Grilled Corn and Black Bean Salsa

 

Nothing screams of summertime more than watermelon, garden tomatoes and piping hot corn on the cob smeared with melted butter.  Naturally, I was in heaven when Fred Meyer advertised 10 ears of that yummy ripeness on sale for $5 and I immediately bought up 30 ears and processed into pints of creamed style corn with my friend Cory G. and Karen D's help.  Then my friend Karyl posted her photos of corn salsa and I knew I had to try this.  This salsa can stand alone with a bowl of tortilla chips, spoon over tacos, roll up in a burrito, or even add to a Mexican-Style Soup!  The recipe I created is probably a little spicier than most people would care for, so use your own judgement as to how spicy you want it.

Safeway is now advertising a sale of 3 ears for a $1.  Now I know my friends and family are cringing at this "sale" and get twice that in the lower 48--but to us in Alaska who are deprived of long-season fruits and veggies, this is a steal!  At the encouragement of my friend Karen D. I chose white corn over yellow this time and it came out great. 

I did not follow the recipe Karyl sent but added and pumped it up instead.  The original recipe, should you care to download it is at: http://www.naturalhomeandgarden.com/cooking/home-canning-recipes-corn-salsa.aspx

I love the smell of green chile and corn roasting on the grill.  When I read over the list of ingredients for this salsa I knew that one modification I would make right off the bat would be to roast the corn rather than boil it on the stove.  Anyone who has eaten corn on the cob both boiled and grilled knows there is a difference.  Not to say that one method is better than another, but considering the outcome I wanted (smell and texture)---grilling was the only option I would consider.

Grilled Corn and Black Bean Salsa

Ingredients:

12 ears of corn, shucked and cleaned
3 cups distilled white vinegar
1/2 cup sugar (corn is naturally sweet--original recipe called for 1 cup.  Cut that in 1/2)
2 TBSP ground cumin
1 TBSP salt
8 Roma tomatoes, seeded and diced
1 14oz. can diced tomatoes
***NOTE:  If you do not care for hot, spicy foods, you may want to eliminate or cut down on the jalapeno and Seranno
3 jalapeno peppers, roasted, peeled, seeded and diced
3 Anaheim green chiles, roasted, peeled, seeded and diced
1 red Serrano pepper, roasted, peeled, seeded and diced
1 large white onion diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 cans black beans, drained and rinsed
1 cup cilantro, chopped (Added LAST)

Grill the cleaned corn and peppers.  The skin on the peppers should toast--allow them to rest/sweat in a bowl covered with plastic until cool enough to skin, seed and dice.

In a large bowl, cut the kernals of corn off the cob.  Combine vinegar, sugar, cumin and salt in a large stockpot and bring to boil.  Add tomatoes, jalapenos, peppers, onion, garlic, beans and corn and return to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes.  Stir in cilantro and return to boil.  Remove from heat. 

Ladle hot salsa into sterilized canning jars leaving 1/2" headspace.  Use a plastic knife to remove any air bubbles, wipe the rims clean of any juices, secure with sterlized lids and screwbands.  Process in a hot water bath for 15 minutes.  Remove jars to sit for 24 hours. 

NOTE:  Use within a year.  Don't forget to add an expiration date to your jars.

This recipe yielded 10 pint jars.