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Cornmeal

Grains, rice & flours · Corn products

Cornmeal

Dried maize ground fine, medium or coarse; used for polenta, cornbread, ugali and as a crisp coating.

Also called: polenta, maize meal, mısır unu, fine cornmeal, mealie meal, ugali flour

39 recipes with it

Photo: Popo le Chien, via Wikimedia Commons (CC-BY-SA-3.0)

What it is

Cornmeal is dried corn (maize) ground to a gritty meal, yellow or white. Coarse meal is sold as polenta or for grits, medium for cornbread, and fine meal or mealie meal for stiff porridges such as ugali, sadza and nshima. It is not nixtamalized, so it will not form tortilla dough the way masa harina does, and it is not the same as UK cornflour (cornstarch).

Zea mays

How it’s used

  • Polenta, soft or set and grilled
  • Cornbread and corn muffins
  • Ugali, sadza, nshima and pap
  • Coating fried fish and okra
  • Dusting pizza peels and bread tins

Characteristics

Taste
Sweet, corny.
Texture
Gritty; creamy when cooked slowly in liquid.
When cooked
Whisk into simmering liquid gradually to avoid lumps; coarse meal needs longer cooking.
Sold as
ground
Cooking uses
Commonly cooked, Suitable for baking, Suitable for frying, Suitable for boiling

Kinds in our pantry

Storage

Cool, dry and dark. Airtight and cool; stone-ground wholegrain meal contains the germ and is best refrigerated.

Diet, allergens and safety

No major allergens in typical versions.

  • Vegetarian
  • Vegan
  • Dairy-free
  • Egg-free
  • Gluten-free
  • Nut-free
  • Soy-free
  • Caffeine-free
  • Naturally gluten-free; check for cross-contact.

Nutrition per 100 g

Energy
362 kcal
Protein
8.12 g
Carbohydrate
76.89 g
Fat
3.59 g
Fibre
7.3 g
Sugars
0.64 g

USDA FoodData Central: Cornmeal, whole-grain, yellow.

Substitutes

Optional — what works if you don’t have it, and how it changes the dish.

  • Semolina — For dusting and some porridges; contains gluten and lacks corn flavour.

Related ingredients

Recipes with cornmeal

See all 39

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