Corn kernels are the fruits of corn (called maize in many countries). Maize is a

grain A grain is a small, hard, dry fruit (caryopsis) – with or without an attached husk, hull layer – harvested for human or animal consumption. A grain crop is a grain-producing plant. The two main types of commercial grain crops are cereals and ...

, and the kernels are used in cooking as a

vegetable Vegetables are edible parts of plants that are consumed by humans or other animals as food. This original meaning is still commonly used, and is applied to plants collectively to refer to all edible plant matter, including edible flower, flo ...

or a source of starch. The kernel comprise

endosperm The endosperm is a tissue produced inside the seeds of most of the flowering plants following double fertilization. It is triploid (meaning three chromosome sets per nucleus) in most species, which may be auxin-driven. It surrounds the Embryo#Pla ...

, germ, pericarp, and tip cap.

Description

Corn kernels are the fruits of

maize Maize (; ''Zea mays''), also known as corn in North American English, is a tall stout grass that produces cereal grain. It was domesticated by indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 9,000 years ago from wild teosinte. Native American ...

. Maize is a

, and the kernels are used in cooking as a

or a source of starch. The kernels can be of various colors: blackish, bluish-gray, purple, green, red, white and yellow. The kernel of maize consists of a pericarp (fruit wall) fused to the seed coat. This type of fruit is typical of the grasses and is called a caryopsis. Maize kernels are frequently and incorrectly referred to as

seed In botany, a seed is a plant structure containing an embryo and stored nutrients in a protective coat called a ''testa''. More generally, the term "seed" means anything that can be Sowing, sown, which may include seed and husk or tuber. Seeds ...

s. The kernels are about the size of peas, and adhere in regular rows round a white, pithy substance, which forms the ear. Typical shapes of corn kernels include horse-tooth shape, sphereical cone shape, and spherical shape.

Endosperm

About 82 percent of the corn kernel’s dry weight consists of

. Starch is the primary source and it most widely used part of the kernel. It is known as the key component in fuel, sweeteners, bioplastics and other products.

Germ

The germ is the only living part of the corn kernel, also called its embryo. It consists of the important genetic informal kernel.

Pericarp

The pericarp is the outer covering that protects the kernel and helps to maintain the kernel's nutrient value and moisture content. It is about 91% fiber. If the kernels are wet-milled, most of the pericarp will end up in the corn gluten feed.

Tip cap

The tip cap is the attachment point of the kernel to the corn cob, where the nutrient and water flow, and this is the only part that is not covered by the pericarp. It contains fiberproducts, in the form of high fructose corn syrup, in favor of cane sugar. A

gene In biology, the word gene has two meanings. The Mendelian gene is a basic unit of heredity. The molecular gene is a sequence of nucleotides in DNA that is transcribed to produce a functional RNA. There are two types of molecular genes: protei ...

tic variant that accumulates more sugar and less starch in the ear is consumed as a vegetable and is called sweet corn. When ground into

flour Flour is a powder made by Mill (grinding), grinding raw grains, List of root vegetables, roots, beans, Nut (fruit), nuts, or seeds. Flours are used to make many different foods. Cereal flour, particularly wheat flour, is the main ingredie ...

, maize yields more flour, with much less

bran Bran, also known as miller's bran, is the component of a Cereal, cereal grain consisting of the hard layersthe combined aleurone and Fruit anatomy#Pericarp layers, pericarpsurrounding the endosperm. Maize, Corn (maize) bran also includes the p ...

, than wheat does. It lacks the protein gluten of wheat and, therefore, makes baked goods with poor rising capability. It is also used in popcorn, a common snack in the US.

Biofuel

Corn kernels are used as pelletized fuel for pellet stoves and furnaces. Corn kernels are a natural pellet, which gives them an economic advantage over other man-made

biomass Biomass is a term used in several contexts: in the context of ecology it means living organisms, and in the context of bioenergy it means matter from recently living (but now dead) organisms. In the latter context, there are variations in how ...

pellets and wood pellets. The use of corn and other grains as a renewable biofuel may have environmental and cost benefits, compared to other energy sources, and may create additional forms of revenue for farmer *

Biofuel Biofuel is a fuel that is produced over a short time span from Biomass (energy), biomass, rather than by the very slow natural processes involved in the formation of fossil fuels such as oil. Biofuel can be produced from plants or from agricu ...

* Corn wet-milling

References

{{corn Maize