Ba'corn Cheese Corn

This bacon-studded 'cheese corn' is a popular bar snack in Korea, made of pure bacon-y, creamy, cheesy, corny decadence. The original recipe uses a combination of mayonnaise and sweetened condensed milk, but we're going with heavy cream here for a lighter approach. This may be the first time in my career that I've 'lightened up' a recipe by adding a cup of heavy cream. Garnished with green onions, this would be amazing with a cold beer!

• Preparation Time: 15 mins
• Cooking Time: 25 mins
• Total Time: 40 mins
• Calories: 268 Calories

Ingredients

• 1 cup heavy cream
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 ounces shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1 pinch cayenne pepper, or to taste
• 1 bunch green onions, sliced
• 1 pinch salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 4 ounces shredded Monterey Jack cheese
• 1 (8 ounce) package bacon, chopped
• 2 (16 ounce) packages frozen sweet corn, thawed
• 2 jalapeno peppers, diced, or more to taste

Recipe Instructions

Step 1

Set an oven rack about 6 inches from the heat source and preheat the oven's broiler.

Step 2

Cook bacon in a 10-inch cast iron skillet over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until almost crisp and fat is rendered, 7 to 8 minutes.

Step 3

Drain frozen corn thoroughly in a colander. Add 1/2 of the corn to the skillet with the bacon. Cook and stir until kernels just start to turn golden brown, 3 to 5 minutes. Add garlic, green onions, and jalapenos; cook until vegetables start to soften and sweeten up, 3 to 4 minutes. Tilt pan to drain off some of the fat, using a paper towel to soak it up.

Step 4

Season with salt, pepper, and cayenne. Pour in cream; stir and bring to a boil. Stir in the remaining corn until heated through. Turn off the heat and add about 2/3 of the mozzarella and Monterey Jack cheese. Stir to combine. Top corn with remaining cheese and a sprinkle of cayenne.

Step 5

Broil until heated through and top is browned, 5 to 10 minutes. Serve immediately.