Cornmeal
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Cornmeal is flour ground from dried maize (corn), and is a common staple food in many regions of the world.
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[edit] Types
Steel ground yellow cornmeal, common in the United States, has the husk and germ of the maize kernel almost completely removed. It is conserved almost indefinitely if stored in an airtight container in a cool dry place.
Stone ground cornmeal retains some of the hull and germ, lending a little more flavour and nutrition to recipes. It is more perishable, but will store longer if refrigerated.
White cornmeal (mealie meal) is more traditional in Africa. It is also popular in the Southern United States for making cornbread. Blue cornmeal is made from the rarer blue corn or by adding blue food coloring to the cheaper yellow cornmeal.
[edit] Regional usages
[edit] Africa: synonymous and similar side dishes
- Nshima and Nsima, Zambia and Malawi respectively
- Nomadi, Democratic Republic of the Congo
- Sadza, Zimbabwe
- Ugali, East Africa (aka. Sima, and Posho in Uganda)
- Mielie-meal or mealie pap, southern Africa
- Recipes that may utilize cornmeal as an additional ingredient are Fufu (aka. foufou) in Central and West Africa, and Injera in Ethiopia, Somalia and Eritrea (aka Lahoh in Eritrea).
[edit] Europe
- Kachamak (Bulgarian: качамак), Bulgaria
- Mămăligă, Romania
- Farina di granturco, Italy (not the same as farina which is made from wheat.)
- Polenta, southern Europe - especially Italy
- Arapash or Harapash, Albania - similar to the Romanian style but often combined with lamb organs, or/and feta cheese (like the Greek feta)
[edit] Meso- and South America
- Masa, used for making tortillas and tamales in Central America, and South America
- Fubá, Brazil
- Funchi, a cornmeal mush consumed on the island of Curaçao
[edit] USA
[edit] Other uses
- As a release agent to prevent breads and pizza from sticking to their pans when baking
- Cornstarch, ground from the endosperm, or white heart of the corn kernel, is used as a binder in puddings and similar foods.
- As a natural pesticide as some insects' digestive organs will swell after consuming cornmeal and water, causing them to die.
