Baby Corn Fry Recipe

This Baby Corn Stir Fry is one of the easiest dish you can make under 15 mins. Whether you serve this on its own or alongside a meal, it tastes delicious. Baby Corn is a staple veggie used in Asian cooking. They are used in stir fry dishes, salads, curry, noodles, fried rice, pilaf and many appetizers. They are also eaten roasted or grilled, with a drizzle of favorite sauce or dip.

About Baby Corn

Baby Corn also known as cornlette, is just regular corn but harvested much earlier before they mature. These immature tiny corn are crunchy and light yellow in color with a sweet husky flavor. They are actually edible raw and require minimal cooking. Overcooking them degrades their flavor and crunch so they are either stir fried, sautéed or blanched for a short period.

These are more commonly grown in Asian countries like India, Thailand, Indonesia and Taiwan. In Indian cuisine, these are mostly used in Indo-Chinese dishes like Baby Corn Manchurian, chili baby corn and fried rice. At home I often end up making this Baby Corn Stir Fry since it is easy to make and tastes very delicious. This recipe is made on the same lines as this Mushroom Pepper Fry and uses minimal amount of spices so the flavors of the veggie is left intact.

Babycorn are easily available in the country I live, so I use them often in various dishes. Whenever I have them I use in a creamy Makhani sauce, Vegetable Jalfrezi, Mixed Vegetable Curry, Vegetable kadai, Manchow soup and Sweet corn soup. They add a delicate crunch and a sweet flavor to your dishes.

In India, I have had many fancy fusion dishes in restaurants, namely – chili honey baby corn, golden baby corn, dragon babycorn and crispy babycorn. They were so good in anything, for their tender crunch, sweet flavor and delicate texture.

This recipe uses only pantry staples like black pepper, ginger/garlic, curry leaves and crushed fennel for the flavor. Ground black pepper and fennel seeds are a great combo but if you don’t have them simply use garam masala but the flavor would be different. Onions and bell peppers add volume/body to the dish.

I don’t blanch my baby corn and prefer to stir fry as is after a rinse. This helps to retain their crunch and flavor. But if you prefer softer veggies you may blanch them in hot water for 2 to 3 mins.

Photo Guide

Step by step Photo Instructions

1. Heat a pan with oil and add cumin seed. When they begin to splutter, add grated ginger or ginger garlic paste. Saute for a minute until aromatic. Do not burn.

2. Add onions and saute until transparent.

3. Add baby corn, bell peppers, turmeric and salt. Stir fry on a high heat for 3 mins. I use red and green bell peppers. You may use what you like. If you don’t have bell peppers, you may use carrots.

4. Cover and cook on a low flame for another 4 to 5 mins, until slightly tender yet crunchy but not too soft. Keep stirring in between to prevent burning. The cook time changes with the freshness of baby corn. Mine are very fresh and just take less than 4 to 5 mins. If yours’ isn’t fresh, splash a tbsp of water and cook.

5. While the baby corn cooks, crush pepper corn and fennel seeds/ saunf to a coarse powder or use garam masala. When the baby corn is tender, add the ground spices and curry leaves. On occasions I also use a handful of methi or spinach that I need to use up.

6. Stir fry for 2 to 3 minutes till the leaves wilt and ground spices begin to smell aromatic. Taste test and add more salt if needed. A splash of lemon juice is also nice on this.

Serve stir fried baby corn with rice, roti or any meal.

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