My son likes hominy grits. Once in a while I buy the round box
from Quaker Oats. I generally prefer to buy organic, and so
started looking for a source. One place I called was Anson
Mills. They sell grits but not hominy grits. The guy there
told me that nobody in the US sells hominy grits any more. I
protested, "It says 'hominy grits' on my Quaker Oats box".

It seems that some processors have redefined "hominy" from
meaning "alkali-processed corn" (to make nutrients more available)
to "mechanically dehulled and degermed corn". I called Quaker and
they confirmed that they no longer process their corn with alkali.

So, I decided to make my own.

I bought whole dry corn from my local coop. Put a quart in a
pot with 3 quarts of water and a quarter cup of pickling lime.
Soaked for 12 hours, boiled for 3. drained and rinsed. Dried
on a half-sheet pan in a low oven. Put a cup in the blender
to grind and prepared as for dry cereal.

Kind of bland. Not bad. More corn flavor than Quaker Oats.
Supposedly better nutritionally.

I'll do it again just to have another sample point, but I'm
not sure it's worth the effort.

Refs:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grits
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nixtamal
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hominy
http://www.quakeroats.com/qfb_OurBra...cfm?BrandID=21
http://www.quakergrits.com/QG_Grits/grits.htm

Hokan wrote:
> My son likes hominy grits. Once in a while I buy the round box
> from Quaker Oats.

www.fallsmill.com

Jill

jmcquown wrote:
> Hokan wrote:
> > My son likes hominy grits. Once in a while I buy the round box
> > from Quaker Oats.
>
> www.fallsmill.com

Why did you post this? Are you suggesting that Falls Mill has
Hominy Grits? I sent them an email some months ago to enquire.
They do not sell hominy (nixtamal) grits. Just ground dry corn.

wrote:
> jmcquown wrote:
>> Hokan wrote:
>>> My son likes hominy grits. Once in a while I buy the round box
>>> from Quaker Oats.
>>
>> www.fallsmill.com
>
> Why did you post this? Are you suggesting that Falls Mill has
> Hominy Grits? I sent them an email some months ago to enquire.
> They do not sell hominy (nixtamal) grits. Just ground dry corn.

You obviously have no idea what "hominy grits" are. Grits are dried ground
corn without the germ which has been treated with lye. White, yellow,
either way. Just because the label doesn't say "hominy grits" doesn't mean
it's not the same thing. However, hominy, by itself, is the whole
degerminated corn kernel, not the ground product frequently served as a
breakfast dish. And Quaker doesn't make decent grits, I don't care what
your kid thinks.

Jill

jmcquown wrote:
> wrote:
> > jmcquown wrote:
> >> Hokan wrote:
> >>> My son likes hominy grits. Once in a while I buy the round box
> >>> from Quaker Oats.
> >>
> >> www.fallsmill.com
> >
> > Why did you post this? Are you suggesting that Falls Mill has
> > Hominy Grits? I sent them an email some months ago to enquire.
> > They do not sell hominy (nixtamal) grits. Just ground dry corn.
>
> You obviously have no idea what "hominy grits" are. Grits are dried ground
> corn without the germ which has been treated with lye. White, yellow,
> either way. Just because the label doesn't say "hominy grits" doesn't mean
> it's not the same thing. However, hominy, by itself, is the whole
> degerminated corn kernel, not the ground product frequently served as a
> breakfast dish. And Quaker doesn't make decent grits, I don't care what
> your kid thinks.

It may be true that, being a northerner, I don't know all about hominy
grits,
but I can read. I more-or-less agree with your definition. That is
not what
Falls Mill sells. It is also not what Quaker sells.

I did not claim that Quaker makes decent grits. Nor did my kid make
that claim. More to the point, despite the label on the package,
Quaker does not make hominy grits at all! That's why I'm looking
elsewhere.

Lots of people see "grits" and assume "hominy grits". I say that they
are not the same thing. Because of this confusion I have taken to
calling alkali-processed corn "nixtamal" -- a very old-fashoned name
that is very clear in meaning.

