Cornmeal is a meal (coarse
flour
Flour is a powder made by grinding raw grains, roots, beans, nuts, or seeds. Flours are used to make many different foods. Cereal flour, particularly wheat flour, is the main ingredient of bread, which is a staple food for many cul ...
) or a
cell membrane
The cell membrane (also known as the plasma membrane (PM) or cytoplasmic membrane, and historically referred to as the plasmalemma) is a biological membrane that separates and protects the interior of all cells from the outside environment (t ...
ground from dried
corn
Maize ( ; ''Zea mays'' subsp. ''mays'', from es, maíz after tnq, mahiz), also known as corn (North American and Australian English), is a cereal grain first domesticated by indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 10,000 years ago. The ...
. It is a common
staple food, and is
ground
Ground may refer to:
Geology
* Land, the surface of the Earth not covered by water
* Soil, a mixture of clay, sand and organic matter present on the surface of the Earth
Electricity
* Ground (electricity), the reference point in an electrical c ...
to coarse, medium, and fine consistencies, but not as fine as wheat flour can be.
[Herbst, Sharon, ''Food Lover's Companion'', Third Edition, Pg. 165, Barrons Educational Series Inc, 2001] In
Mexico
Mexico (Spanish language, Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a List of sovereign states, country in the southern portion of North America. It is borders of Mexico, bordered to the north by the United States; to the so ...
, very finely ground cornmeal is referred to as
corn flour
Cornflour may refer to:
* Cornflour (in the UK), corn starch, from the endosperm of the kernel of the corn (maize) grain
* Corn flour (in the US and elsewhere), very finely ground cornmeal, ground from dried maize
See also
* Flour
* Starch
* G ...
.
When fine cornmeal is made from maize that has been soaked in an alkaline solution, e.g.,
limewater (a process known as
nixtamalization), it is called
masa harina (or masa flour), which is used for making
arepas,
tamales and
tortillas. Boiled cornmeal is called
polenta in Italy and is also a traditional dish and bread substitute in
Romania
Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...
.
Types
There are various types of cornmeal:
*''Blue cornmeal'' is light blue or violet in color. It is ground from whole
blue corn and has a sweet flavor. The cornmeal consists of dried corn kernels that have been ground into a fine or medium texture.
*''Steel-ground yellow cornmeal'', which is common mostly in the United States, has the
husk
Husk (or hull) in botany is the outer shell or coating of a seed. In the United States, the term husk often refers to the leafy outer covering of an ear of maize (corn) as it grows on the plant. Literally, a husk or hull includes the protective ...
and
germ of the maize
kernel almost completely removed. It is
conserved for about a year 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 flavor and nutrition to
recipes. It is more perishable, but will store longer if refrigerated. However, it too can have a shelf life of many months if kept in a reasonably cool place.
*''White cornmeal'' (
mielie-meal), made from white corn, is more common in parts of Africa. It is also popular in the
Southern United States
The Southern United States (sometimes Dixie, also referred to as the Southern States, the American South, the Southland, or simply the South) is a geographic and cultural region of the United States of America. It is between the Atlantic Ocean ...
for making
cornbread.
Regional usage
Caribbean
*Cornmeal porridge - a popular meal served for breakfast in Jamaica.
*''
Cou-cou
Cou-cou, coo-coo (as it is known in the Windward Islands), or fungie (as it is known in the Leeward Islands and Dominica) makes up part of the national dishes of Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, British Virgin Islands and the U.S. Virgin Islands. ...
'' - part of the national dish of
Barbados
Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies, in the Caribbean region of the Americas, and the most easterly of the Caribbean Islands. It occupies an area of and has a population of about 287,000 (2019 estima ...
, "cou-cou and flying fish".
*''Funche'' - a typical breakfast in
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and unincorporated ...
cornmeal cooked with coconut milk, milk, raisins, butter, cloves, vanilla, ginger, sugar or honey and topped with fruit and cinnamon. There's also a savory funche made with cornmeal, coconut milk, chicken stock,
sofrito
(Spanish, ), (Catalan), (Italian, ), or (Portuguese, ) is a basic preparation in Mediterranean, Latin American, Spanish, Italian and Portuguese cooking. It typically consists of aromatic ingredients cut into small pieces and sautéed ...
and other ingredients. These are usually served with fish.
*''Funchi also known as fungi/fungee'' - a cornmeal
mush cooked and cooled into a stiff pudding, sometimes eaten with
saltfish
Dried and salted cod, sometimes referred to as salt cod or saltfish or salt dolly, is cod which has been preserved by drying after salting. Cod which has been dried without the addition of salt is stockfish. Salt cod was long a major export of ...
or
pepperpot. It is consumed on the island of
Curaçao and is part of the national dish of
Antigua and Barbuda.
