Corn Salad with Cilantro & Caramelized Onions

Diets

Gluten free

Ingredients

Meat
- 6 slices Pancetta

Produce
- 1/4 cup Cilantro, fresh
- 6 ears Corn, fresh
- 1 Red onion, large

Condiments
- 2 tbsp Balsamic vinegar

Baking & Spices
- 1 Salt and freshly ground pepper
- 2 tsp Sugar

Oils & Vinegars
- 4 tbsp Olive oil

Found on food52.com

Description

The good recipes get passed along from friend to friend like a game of telephone, with each cook adding their own twist until the last version is barely distinguishable from the first. This corn salad is one of those. My recipe was inspired by my friend Sandra, who brought it to a BBQ one day, where it was love at first bite. Her recipe was inspired by our friend Chris, and who knows where it truly began but it always ends with an empty bowl. Simple summer goodness. When I told Sandra she should enter the recipe in this contest, she said that I should enter my version instead, so here we are....Pass it on. - Ms. T

Ingredients

6 ears of fresh corn
6 slices pancetta
1 large red onion, peeled and diced
4 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 teaspoons sugar
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Directions

Cook the corn on the cob in a large pot of boiling water for about 10 minutes. Drain hot water and plunge corn into a bowl of ice water to stop cooking. Drain corn and set aside to cool completely.
Dice pancetta and cook in a heavy skillet over medium heat until brown and crispy. Use a slotted spoon to transfer pancetta to a plate lined with paper towels. Set aside.
Pour off most of the pancetta fat from skillet, leaving a little goodness left in the pan for cooking your onions. Add oil, onions, vinegar, sugar, and dash of salt to pan, and cook over medium-low heat. Cook for about 20-25 minutes, stirring frequently until onions are caramelized and most of the liquid has evaporated. Remove pan from heat and set aside.
Cut corn kernels off of the cobs and place in a large bowl. Add onion mixture and cilantro and stir to combine. Season to taste with salt and pepper and if it seems dry, add a little more olive oil.
If you’re making this ahead of time, cover and put it in the fridge. Take salad out about 3o minutes before serving to take chill off. Stir in ccrispy pancetta just before serving.