All About Cornmeal, Grits, and Polenta
While these three everyday corn products are very similar, they have specific histories and uses. Jack Bishop tells you what you need to know.
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if corn just passes through the digestive system, does that mean cornmeal will just pass through too?
Corn meal mush was big in my house when I was a kid. I still love the stuff especially when it's fried in butter.
Modern corn shouldn't be consumed unless you want cancer 😮
Polenta is the only popular dish in my country and everybody loves it.Not long ago it was the staple food in every peasant household.Nowadays bread took its place.
Why is everyone in the background have masks on?
That's not true either. It doesn't end up in your pantry. The vast majority either goes to make ethanol or is used as animal feed.
Jack, you missed an opportunity to have Julia and Bridget taste test all of those dry corn products.
im pretty sure most corn is grown for cattle and pigs
Actually, only about 1% of corn grown in the U.S. is for human consumption as corn or cornmeal. 27% is used for ethanol for fuel, 46% is used for animal feed, and the rest is exported, used in industry, or used as a sweetener (high fructose corn syrup). (2020 figures from the World Economic Forum)
Let's make hush puppies!
The H is silent in harina… "ah-ree-nah"
I wish you would do a testing/tasting of red wine vinegars
I love Jack and all the knowledge that he has imparted over the years. I would not be a semi good cook without all his tips and tricks and suggestions of better, best, and great product info!
Most corn is grown in the US goes to ethanol and feed. Ever wonder how we subsidize farmers? Case in point.
It is a bummer that you did not mention what products are made of yellow/sweet corn and which ones of white corn, big difference in taste, uses, manufacturing.
What about hominy grits (which are also boiled in lime water)? I'm glad you showed yellow grits, though; I've never been a fan of white grits…
Didn't like the video and I will tell you why, it's about time someone talked about white rich yellow grits and all that confusing stuff but it would take a 30-minute video to explain it in detail and how it all should be used, even the fine fine fine fine fine grind can be used to make polenta, so I would suggest you do a detailed video and get more in depth about this subject.
I use the Goya fine ground corn meal for making Scrapple (use ground breakfast sausage for the meat parts). It makes a great crunchy scrapple for fried eggs and hot pickled peppers.
how much of our corn is turned into ethanol for gas?
Love corn bread and corn muffins. With butter….
so, what's the difference then between masarepa and cornmeal, polenta or grits, whichever has the more similar size?
I'm fat, love food. Any gritty corn based food is not something i like. Corn bread is inferior to regular bread. Grits is bad. Corn tortillas are worse than flour versions. Fresh or even canned and frozen corn is delicious and thats how it should be prepared. The dried and milled versions are essentially absent from my kitchen and diet.
I want to actually hit my head on something.
Grits are nixtamalized. Grits are more properly called hominy grits and hominy is corn soaked in lye, IOW nixtamalization. This "grits are just course ground corn" stuff is why you see packages labeled as both grits and polenta.
Yes, real grits take longer to cook but they are more nutritious and taste better than quick "grits".
No harina P.A.N.? I love you guys, have invested in your books; however, you guys didn’t do your homework before releasing this video. Sorry to be so blunt, but you guys are the best and with feedback like this, things will stay better. Cheers!
Corn is also easily the most subsidized crop in America. Corn farmers are basically welfare recipients.
Round up ready not to mention gmo.
Really going to try my own hand at cirnmeal this year when our corn comes in
I find it strange that chefs talk about corn flavor when they have never really tasted corn. Everybody loves sweet corn but they have never experienced the true flavor of corn itself. They love the sweet flavor but don't get a real corn flavor from this variety, it has been bred out of today's corn in exchange for sugar. It's much akin to pork nowadays. When is the last time you bought pork chops with a ring of fat around them? I bet it's been many years.
Scoff at field corn or dent corn all you want, it's a part of almost everyone's daily diet. Imagine no corn bread, no grits, no polenta, no corn oil no margarine. But none of these is the true flavor of wonderful corn.
Over the years I have conducted many taste tests using field corn vs. sweet corn and the majority have chosen the field corn as the best. Even my very picky wife picked the field corn as the best tasting while still wishing it was sweeter. And so have many co-workers over the years.
It has to be harvested at the right time, when you use your thumb nail to pierce into a kernal and it squirts that's the perfect time to eat it. Our pioneer families have eaten field corn for over 10 decades.
Now as to the question of gmo is one better than the non, I just don't know. It will be decades before that question is answered. But today I will still eat and prefer field corn to sweet corn.
Do a blind taste test with peeled and un peeled carrots and let me know how that turned out.
I'll be watching.
I can turn it all into whiskey 🥃 ❤
What about corn flour/starch? I wonder what type of corn that comes from?
I love seeing Anson Mills getting the love they deserve. I've been buying rice from them for years, I'm going to have to check out some of their other products.
Do people still cook samp? I keep some around and make it once in a while
Okay so what brand is the best to use?
While i love Maize in all its forms it took me forever to find out polenta was corn because we very rarely ate it but if you know the people of Maize we eat it in all forms all the time.
(177) I really enjoyed this tutorial. I just got an updated copy of "The Tassajara Bread Book" by Edward Espe Brown so I can make my own bread products.
Goya – cant believe you would recommend them its full of Atrazine