On Sat, 24 Feb 2007 17:36:21 +0000 (UTC), Hokan >
wrote:

>My son likes hominy grits. Once in a while I buy the round box
>from Quaker Oats. I generally prefer to buy organic, and so
>started looking for a source. One place I called was Anson
>Mills. They sell grits but not hominy grits. The guy there
>told me that nobody in the US sells hominy grits any more. I
>protested, "It says 'hominy grits' on my Quaker Oats box".
>
>It seems that some processors have redefined "hominy" from
>meaning "alkali-processed corn" (to make nutrients more available)
>to "mechanically dehulled and degermed corn". I called Quaker and
>they confirmed that they no longer process their corn with alkali.
>
>So, I decided to make my own.
>
>I bought whole dry corn from my local coop. Put a quart in a
>pot with 3 quarts of water and a quarter cup of pickling lime.
>Soaked for 12 hours, boiled for 3. drained and rinsed. Dried
>on a half-sheet pan in a low oven. Put a cup in the blender
>to grind and prepared as for dry cereal.
>
>Kind of bland. Not bad. More corn flavor than Quaker Oats.
>Supposedly better nutritionally.

Speaking as a southerner who likes grits, they aren't just bland
they're awful unless they've been "doctored". I prefer butter and
salt, some like cheese grits, some like it with milk and sugar. There
are many variations.

>
>I'll do it again just to have another sample point, but I'm
>not sure it's worth the effort.
>
>Refs:
>http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grits
>http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nixtamal
>http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hominy
>http://www.quakeroats.com/qfb_OurBra...cfm?BrandID=21
>http://www.quakergrits.com/QG_Grits/grits.htm

-Mark

Jill wrote:

>> My son likes hominy grits. Once in a while I buy the round box
>> from Quaker Oats.
>
> www.fallsmill.com

Where on that web site does it state that the grits are made from hominy,
i.e., corn which has been treated with an alkali? It rather looks like the
mill simply grinds white corn and calls the resulting coarse meal "grits."

Bob

Bob Terwilliger wrote:
> Jill wrote:
>
>>> My son likes hominy grits. Once in a while I buy the round box
>>> from Quaker Oats.
>>
>> www.fallsmill.com
>
> Where on that web site does it state that the grits are made from
> hominy, i.e., corn which has been treated with an alkali? It rather
> looks like the mill simply grinds white corn and calls the resulting
> coarse meal "grits."
>
> Bob

That site doesn't define "grits", they sell stone ground grits. Grits are
ground degermed hominy treated with lye. Plain and simple. The term
"hominy grits" is a tad redundent. Sorry, was just trying to address the
inquiry, didn't mean to raise all sorts of issues.

Jill

Jill wrote:

> That site doesn't define "grits", they sell stone ground grits. Grits are
> ground degermed hominy treated with lye. Plain and simple.


That's what the term "grits" USED to mean, until some mills (Quaker and
Albers among them) decided to skip the lye treatment and start calling their
coarse white cornmeal "grits." Now, the term "grits" merely means "coarse
cornmeal." It's only correctly termed HOMINY grits if the corn was treated
with an alkali. The OP stated that he's already been in contact with Falls
Mill, who unequivocally stated that their grits are NOT made with
alkali-treated corn -- yet they still call them "grits."


> The term "hominy grits" is a tad redundent. Sorry, was just trying to
> address the inquiry, didn't mean to raise all sorts of issues.

Well, it's an interesting discussion. I wasn't aware that true hominy grits
were so hard to come by nowadays; I hardly ever eat them.

Bob

Bob Terwilliger

> Well, it's an interesting discussion. I wasn't aware that true hominy grits
> were so hard to come by nowadays; I hardly ever eat them.

Grits: hominy or otherwise ... ick, phew, yucky, gag.

Pasole with hominy ... ick, ick, ick. Can you have pasole WITHOUT
hominy? Pasole would be awesome without the ick ick ick.

Maybe my true issue with grits is hominy. Maybe the issue is the
consistency. Not sure.

--Lin (gag reflex intact)

wrote:
>
>
> Speaking as a southerner who likes grits, they aren't just bland
> they're awful unless they've been "doctored". I prefer butter and
> salt, some like cheese grits, some like it with milk and sugar. There
> are many variations.

