It comes off with vinegar

Every now and then, I really fancy a nibble of sweetcorn fresh off the cob, drizzled in virgin olive oil with a little salt, freshly ground black pepper and a dollop of Dijon mustard. It's great fun because it looks so silly holding the thing between two forks and twiddling it around as you nibble. And of course you get in a real mess especially if you have bristly, hairy bits on your face and then little pieces of corn get stuck between your teeth. It just tastes so yummy though!

So braving the rain I bought one of those double packs of corn-on-the-cob at the supermarket this morning. About 20 minutes on medium heat, in a big pan of boiling water.

The thing is, it's just so easy to become distracted! There's music to listen to, papers to sort out and bits of writing to do. And I forgot didn't I. Forgot that is, until two hours later I could smell the smell.

Black! The bottom of the pan was thick black carbon, rock hard. Wouldn't come off with the scourer and I couldn't even make a mark in it with a knife. Then a little idea popped up. I found some vinegar, poured it in so it just covered the black bits and left the pan on the side for a few hours.

And guess what? It worked! Well vinegar is like a weak acid, isn't it. All the black came right off leaving a nice shiny (well okay, scratched a little), stainless steel pan underneath. So I thought then, "I'll have to remember that".

But the funny thing is that I will remember that. It's the kind of thing I do remember. So why then, can't I remember what's on the cooker?
Maybe my learning memory is working, but my remembering things memory is broke? Could that be it? Can that happen?

Hmmm, think I'll have to investigate and find out more about this forgetting business.

Anyhow, you'll be relieved to know that the corn was still edible. A bit roasted and black along one side, yes, and a bit dry, but edible nonetheless. And it's pasta tonight but that only takes 10 minutes. I reckon that if I station myself in the kitchen and keep looking at the pan, and make sure I don't wander off, I should be safe. Fingers crossed ...

Listening to: The Rocky Horror Picture Show, "There's a light"
Wondering: why sweetcorn is yellow ...