*Mayi moulen - a cornmeal dish in Haiti often cooked with fish or spinach. Can be eaten with avocado.
East Asia
* ''
Tie Bing'' (貼餅 sticking bread) - This product can either be fluffy like a
mantou or more flatbread-like. It is traditionally stuck around the outer rim of a large
wok while meat or fish is being cooked. Generally, an alkalizing agent such as baking soda is added to increase the nutrient value. It is also found in northern China.
*
Corn ''congee'' (棒子麵粥) - A porridge made from plain cornmeal. It is normally thinner than
grits or
polenta and is often eaten with Chinese pickles.
* ''
Wo tou
Wotou or wowotou, also called Chinese cornbread, is a type of steamed bread made from cornmeal in Northern China.
Etymology
"Wotou" literally translates to "nest thing", since the wotou resembles a bird's nest with its hollow cone shape.
Hist ...
'' (窩頭 nest head) - Shaped like a hollow cone, this cornbread looks like a bird's nest, after which it is named. It is commonly eaten in northern China, and may contain dried
jujubes and other flavoring agents.
Sub-Saharan Africa
*
Tuwo masara
Tuwon masara is a corn flour dish eaten in the northern part of Nigeria.
Etymology
The term ''tuwon masara'' is formed from two Hausa words: ''tuwo'' (cooked cornmeal) and ''masara'' (maize). ''Tuwon masara'' is similar to ''sadza'', a popular ...
- Northern
Nigeria
Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...
*
Mielie-meal or ''maize meal'' -
Southern Africa
Southern Africa is the southernmost subregion of the African continent, south of the Congo and Tanzania. The physical location is the large part of Africa to the south of the extensive Congo River basin. Southern Africa is home to a number o ...
* ''Nomadi'' -
Democratic Republic of the Congo
The Democratic Republic of the Congo (french: République démocratique du Congo (RDC), colloquially "La RDC" ), informally Congo-Kinshasa, DR Congo, the DRC, the DROC, or the Congo, and formerly and also colloquially Zaire, is a country in ...
*
''Nshima'' or ''bwali'' -
Zambia
Zambia (), officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central, Southern and East Africa, although it is typically referred to as being in Southern Africa at its most central point. Its neighbours are t ...
* ''Nsima'' -
Malawi
Malawi (; or aláwi Tumbuka: ''Malaŵi''), officially the Republic of Malawi, is a landlocked country in Southeastern Africa that was formerly known as Nyasaland. It is bordered by Zambia to the west, Tanzania to the north and northe ...
* ''Oshifima'' or ''Oshimbob'' -
Namibia
Namibia (, ), officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country in Southern Africa. Its western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Zambia and Angola to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and ea ...
* ''
Sadza'' -
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and ...
* ''
Ugali'' -
Great Lakes
The Great Lakes, also called the Great Lakes of North America, are a series of large interconnected freshwater lakes in the mid-east region of North America that connect to the Atlantic Ocean via the Saint Lawrence River. There are five lakes ...
(''sima'' and ''posho'' in
Uganda
}), is a landlocked country in East Africa. The country is bordered to the east by Kenya, to the north by South Sudan, to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the south-west by Rwanda, and to the south by Tanzania. The ...
)
* Recipes that may use cornmeal as an additional ingredient are ''
fufu
Fufu (or fufuo, foofoo, foufou ) is a dough-like food found in West African cuisine. In addition to Ghana, it is also found in Sierra Leone, Guinea, Liberia, Cote D'Ivoire, Benin, Togo, Nigeria, Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of Congo, the ...
'' (''foufou'') in
Central
Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object.
Central may also refer to:
Directions and generalised locations
* Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known a ...
and
West Africa
West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Mali ...
.
Europe
* ''Arapash'' or ''harapash'' - Albania (similar to the Romanian style but often combined with lamb organs, or/and goat cheese)
* ''Farina di granturco'' - Italy (not the same as
farina, which is made from
wheat
Wheat is a grass widely cultivated for its seed, a cereal grain that is a worldwide staple food. The many species of wheat together make up the genus ''Triticum'' ; the most widely grown is common wheat (''T. aestivum''). The archaeologi ...