I never had grits until about 10 years ago. They don't exist here in
Canada. I was in Virginia and we stopped for breakfast in Manassas. The
waitress asked me if I wanted grits. I asked her what it is. She told me
"Grits is grits." Fine, but what is it. She called over another waitress
and said "This gentleman wants to know what grits is"
Second waitress dais "Grist is grits". Fine, but what is that. "It's made
with hominy." I didn't know what hominy was. The waitress said "You ain't
never had grits? I'll bring you some". It was delicious. I bought some
before I came back over the border. That was about 15 years ago. They still
don't sell grits here.

On Feb 25, 6:02 pm, "Lin" > wrote:

> Grits: hominy or otherwise ... ick, phew, yucky, gag.
>
> Pasole with hominy ... ick, ick, ick. Can you have pasole WITHOUT
> hominy? Pasole would be awesome without the ick ick ick.

No, you can't. In the first place, it's posole, which is the name for
the New Mexican stew, and pozole, in the Mexican spelling. It's also
the name for the treated corn that you want us to know that you
despise.
>
> Maybe my true issue with grits is hominy. Maybe the issue is the
> consistency. Not sure.

Maybe you're trying to tell us that you don't know what your're
complaining about.

David

jmcquown wrote:

> That site doesn't define "grits", they sell stone ground grits. Grits are
> ground degermed hominy treated with lye. Plain and simple. The term
> "hominy grits" is a tad redundent. Sorry, was just trying to address the
> inquiry, didn't mean to raise all sorts of issues.

I didn't realize that the word "grits" was the issue. Let me quote
from a 1991 book called "Good Old Grits Cookbook" by Bill Neal & David
Perry on page 14:

"The original name, hominy grits, still appears on the packages of
grits sold by Quaker Oats and other companies, but the food has long
since lost its connection to the old-fashoned lye soak process. Today
it refers, generically, to corn grits, that is, dried corn that has
been hulled and roughly ground."

It's that old-fashoned process I've been trying to connect with.

David wrote:

> Maybe you're trying to tell us that you don't know what your're
> complaining about.

I don't like grits. I don't like hominy. I love the broth of pasole/
pazole. I pick the hominy out of it. When visiting relatives in
northern New Mexico, it iinevitably gets served by one of my aunts.
The upside of this meal is that homemade tamales are served ...

Was the explanation of my complaint succinct enough for you?

--Lin

On Feb 25, 9:24 pm, "Lin" > wrote:
> David wrote:
> > Maybe you're trying to tell us that you don't know what your're
> > complaining about.
>
> I don't like grits. I don't like hominy. I love the broth of pasole/
> pazole. I pick the hominy out of it. When visiting relatives in
> northern New Mexico, it iinevitably gets served by one of my aunts.
> The upside of this meal is that homemade tamales are served ...
>
> Was the explanation of my complaint succinct enough for you?

You still insist that you don't know how to spell posole. Do you
realize that those tamales you like are made from the exact same
treated corn, the nixtamal, that you don't like in the stew? To make
tamales, though, the treated corn is ground up into masa. You could
call it grits with lard.

David

In article .com>,
"Lin" > wrote:

> David wrote:
>
> > Maybe you're trying to tell us that you don't know what your're
> > complaining about.
>
> I don't like grits. I don't like hominy. I love the broth of pasole/
> pazole. I pick the hominy out of it. When visiting relatives in
> northern New Mexico, it iinevitably gets served by one of my aunts.
> The upside of this meal is that homemade tamales are served ...

Then make pork soup with all the ingredients except hominy. It won't be
posole. It should be a delicate and delicious pork soup though. Don't
forget a split pig's foot for gelatin (optional), and add some shredded
cabbage at nearly the very end for texture.
Without browning the pork, start by simmering roughly 3/4" pork chunks
in a reasonable amount of water for soup with the optional bifurcated
foot for four hours. After that, you may need to filter depending on
your sensibilities. I generally filter. Add salt to taste and then add
either homemade or store-bought enchilada sauce to taste too.
Anything left the next day ought to look like meat jello. When heated,
the jello dissolves completely. It's good for our fingernails, I seem to
remember.

