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We had heard that this salad bar staple was called baby corn, so we searched on that term to figure out its origin. We soon discovered that those tiny corncobs aren't genetically mutated dwarf ears of corn -- they're just immature ears of regular corn. Many varieties of corn can be used to produce baby corn. Seed companies offer special types of seed to grow baby corn, but all of these grow plants and corn ears that are just as big as the corncobs you might have at a summer BBQ. The secret is in the harvesting.
Baby corn ears are picked by hand immediately when the silks emerge from the ear tips or a few days after. Corn matures quickly, so the harvest must be timed carefully to avoid ending up with normal corn ears. Baby corn ears are generally 4.5cm to 10cm in length and 7mm to 17mm in diameter. Most baby corn commercially available in the U.S. is grown and processed in Asia, particularly in Thailand. Because baby corn must be picked by hand, it is too labor-intensive for most American farms. It's been an extremely important crop in Thailand since 1976, and other Asian nations have also begun producing and exporting it. Perhaps this is why baby corn is so often found in Asian recipes. Next time you enjoy a mini cob, think
of the poor little baby corn, cut down before its prime.
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