Even The Simple Things - Amazing, Fresh Corn "Niblet Stripper"

Corn Prep Area.

    Lots of my quick and easy recipes taste great when fresh roasted, grilled or even boiled corn on the cob is added. No, not the whole cob (though that's pretty tasty all by itself!) but rather the niblets. I used to use a simple knife and cut them off in large flat strips. This works great and if they stay together, make a great snack too! The main problem is trying to cut them off when the cob is still hot. Many a time I have burned my fingers stripping the corn off the cob. I had a "niblet stripper" once. It sort of worked OK, but was very sensitive to cob diameter and would often mangle the niblets into a bit of a mush. Not such good eats. This latest model is far simpler and is definitely in the "Why didn't I think of that?" category.

The EZ-Kernels

We've pretty much all used a vegetable peeler before. What if someone made one that took much thicker "peels" and then rounded the blade a bit to fit the contours of a typical ear of corn? Well, someone did! And I found it. At a Marshall's I spotted this little gem for only $1.99. If it worked it would be excellent value for money. If not...well, that's a couple of dollars for a conversation starter. Once I managed to get it out of it's anti-theft blister packaging. What is the deal with that stuff! I know shops want to keep people from stealing their merchandise, but it shouldn't take power tools to open them nor should they be stronger than the plastic the actual item is made from! In this case, it looked as if I could simply pull on the handle to release the stripper from its confinement, but if I had it would have surely broken. I digress. Once out, you must remove the white plastic blade guard before use. Be careful, the blade is VERY sharp. I'm going to keep the guard and put it back on before storage.

Way Sharp Blade!

The device does feel a bit flimsy, but strong enough to get the job done. While it's not corn season here in the northeast, I did have some frozen (gasp!) ones to try it out on. 8 minutes or so in the microwave and I had 4 half ears to test on. First problem....you still have to hold the ears somehow, but you can lay them down flat as opposed to holding them vertically when using the knife method. I pulled the stripper from left to right after placing it on top of the kernels. It worked! It's about the same amount of work as the knife method, but is much more precise. There less wasted edible material left on the cob as well. It also completely stripped the ear in three strokes, so it's more efficient.

Would I buy one at a higher price? Or, more importantly, would I use up my precious space on-board for it? Alas, no. It is pretty cool and does what it is supposed to, but I can't think of anything else I could use it for and I am very low on space as it is. It will get used when NOT on the road though. They are really tasty on salads, in stir fry's, casseroles, corn breads, anything with peppers and onions...the list goes on and on!

Be Seeing You...Down The Road,

Rich "The Wanderman"
www.thewanderman.com