Chorreadas — Costa Rican Sweet Corn Pancakes

Ingredients

• 6 ears fresh corn, kernels cut off (about 4 cups)
• 3 tbsp sugar
• 2 tbsp cornmeal
• 1 egg
• ½ tsp salt
• 3 tbsp butter, for the griddle
• ½ cup natilla or sour cream, to serve
• 4 oz queso fresco, crumbled

Method

1. Blend the corn kernels with the egg, sugar, and salt until mostly smooth but still flecked — you want a batter with some grit, not corn soup.
2. Stir in the cornmeal and let the batter rest 10 minutes. It thickens noticeably as the cornmeal drinks the corn milk; if it still runs like water, add another spoonful.
3. Melt butter on a griddle over medium-low heat and ladle out ¼-cup pools, spreading each gently to about 4 inches.
4. Cook 3–4 minutes per side. Low and slow matters here — corn batter has no gluten to hold it, so a hot pan will burn the outside before the center sets. Flip when the edges dry and lift cleanly.
5. Stack them with crumbled queso fresco between and a big spoon of natilla on top. Sweet, salty, and gone in minutes.