Corn for cornmeal

Consuming non nixtamalized dent corns in the south during the early 1900's caused a sharp spike in the disease called Pellagra, Pellagra - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Native American population achieved the same results when parching their flint and dent corn kernels in hot hard wood ash.

There is one way that you can nixtamalize corn just by use lye water from hard wood ashes. This is something that my late grandmother did to make Hominy.

 

Lye water. Isn't lye poisonous? I know with soap making they say clear all distractions when using lye because it is dangerous. Your Grandma used lye water?

 

Yes and no. See below:
Caustic preservative, crispy food: All you need to know about lye water | Sodium Hydroxide

And
Hominy - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

Yes, you rinse the corn in till the rinse water is clear. I use picking lime which is also very caustic and you still have to rinse in till the water is clear.

Springfield-Greene County Library -- Bittersweet

 

I just added a new link to the original post. it talks about making your own cornmeal and using popcorn. Popcorn if unopened and properly stored can last for years. Our current container of popcorn is in the garage because it has been using it for experiments. But I will see how it grinds up and tastes.

 

Popcorn is extremely hard and hard on a mill. I have ground it and it does make good meal. I purchased whole feed corn from tractor supply because it is not treated to prevent mold or kill pest (from what i have been told). I winnow it to get it extra clean then i wash it and spread it in the sun to air dry. After that i package it for LT storage or grind it for meal,flour and grits. Far better than you can buy.

 

I have tried to grow field corn and love it fried for breakfast, but the summer thunderstorms usually blow it down. Local farmers will let me harvest some green corn in the milk stage and I can buy a pick-up truck load for next to nothing in the fall.

 

Has anyone tried contacting their county extension agent? The agent's job is to help with these exact questions. Pest control. Soil nutrients. Open pollination vs. hybrid. Etc. , etc., etc.

 

I forgot to mention that I also freeze it overnight to kill any pest that may be hiding before I package it for LT storage. I do this before I wash it and after winnowing. That way it's good and dry when packaged.

 

in regard to popcorn >>>> need to watch it for black mold when storing long term - popcorn is purposely left more "wet" than dent corn when drying - the "pop" is from that extra 10% of extra moisture left in the kernels ...

many experts recommend oven or air drying popcorn down and re-moisturizing it again if popping into a snack ....

 

Don't know if this will help. But my grandmother was full blood native American. And used to tell me a lot about How they did things in the old days. There was a story they learned as children called the 3 sisters. Which was the way knowledge was passed down. Don't remember the story, but do remember the essentials I think. First the corn was planted. with a couple small fish ( like minnows) in a row. After it had a good start, they would plant climbing beans in the row between the corn. that would help to set the nitrogen in the soil. which the corn needed to grow. (the fish I think was to supply nitrogen at the start) then a little later they would plant squash on both sides of the row. To deter pest and some insects. Old timey companion planting...…. Corn doe's require ALOT of nitrogen to grow well. And will deplete the nitrogen in the soil fast. You might want to do a soil test in your garden …. hope it helps.