I had never heard of a remoulade, much less a corn remoulade, until I picked up Ed Lee’s phenomenal cookbook that came out this year, Smoke and Pickles. I just have to go on for a moment about why I love this book, then we can get to the recipe. I’m sure that most of you recognize Mr. Lee from Top Chef season nine, which is exactly where I found out about him, too. I loved his attitude towards food on the show and was excited to see what he’d come up with on his own. The book did not disappoint. It is full of beautiful photos, real stories about him growing up in Brooklyn (be still my beating heart), and of course, great recipes. Smoke and Pickles is basically a book featuring all of the recipes I love most: pickled things, barbecued things, things that go as sides for each of those, and of course, everything has a slight Asian or outside-of-the-box Southern twist that keeps me coming back. As you may know, when I love a cookbook, I beat it half to death using it almost every weekend trying to cook my way through it. It’s a great way to learn more as a home cook, and I highly recommend it. Other books that I’ve gone through similar journeys with include Tom Colicchio’s Think Like a Chef, April Bloomfield’s A Girl and Her Pig, Baked: New Frontiers in Baking and Baked Elements (take a guess as to which bakery is my favorite in New York). Sometimes it’s fun to just sit back, read directions, create the recipe as the book states, and learn a little something about the ingredients you’re working with and why you’re working with them in the first place. I don’t think I’ll ever find myself in culinary school (unless anybody has 30 to 40 extra thousand dollars they’re willing to part with – anyone?) but I can still teach myself a thing or two through cookbooks on my own.
As promised, you will find the corn remoulade recipe below. I absolutely loved this side/dressing/aioli/whatever you want to technically call it. Kramer and I ate it with some curried lamb and rice (recipe to come), but it’s great on a salad, either as a dressing or as an accompaniment, or even on sandwiches instead of your usual mayonnaise and mustard combo. The remoulade itself is tangy and has just a touch of heat, from the horseradish and chile, but the fresh summer corn lightens everything up and makes you want to come back for more. A remoulade is very similar to an aioli, and it can be found all over the world, but this particular remoulade is one that you may find more often than not in Southern cooking, due to the paprika, which you won’t find in Europe. Remoulade is served with seafood, grilled meats, and more – it goes well with fried shrimp or even shrimp cocktails, and you can even serve it with fish and chips. I wouldn’t mind dipping my fries in some of this good stuff. You definitely don’t have to add corn to the remoulade, but with summer corn almost out of season, why wouldn’t you want to? I stored mine in a mason jar in the fridge for about a week, spreading it on and dipping it in almost anything I could find, and let me tell you: it was all delicious.
Kramer enjoying some meats and cheeses.
Morgan and Robyn.
Kramer standing out in the rain.
Get your remoulade ingredients together.
Then mix in your soft-boiled egg.
That’s the stuff.
We ate this in a rice bowl with lamb (recipe to come).
It’s also great on sandwiches, salads or with grilled meats/vegetables.
- 2 large eggs
- 1¼ cups mayonnaise
- ½ cup chopped cornichons (or pickled okra)
- ⅓ cup finely chopped shallots (about 1 large shallot)
- 3 teaspoons freshly chopped basil
- 1 tablespoon horseradish
- 2 teaspoons grainy mustard
- 1 teaspoon ketchup
- 1 teaspoon ground chile powder
- ¾ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- ¾ teaspoon smoked or sweet paprika
- 2 cloves garlic, grated on a microplane or finely minced
- juice of 1 lemon
- 4-5 ears of corn, kernels removed
- First, prepare your eggs. Place them in a small pot of water and bring to a boil over medium heat. Boil the eggs for 4 minutes, then drain and immediately transfer to a bowl of ice water. Let the eggs sit in the ice water for 5 minutes or so, then peel and add to another bowl with your mixed mayonnaise, cornichons, shallots, basil, horseradish, mustard, ketchup, chile powder, Worcestershire sauce, paprika, grated garlic, and lemon juice. Use a wire whisk to cut up and mash the eggs into the remoulade. Fold in your corn, taste and adjust seasonings as needed. This will keep well in the fridge for up to 5 days. Put on sandwiches or salads, eat on tacos, rice or with grilled protein. Enjoy!
A southern inspired dish even I cook and with my fave veggie too! I love learning new things from cook books. Who need the culinary art when you can learn in your own kitchen?
adding soft boiled egg into the mix? oh my word. looks like something I’d be happy to devour by the spoonful, no sandwich or salad needed!
I hadn’t heard of this either…until now. Looks awesome!
I would eat that whole bowl so fast! I was on Gov. Island this weekend and ate a hamburger on that beach.
That soft boiled egg shot is killer! And this remoulade – yes! Never had remoulade before but I know that I will totally go crazy over this bowl!
The soft boiled egg is a genius idea! That sound so freaking good! I need corn remoulade in my life!
Should the corn be cooked first? Seems like it should, but it isn’t mentioned.
Hi Brenna – Edward Lee cooked his corn in butter before adding it to the remoulade, but I felt that it was rich enough as it was – plus I love the taste and texture of raw, fresh corn.
This looks delicious! What else would you recommend serving it with– or could it work on its own?
Hey Tess! Sandwiches, salads, maybe even toss it in some cold pasta for pasta salad – it’s good on it’s own, too!
Great, thanks! I love your website design by the way.
I agree with you. You don’t need to go to a cooking school to cook well. I too grew up hating cooking, but grew up among people who were great cooks. Well, just read myself to a level that now even the best ask my help when it comes to techniques. I, just by reading, understanding & practicing, got to the poit where I can make great puff pastry & choux pastry & any food, a whole lot of the varied Indian cuisines & cuisines from Africa, CHina, Japan, Mexico, Italy, France, you name it, & can do good fusion too. You keep doing what you do. People like you & me make up in our passion what we lack in the training…buty in the end, the proof of the pudding i in the taste…& we do pretty good there.
I loved your write up