Cornmeal Mush
Ingredients
Directions
In a large pot, bring 4 cups of water to a boil.
Add 1 teaspoon of salt and gradually stir in 1 cup of cornmeal.
Boil for 10 minutes, stirring constantly.
Reduce heat and simmer for 3 hours or longer over boiling water.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Explore the science
What each ingredient does
- Cornmeal
- Its starch gelatinises in boiling water, thickening the liquid into a soft, spoonable mush.
- Water
- Hydrates the cornmeal so its starch can swell and cook into a porridge.
The step that matters
Stirring the cornmeal into boiling water. Adding cornmeal gradually and stirring constantly keeps it from clumping into lumps. Starch granules need to be dispersed before they swell, so the mush cooks evenly.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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