Pan de Elote Oaxaqueño

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •9-by-13-inch baking dish, preferably ceramic or barro from Atzompa
• •High-powered blender
• •Sharp chef's knife for cutting kernels off the cob
• •Wide bowl to catch the kernels and corn milk

Instructions

1. 1

   Choose the right elote

   Use fresh elote, the white or pale yellow corn from the mercado, not the bright yellow sweet corn from the supermarket. The Oaxacan version of this bread depends on maíz criollo or a starchy field corn, not the candy corn that sweet hybrids give you. The kernels should feel firm under your thumbnail and release a milky liquid when you press them. If they squirt clear water, the corn is too young. If they feel hard and dry, it is too old. Both will ruin the texture of the bread.

   If the only corn at the market is too sweet, reduce the condensed milk by a quarter cup and add an extra tablespoon of masa harina. The bread will lean closer to what a panadera in Tlacolula would recognize.
2. 2

   Prepare the pan

   Heat the oven to 350F. Rub the softened butter generously across the inside of a 9-by-13-inch baking dish, getting into every corner. Dust the buttered surface with the granulated sugar and tap out the excess. The sugar caramelizes against the wall of the pan and gives the pan de elote that thin amber crust around the edge that the women in Zaachila are known for. Skip the sugar coating and you have a softer, paler bread. Worth doing, no me vengas con atajos.

3. 3

   Cut the kernels off the cob

   Stand each ear of elote upright in a wide bowl. With a sharp knife, slice down the length of the cob to release the kernels. After you have stripped each ear, run the back of the knife down the bare cob, scraping the milky residue and the small bits of kernel still attached. That milk is half the flavor. The senoras at Mercado Sánchez Pascuas in Oaxaca do not waste it and neither should you.

4. 4

   Blend the corn base

   Place the kernels and any reserved corn milk in a blender. Add the condensed milk, whole milk, eggs, melted butter, melted manteca, vanilla, and lime zest. Blend on high for about a minute, until the mixture is mostly smooth but still carries some texture from the kernels. You are not making a puree. You want the bread to taste like corn, not like custard. Small flecks of yellow throughout the batter are what you are after.

5. 5

   Fold in the dry ingredients

   In a separate bowl, whisk together the masa harina, all-purpose flour, baking powder, and salt. The masa harina is what makes this bread Oaxacan and not the gringo corn pudding it is often mistaken for. Pour the dry mixture into the blender and pulse just until incorporated, three or four short pulses. Overblending tightens the crumb. The batter should be loose, the consistency of a thick crepe batter, with visible specks of corn.

6. 6

   Bake until set

   Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Tap it once on the counter to release any large air pockets. Bake for 45 to 55 minutes. The top should be deep golden, the edges pulled away from the sides of the pan, and the center should jiggle only slightly when you nudge the dish. A toothpick inserted in the middle should come out with moist crumbs, not wet batter. La cocina no es decoracion, es trabajo. Pull it before it goes dry. An overbaked pan de elote is sad for everybody.

7. 7

   Rest and serve

   Let the pan de elote rest for at least 20 minutes in the pan. It needs to finish setting as it cools. Cut into generous squares and serve warm or at room temperature with a spoonful of crema oaxaqueña and a scatter of crumbled queso fresco on top. In Oaxaca this is merienda food, the late-afternoon meal that bridges comida and cena, served with a jícara of chocolate de agua frothed with a molinillo. Asi se hace y punto.

Chef Tips

• •Field corn or white corn from a Mexican mercado is what you want. If your only option is sweet yellow corn, reduce the condensed milk by a quarter cup. The starchier the corn, the closer you get to the panadería version.
• •Both butter and manteca de cerdo go into this batter and that is not negotiable. The butter carries the flavor of the dairy. La manteca es el sabor and gives the crumb a tenderness that butter alone cannot deliver. Skipping the manteca makes a perfectly fine cake. It does not make a Oaxacan pan de elote.
• •Crema oaxaqueña on top at the table is how this bread is served in the Valles Centrales. Sour cream is not the same. American crema is not the same. Find the real thing at a Mexican market, or substitute crema mexicana from a reliable brand. Without it, you have only made half the dish.

Advance Preparation

• •Pan de elote keeps at room temperature, covered with a clean cotton servilleta, for two days. After that, refrigerate and warm individual squares in the oven before serving.
• •The batter can be blended up to four hours ahead and held in the refrigerator. Stir it once before pouring into the pan. Past four hours, the baking powder loses its lift.
• •The bread freezes well. Wrap individual squares tightly in plastic and then in foil. Thaw at room temperature and warm in a 300F oven for 10 minutes before serving.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 195g)