The Disappearance of Coarse Stone Ground corn meal

[Just-Moxie]

Just a guess. Thinking most corn meal is a by product of seperating the hard shell from the soft flour part. Hard goes to make taco chips and corn flakes.

Best answer is go buy a grinder or buy shelled corn, soak it n your milk, then use food processor to make it the consistency you want, then add rest of dry ingredients. Really think the wheat flour is giving you the consistency you don't like.

I love corn bread but not in love with corse part of corn.

Then you can buy non-GMO corn or grow your own. Tend to buy high test weight varieties for the texture. It's usually Called "food grade" which in actuality is just the opposite as it is the most indigestible.

Cornmeal- IS the product. Not the by product.

The cornmeal I used for so long was the same ground as found in many cornbread food products. Think-corndogs, the cornmeal found on the bottoms of pizza doughs, french breads, etc. It has just a bit more body than I am finding on shelves today.

The only thing that has changed, since I started baking cornbread from scratch....is the ground of the cornmeal offered on supermarket shelves. My recipe, for many many years now, the cornbread turned out lighter, airy and fluffy. Nice size crumbs. Yellow. NO rubbery texture.

Then, about 2 years ago....I had ran out of cornmeal. Bought what I thought was my usual purchase at walmart. It said -"cornmeal". But when I brought it home, and used my recipe....it turned out dense, and more like cake.
So I went back and looked at the cornmeal. I really thought i must have grabbed the wrong bag off the shelf.
So I have been experimenting these past two years. As well as reading EVERY bag on those supermarket shelves.
It all consists of this finer ground stuff.

It is really hard to describe the older version. I had never had this issue before. I mistakenly thought cornmeal ..like flour...is such a basic for baking that there was no need to change it.

I have also looked in every available grocery store, local milling operations as well as online.

Flour, white flour, standard grind, has ALWAYS been a part of that recipe. I don't think my continued use of flour is changing the results of the baked texture.

As for buying a food mill just to do the grinding, and mixing it up as per your instruction...
1} Far too much effort for the once or twice a month pan of cornbread.
2} I am not even sure what to expect from how you explain to make it.

Your description-"buy a grinder or buy shelled corn, soak it n your milk, then use food processor to make it the consistency you want, then add rest of dry ingredients"...I have never even heard of.

I do appreciate your input. Thank you for responding.

 

[hoodat]

Try Amazon. Their Great River stone ground is an excellent coarse corn meal and it's organic.

 

[digitS']

I tried Seedcorn's technique and there is a link to the process on the thread with the Painted Mountain corn and Rattlesnake beans.

It was in 2011 when I first used the " Seedcorn Idea." I took pictures and uploaded them to Picasa. Then, Picasa changed the links. Google was making that bid to compete with Facebook. My pictures from that service disappeared on TEG.

So, I apologize for that in the 2013 thread but you can still read about the effort (LINK). And, here was my cornbread from my "3 Sisters Meal:"

I hope you can find the right product on the shelf. I know it doesn't help much to say, "well, you can put seeds in the ground next spring, wait 3 months and make your own." It was fun and tasty and probably had the texture you are missing from what should be at the store.

Steve

 

[Just-Moxie]

Thank you Steve! Except for being blue...your cornbread in the pic looks about like mine used to.

 

[Kassaundra]

Beside Hodgens Mills the other brand of flour / grain I have used and really like is this http://www.bobsredmill.com/flours-meals.html?p=1
I have never ordered through the mail, several health food stores in our area carry this brand it is good.

 

[Just-Moxie]

You know, I don't even remember the brand name of the cornmeal I used to buy. It was just cornmeal..like flour.


lol...on that note...I don't even think South Carolina HAS health food stores

 

[NwMtGardener]

I have purchased lots of Bobs Red Mill products, and love their coarse ground corn. I buy their dried soup mixes, ground flax, lotsa stuff. Its very common in grocery stores here.

 

[baymule]

My answer was to buy a mill and grind it myself.
http://www.sufficientself.com/threads/i-got-a-family-grain-mill.13058/

I have ground cornmeal in my mill, but it says not to grind flint corn types like popcorn. I grew corn and made my own cornmeal, it beats storebought.

http://www.theeasygarden.com/threads/me-and-the-corn.13660/

 

[seedcorn]

@baymule That's because grinding flint corn is like grinding rocks.

My g'father always fed dent types to his horses as it didn't grind their teeth down so bad. So when they went to auction, those that judged by teeth always thought the horses were younger than they were.

 

[Beekissed]

I too find the current corn meal too fine...and you are correct, it's just been in the past few years the coarse ground~or not so fine ground~disappeared. I think it goes the same direction most things go when the public stops using it...it's not financially feasible to produce it any longer.

I used to be able to buy buttermilk by the gallon but you can no longer do that...one is lucky to even find it by the quart. No one drinks it anymore, so they stopped selling it in large amounts. Pretty soon I'll not be able to find any at all.

I have a mill and I grind my own wheat and I may be able to purchase some dent corn at the local health food store...but it would cost a pretty penny. I'd love to have some of the coarser cornmeal to make certain meat pies, to cook squash with, make simple cornbread, etc.

It's not your imagination...many good things like that are no longer available because this current generation doesn't cook. And when they do, they don't know the old timey foods, nor do they like them.

I watch Chopped sometimes and it amazes me what they call food...and good. It certainly isn't the comfort food I grew up on.