Deep Fried, Beer Battered Corn on the Cob
Originally published September 22, 2009, Updated on 11/2/20
Beer Battered Corn on The Cob - Deep Fried. Yes: Beer Battered. Sweet Corn... On a Stick. It's basically an entire state fair, on a plate.
My husband LOVES corn... I mean in a fanatical, almost absurd way. On one of his birthdays, we went so far as to craft a "day of corn", where every main dish, side, snack, and even DESSERT (ice cream) was made with corn. He could survive on the stuff.
So of course, when the state fair rolled around.. he always looked forward to going for the roasted corn, etc. I just think of all the crazy amounts of people, the heat, and the nasty smell of grease (which he loves)... and the urge to hermit wells up.
Back in 2009, I was particularly not in the mood to brave the crowds, so I made him a deal:
I would come up with a recipe to batter corn on the cob IN a corn based batter and deep fry it.. if we don't go to the Fair.
Hell, I'd even do it "on a stick" to give him a bit more of the State Fair experience... but at home. Beer Battered Corn on The Cob!
I lived up to my end of it, and we were both *very* pleasantly surprised by the results.
Here's how you can make the same at home!
Deep Fried Corn on The Cob
Battering Your Corn
Preparing your corn on the cob to be battered and fried is easy! I do have a few tips for it, though:
- Remove the husks and ALL of the silk. Silk under the batter ruins the experience, IMHO.
- Keep the size of your frying in mind. Some long ears of corn won’t fit in some fryers, after all! If your corn is too long, just trim the ends a bit, or cut it in half.
- The corn should be at room temperature before battering it. If you’ve been storing it in the fridge, let it warm up first!
- If there is any moisture on your corn after taking the husks and silk off, pat dry with a paper towel and let it sit for a bit.
Deep Frying Corn on the Cob
You’ll want to set up your work space so you can “dip, drip, and drop”.
Dip the corn in the batter, let the excess drip off into the batter bowl, then (carefully!) drop it right into the deep fryer. You’re not going to want to set it down after dipping.
Let each one fry for a couple seconds before placing the next, and don’t let any of them touch until they’ve cooked up a bit of a crust.
Cook just until everything is golden and perfect.
Use tongs to carefully remove them from the fryer, transfer to paper towels to soak up the excess grease for a few seconds, serve hot!
Deep Fried Corn... On a Stick
The first time I made this - when I was REALLY going for the "State Fair at Home" feel - I used candy apple sticks. The whole "On a stick" thing seemed to be a major selling point for any food at the Minnesota State Fair, so... I went with it.
I like to use skewers that are a bit thicker - definitely thicker than what you'd use for kebabs, for instance. Also, I find it easiest to cut the end of the cob off, exposing the innermost core of the cob - makes it easier to jam the skewer in!
Serving Beer Battered Corn on the Cob
Personally, I like serving these with Mustard.
When we were still in the US, I’d grab a Dijon mustard (I can’t stand the yellow stuff!).
Now that I’m back in Canada, it’s Kozlik’s Mustard all the way, for me. They’ve got a few that are especially great with this.
As some ideas: Amazing Maple, Black Harp, Grainy Creole, Horseradish, Honey & Garlic, Hot Garlic, Hot Russian, Lime & Honey, Sweet & Smokey (A FAV of ours in general!), and Triple Crunch.
See, this kind of thing is why I have WAY too many mustards on hand. I love them all! No relationship to report, BTW, I’m just a raving fangirl!
- Candied Jalapenos
- Cheese Sauce
- Hot Pepper Jelly
- Ketchup
- Salsa
... I guess, more or less, if you’d put it on a corndog, it’ll be great on deep fried corn on the cob!
Battering and Frying OTHER Stuff
This beer batter is a fantastic base for any kind of savoury “battered and fried” state fair kind of food.
The first time we made this, we happened to have some kielbasa on hand, so we split that in half lengthwise and fried it in the batter.
I'm not usually a big fan of deep fried ANYTHING, but I will admit - it was tasty!
- Fish & other seafood. Shrimps, large scallops, etc.
- Pickles
- Hot dogs. This makes a great corn dog batter!
- Onion slices. Fantastic onion rings!
- Cheese (Though I think frying cheese curds is *sacrilege*)
- Cooked bacon or meatballs.
- Sandwiches (Held together with toothpicks!).
- More specifically, grilled cheese sandwiches. Grill them first - no toothpicks needed!
- Vegetables. Though, if you’re going on a state fair theme, I’m not sure broccoli would fit in, LOL! Jalapeno slices, tho...
If you don’t, the batter will not stick to it.
This recipe is one of the MANY fabulous sweet corn recipes featured in my book, "Maize Craze: Spectacular Sweet Corn Recipes". If you're a fan of fresh sweet corn, you should definitely treat yourself to a copy!
It's available directly through our site, through Amazon, and through most major booksellers!)
More Sweet Corn Recipes
Fan of sweet corn? I’ve got more recipes for you!
Breakfast Corn Muffins
Corn-On-The-Cob-uccino
Hearty Corn & Black Bean Soup
Homemade Creamed Corn
How to Cook Corn on the Cob
Marie's Low Country Boil
Quick Sweet Corn Soda
Roasted Corn Chowder
Roasted Corn & Potato Salad
Roasted Corn Salsa for Canning
Roasted Corn Salsa Verde for Canning
Scalloped Corn
Southwest Hot Dish
Sweet Corn Bruschetta
Sweet Corn Ice Cream
Sweet Corn Panna Cotta
Sweet Corn Relish
More Midwest Inspired Recipes
Looking for some more recipes inspired by my time living in Minnesota? Here's a few for ya! (Oh ya, you betcha?)
Boozy Sparkling Cider Float
Candy Bar Salad
Cheesy Chicken Broccoli Hotdish
Chicken Based Swedish Potato Sausage
Jalapeno Artichoke "Backfire" Dip
Midwest Goes Southwest HotDish
Spinach Hand Pies
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Anyway, on to that Deep Fried Corn on the Cob recipe!
Beer Battered Corn on The Cob
Equipment
- Wooden "Candy Apple" skewers / sticks, optional
Ingredients
- Oil for Deep Frying
- 4 Ears Fresh Corn
- 1 Cup All-Purpose Flour
- 1 Cup Yellow Cornmeal
- 1 teaspoon Baking Powder
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- 1 Bottle Beer of Choice
- 1 Large Egg Beaten
Instructions
- Preheat deep fryer to 375 degrees. If you don't have a deep fryer, use a large, heavy pot - you'll want the oil to be at least 3" deep
- Remove husks and silk from ears of corn. If your deep fryer is small, cut each ear of corn in half. If using sticks , carefully push the sharp end of the stick into one end of each ear of corn, far enough to be secure. Set aside.
- In a large enough bowl to fit your ears of corn, mix together flour, cornmeal, baking powder, and salt. Add egg and beer, whisk until smooth.
- Dip corn in batter one at a time, turning til coated. Carefully place in deep fryer, fry for 2-4 minutes - turning every once in a while, until coating is as dark as you’d like it.
- Remove from fryer, and turn out onto paper towels to catch any extra oil.
- Serve with dijon mustard, or dipping sauce of your choice.
Pauline Elliott
I would be willing to bet that a GOOD SWEET DIP Of Somesort, would be awesome🤗Like The Taste of a GOOD CORN PUDDING🤩😍