)
* ''G'omi'' ( ka, ღომი, tr), ''
mchadi'' (Georgian: ), ''tchvishtari'' - Georgia (''g'omi'' is similar to polenta, ''
mchadi'' - cornbread, ''tshvishtari'' - cheese cornbread). Known by different names in local languages ( ab, абысҭа ''abysta'', ady, мамрыс ''mamrys'', inh, журан-худар ''juran-hudar'',
Nogai: мамырза ''mamyrza'', os, дзыкка ''dzykka'' or сера ''sera''), it is also widespread in other
Caucasian cuisines.
* ''
Kachamak'' (качамак) -
Bulgaria
Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedo ...
,
North Macedonia
North Macedonia, ; sq, Maqedonia e Veriut, (Macedonia before February 2019), officially the Republic of North Macedonia,, is a country in Southeast Europe. It gained independence in 1991 as one of the successor states of Socialist Feder ...
and
Serbia
Serbia (, ; Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia ( Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin and the Balkans. It shares land borders with Hu ...
* ''Mălai'' - Romania (the cornmeal itself; prepared as ''
mămăligă'')
* ''
Polenta'' - southern Europe, especially North Italy
* ''
Banush'' - Ukraine (the dish prepared from cornmeal with added śmietana, topped with pork rind or mushrooms and bryndza etc. The dish is popular in the Carpathian region of western Ukraine)
Horn of Africa
* ''Soor'' -
Somalia
Somalia, , Osmanya script: 𐒈𐒝𐒑𐒛𐒐𐒘𐒕𐒖; ar, الصومال, aṣ-Ṣūmāl officially the Federal Republic of SomaliaThe ''Federal Republic of Somalia'' is the country's name per Article 1 of thProvisional Constitut ...
*Cornmeal is also often used as an additional ingredient in the preparation of ''
injera'' or ''
lahoh'',
flatbread
A flatbread is a bread made with flour; water, milk, yogurt, or other liquid; and salt, and then thoroughly rolled into flattened dough. Many flatbreads are unleavened, although some are leavened, such as pizza and pita bread.
Flatbreads r ...
that is traditionally eaten in the countries of the
Horn of Africa
The Horn of Africa (HoA), also known as the Somali Peninsula, is a large peninsula and geopolitical region in East Africa.Robert Stock, ''Africa South of the Sahara, Second Edition: A Geographical Interpretation'', (The Guilford Press; 2004 ...
(
Djibouti
Djibouti, ar, جيبوتي ', french: link=no, Djibouti, so, Jabuuti officially the Republic of Djibouti, is a country in the Horn of Africa, bordered by Somalia to the south, Ethiopia to the southwest, Eritrea in the north, and the Red ...
,
Eritrea
Eritrea ( ; ti, ኤርትራ, Ertra, ; ar, إرتريا, ʾIritriyā), officially the State of Eritrea, is a country in the Horn of Africa region of Eastern Africa, with its capital and largest city at Asmara. It is bordered by Ethiopi ...
,
Ethiopia
Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...
and
Somalia
Somalia, , Osmanya script: 𐒈𐒝𐒑𐒛𐒐𐒘𐒕𐒖; ar, الصومال, aṣ-Ṣūmāl officially the Federal Republic of SomaliaThe ''Federal Republic of Somalia'' is the country's name per Article 1 of thProvisional Constitut ...
) and nearby
Yemen
Yemen (; ar, ٱلْيَمَن, al-Yaman), officially the Republic of Yemen,, ) is a country in Western Asia. It is situated on the southern end of the Arabian Peninsula, and borders Saudi Arabia to the north and Oman to the northeast and ...
.
East Africa
* ''Ugali'' - Kenya, Tanzania
* ''Posho'' or ''kawunga'' - Uganda
*Cornmeal is a staple food in the East Africa region. It is used to make ''ugali'' and ''uji''.
Indian Ocean
* ''Poudine maïs'' -
Mauritius
Mauritius ( ; french: Maurice, link=no ; mfe, label= Mauritian Creole, Moris ), officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean about off the southeast coast of the African continent, east of Madagascar. It ...
This is a local dessert dish made from maize flour in which milk, sugar, dried sultanas and cardamon powder are cooked together. The cooked paste is poured on a tray and coconut powder is sprinkled thereon and left to cool. This dessert is often cut into triangular shapes and can be bought from food vendors in the streets of Port Louis and also in market fairs around the island.
South America
* ''
Fubá'' -
Brazil
Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
.
* ''
Masarepa -'' Soaked and cooked corn, ground fine into a flour, used in
Colombia
Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the ...
and
Venezuela
Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...
to make
arepas,
almojábana
Almojábana is a type of bread made with cuajada cheese and corn flour.
About
An almojábana is a small, bun-shaped bread having a tart flavor. It has some variations between Hispanic America and Spain.
