Stanley Tucci’s Tip for Buttering Corn Is Pure Genius

I’m ashamed to confess it, however I haven’t learn Stanley Tucci’s memoir but. Extra particularly, I haven’t learn both of the award-winning actor and New York Instances-bestselling creator’s memoirs, which is stunning contemplating I aspire to stay my life similar to him: sipping negronis and consuming pasta each night.

Each books are formally on my must-read listing for 2025, however within the meantime, I jumped on the probability to take heed to a recap of his first memoir, Style: My Life By Meals, on one in every of my favourite podcasts, Superstar Memoir E-book Membership. Whereas the hosts weren’t as passionate about Tucci’s ebook as everybody else has been, they did emphasize that one tip he gave stood out to them — and I’ll be incorporating it into my very own cooking, particularly throughout peak corn season.

On this 2021 memoir, Tucci displays on most of the meals moments he shared along with his household whereas rising up. Amongst them is an easy however poignant recollection of one thing so easy I can’t imagine I didn’t consider it earlier than. As Tucci remembers, “The buttering of the corn… nicely, it wasn’t simply ‘put knife into butter, put butter on corn with knife.’ No. No. Good God. No. A bit of home made bread was buttered after which used to slather the salted ear of corn, thus, in true Italian trend, creating two dishes out of 1, the ear of corn being the primary dish and the home made bread (now saturated with the melted butter, salt, and sweetness from the buttered kernels) being the second.”

It is a rather more romantic method of claiming that the Conclave star and his household butter corn on the cob via the next course of: First, salt your ears of corn. Subsequent, unfold a beneficiant quantity of butter on a chunk of home made bread. Then, use the buttered bread to unfold butter on the corn.

This isn’t only a enjoyable method for buttering corn, but in addition a method to subtly infuse the bread with further taste from — as Tucci factors out — melted butter, salt on the corn, and the subtly candy style of the corn. It would sound foolish, however corn has a naturally candy and juicy taste that may simply be infused into different elements and dishes, like corn ice cream. It gained’t seriously change the flavour of your piece of bread, however it’s going to make a distinction — and the whole lot can have extra butter on it, which is at all times a good suggestion.

If you wish to take your corn on the cob and accompanying buttered bread up a notch, I might suggest utilizing cultured butter with a excessive butterfat content material. Cultured butter can have a extra tangy and complicated taste, due to bacterial cultures, and the next butterfat content material ensures that the dairy has an ultra-rich and splendid style.

Any cultured European butter—like a French beurre de barrette—would work nicely as a result of it has a butterfat content material of 82% or increased (in contrast with many butters in america, which frequently have a fats content material of lower than 82%). Nevertheless, American dairies like Vermont Creamery additionally make scrumptious European-style butters. 

I’ll be shopping for some butter, corn, and bread, so I can have a Tucci-worthy feast this weekend. And I’ll be particularly dedicated to this new hack all summer time lengthy, whereas having fun with the most effective of candy corn season.