Season’s Choice Steamed Super Sweet Corn

Everyone agrees that vegetables are a crucial part of a good diet. Figuring out how to get them into the diet can be another story.

There are many obstacles. Most people prefer fresh vegetables to canned ones, but fresh vegetables expire quickly and can involve more work to prepare. Canned vegetables are easier, but the taste and texture aren’t the same, and they can have added sodium.

Frozen vegetables can, potentially, be the best of both worlds. Frozen vegetables aren’t perishable the way that fresh ones are, but properly cooked they can heat up nearly as well as fresh ones. Frozen vegetables aren’t a solution if you need raw vegetables like raw celery or raw carrots, but if you need cooked green beans, cooked peas, or cooked broccoli, frozen veggies are worth a hard look.

Aldi sells a few different frozen vegetables. Better still, some of them come in steamable bags that do most of the work for you.

Season’s Choice Steamed Super Sweet Corn is an Aldi Regular Buy, which means you can find it in stores every day. At the time of this post, a 12-ounce frozen bag costs 75 cents, or about 6.2 cents an ounce.

You have two options for cooking: microwave and stovetop. Both advise cooking to a temperature of 165 degrees.

To cook in the microwave, you place the unopened bag with the instructions face up in a microwave. (The instructions warn you not to pierce or open the bag the way some steamed bags have you do.) Next, microwave for 5-6 minutes in a high wattage microwave (more than 1100W) or 6-7 minutes in a low wattage microwave (1100W or less). If you aren’t sure what microwave you have, 6 minutes might be a safe number. Keep in mind that the bag will inflate during cooking and a whistling sound may be heard as steam escapes from a bag vent. After cooking, the bag will be hot, so gently remove the bag from the microwave and let it sit for 1 minute. Be careful opening the bag.

To cook on the stovetop, bring 1/4 a cup of water to a boil in a 2-quart saucepan. Then, add frozen veggies and return to a boil. Next, reduce heat to minimum and boil gently for 4-5 minutes, stirring once during cooking. Finally, season and serve.

Directions. (Click to enlarge.)

I cooked this in the microwave for about 6 minutes, then let it sit, then poured it into a dish to serve with a meal. It came out exactly like I would want sweet corn to come out. It was crisp and hot, as the steaming did its job. If you want to add more flavor, you can put in a tablespoon or two of butter or spread and maybe sprinkle some pepper, or if you’re trying to keep things healthy you can serve this on its own.

Nutrition. (Click to enlarge.)

The Verdict:

Season’s Choice Steamed Super Sweet Corn is an easy way to put crisp vegetables into a meal. The microwave instructions are easy, but stovetop can work, too.