Roasting ears

Fresh early summer corn is hard to beat! Here's how I add it to a BBQ with minimal fuss and no cooking in the house.

Pick out some nice ripe and fresh ears, and decide what style you want to you. The classic method is to carefully pull the husks back to the bottom but not remove them, then yank out all the silk, then brush them with a seasoning mixture, pull the husks back up, and tie a little string around the end.

Or you can strip the husks and silk, apply seasoning, and wrap them in foil - a little less messy at the table.

Another way is to strip them, but don't even wrap them at all. This is a traditional way street vendors in Mexico do it; you get some crispy kernels and a bit of a smoky taste. You can put the seasoning on before or after they are cooking this way.

For seasoning, I like to mix a 1/4 cup fresh lime juice, a stick of butter, a tablespoon of Kosher salt, a teaspoon of freshly ground block pepper, a half teaspoon of ground cumin, and a pinch of hot Hungarian paprika (if you want a little fire added). Mix it up, let it melt in the microwave, and brush it on the corn with a two-inch nylon brush. Of course you can vary your seasonings; garlic is a good addition.

I like it because you don't need to mess with butter and salt and pepper at the table, and you have a very nice flavor.

If you have a hot fire, you can put the corn directly on the grill, turning it every few minutes. It won't take long, may 5 minutes for a hot fire. If you use husks, don't worry if they start looking burned, they corn should be just fine. (You can also soak the husks in water, which steams the corn a bit).

If I'm cooking something in my covered grill, I sometimes put the corn on the upper shelf. It takes a little longer, but doesn't use any grill space. Experiment, little can go wrong and you'll find a delicious new treat.

BTW - as long as you're grilling, try adding some oysters in the shell to the mix. Right on the fire. They take about ten minutes and are great! They're done when they open up slightly and bubble a bit. If you don't have a proper oyster knife, use a screwdriver (and a glove, hot buggers).