugar and salt, stirring until the sugar dissolves completely. Taste and adjust sweetness if needed. If using goji berries, stir them in during the last 2 minutes of cooking so they soften and plump up without losing their shape.