The etymology stems from Hispano-Arab an ...
s and
empanada
An empanada is a type of baked or fried turnover consisting of pastry and filling, common in Spanish, other Southern European, Latin American, and Iberian-influenced cultures around the world. The name comes from the Spanish (to bread, i ...
s.
* ''
Polenta'' - a typical dish in many countries, including
Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest ...
,
Brazil
Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
,
Paraguay
Paraguay (; ), officially the Republic of Paraguay ( es, República del Paraguay, links=no; gn, Tavakuairetã Paraguái, links=si), is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to t ...
and
Uruguay
Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...
.
North America
*''
Masa'' or ''masa harina'' - Nixtamalized corn used for making
tamales and
tortillas in
Central America
Central America ( es, América Central or ) is a subregion of the Americas. Its boundaries are defined as bordering the United States to the north, Colombia to the south, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. ...
,
Mexico
Mexico (Spanish language, Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a List of sovereign states, country in the southern portion of North America. It is borders of Mexico, bordered to the north by the United States; to the so ...
, and
South America
South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the sou ...
.
* As a
batter for a
fried food
Frying is the cooking of food in oil or another fat. Similar to sautéing, pan-fried foods are generally turned over once or twice during cooking to make sure that the food is well-made, using tongs or a spatula, while sautéed foods are cooked ...
, such as
corn dogs
* Made into
bread, as in
corn fritters,
cornbread,
hushpuppies,
jonnycakes, or
spoonbread
Spoonbread is a moist cornmeal-based dish prevalent in parts of the Southern United States. While the basic recipe involves the same core ingredients as cornbread — namely cornmeal, milk, butter, and eggs — the mode of preparation creates a f ...
* As
breading for fried or baked foods, such as
fried fish
* As a breakfast cereal ingredient
*
Cheese curl-type
snack foods, such as
Cheetos and
Cheezies
* In
corn chip
Corn chips are a snack food made from cornmeal fried in oil or baked, usually in the shape of a small noodle or scoop. Corn chips are thick, rigid and very crunchy. Corn chips have the strong aroma and flavor of roasted corn, and are often heavi ...
s such as
Fritos
Fritos is an American brand of corn chips and dipping sauces that was created in 1932 by Charles Elmer Doolin and produced since 1961 by the Frito-Lay division of PepsiCo. Fritos are made by deep-frying extruded whole cornmeal, unlike the simi ...
, but not
tortilla chip
A tortilla chip is a snack food made from corn tortillas, which are cut into triangles and then fried or baked (alternatively they may be discs pressed out of corn masa then fried or baked). Corn tortillas are made of nixtamalized corn, vege ...
s or corn
tortillas, which are made from
nixtamalized maize
Maize ( ; ''Zea mays'' subsp. ''mays'', from es, maíz after tnq, mahiz), also known as corn (North American English, North American and Australian English), is a cereal grain first domesticated by indigenous peoples of Mexico, indigenous ...
flour
*
Peameal bacon, back bacon rolled in cornmeal, known colloquially in the U.S. as ‘Canadian bacon’
* As a
release agent to prevent breads and
pizza from sticking to their pans when baking
* As
grits
* As a
porridge, such as
cornmeal mush, which is often then sliced and
grilled
* Known as "
samp", it was used in colonial times as a kind of porridge.
South Asia
* ''
Makki di roti
Makki ki roti is a flat unleavened bread made from corn meal (maize flour), primarily eaten in the Jammu region, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, and Uttarakhand in North India & Gujarat, Maharashtra in Western India ...
'' - a traditional
Punjabi
Punjabi, or Panjabi, most often refers to:
* Something of, from, or related to Punjab, a region in India and Pakistan
* Punjabi language
* Punjabi people
* Punjabi dialects and languages
Punjabi may also refer to:
* Punjabi (horse), a British Th ...
bread often eaten with ''
saag'' in Punjab province of northern
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...
and eastern
Pakistan
Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...
In parts of northern India and Pakistan ground corn flour is used to make thick slabs of bread which can be eaten with a wide variety of curry dishes or it can be coated in clarified butter or ghee and eaten with yogurt or lassi which is a yogurt based drink especially in summer.
See also
*
Maize flour
*
Semolina
Semolina is coarsely milled durum wheat mainly used in making couscous, and sweet puddings. The term semolina is also used to designate coarse millings of other varieties of wheat, and sometimes other grains (such as rice or corn) as well.
Ety ...
*
List of maize dishes
References
External links
{{Authority control
Cuisine of the Southern United States
Flour
Maize products