leo

--
<http://web0.greatbasin.net/~leo/>

leo wrote:

>> I don't like grits. I don't like hominy. I love the broth of pasole/
>> pazole. I pick the hominy out of it. When visiting relatives in
>> northern New Mexico, it iinevitably gets served by one of my aunts.
>> The upside of this meal is that homemade tamales are served ...
>
> Then make pork soup with all the ingredients except hominy. It won't be
> posole. It should be a delicate and delicious pork soup though. Don't
> forget a split pig's foot for gelatin (optional), and add some shredded
> cabbage at nearly the very end for texture.
> Without browning the pork, start by simmering roughly 3/4" pork chunks
> in a reasonable amount of water for soup with the optional bifurcated
> foot for four hours. After that, you may need to filter depending on
> your sensibilities. I generally filter. Add salt to taste and then add
> either homemade or store-bought enchilada sauce to taste too.
> Anything left the next day ought to look like meat jello. When heated,
> the jello dissolves completely. It's good for our fingernails, I seem to
> remember.


I think that at least *some* of the flavor in posole's broth comes from the
hominy. So if Lin wants that flavor without actually eating the offending
kernels, she could make posole but put the hominy into a muslin or
cheesecloth bag in the broth, removing the bag when the posole is done.

Then she could process the hominy into masa for the tamales she likes. :-)

On a recent episode of "Good Eats," Alton Brown made nixtamal, which he
further made into tortillas, but of course the masa could be made into
tamales instead:

http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/reci..._33542,00.html

Bob

In article >,
"Bob Terwilliger" > wrote:

> I think that at least *some* of the flavor in posole's broth comes from the
> hominy. So if Lin wants that flavor without actually eating the offending
> kernels, she could make posole but put the hominy into a muslin or
> cheesecloth bag in the broth, removing the bag when the posole is done.

That's a better idea. I took some posole to a friend's house on New
Year's Day. Everyone who tried it loved it. The other few simply said "I
hate hominy". My wife doesn't like it either. What's not to like? The
texture?

leo

--
<http://web0.greatbasin.net/~leo/>

leo wrote:

> I took some posole to a friend's house on New Year's Day. Everyone who
> tried it loved it. The other few simply said "I hate hominy". My wife
> doesn't like it either. What's not to like? The texture?

Yes, the texture. Because if its texture, the hominy in posole is somewhat
reminiscent of chunks of candle wax floating around in there.

Bob

Leo wrote:


> Then make pork soup with all the ingredients except hominy. It won't be
> posole. It should be a delicate and delicious pork soup though. Don't
> forget a split pig's foot for gelatin (optional), and add some shredded
> cabbage at nearly the very end for texture.

Excellent suggestion! The cabbage isn't a traditional ingredient is
it? I find myself adding cabbage to stews and soups. I do like the
texture and flavor cabbage imparts.

> Anything left the next day ought to look like meat jello. When heated,
> the jello dissolves completely. It's good for our fingernails, I seem to
> remember.

They (whoever "they" are) say that gelatin is good for the nails. It
hasn't worked for me unfortunately.

--Lin

Bob Terwilliger wrote:

> I think that at least *some* of the flavor in posole's broth comes from the
> hominy. So if Lin wants that flavor without actually eating the offending
> kernels, she could make posole but put the hominy into a muslin or
> cheesecloth bag in the broth, removing the bag when the posole is done.
>
> Then she could process the hominy into masa for the tamales she likes. :-)

Always thinking ahead! ;-)

How different would the flavor be if using regular corn in the posole?
I like corn ...

--Lin

HAS ANY ONE HEARD OF HOMINY FLAKES? MANY YEARS AGO MY MOTHER USED TO BUY
THEM AND WHEN SHE WOULD COOK THEM SHE WOULD PUT IN A CAN OF SALMAN AND
WHEN YOU WOULD FRY IT IT WAS LIKE EATING FISH IT JUST FLAKED APART LIKE
FISH AND OH SO GOOD BUT I CANT FIND A PLACE TO BUY THEM ANY MORE I WOULD
LOVE TO KNOW.

Bob Terwilliger > wrote in message
...
[snip]
> Yes, the texture. Because if its texture, the
> hominy in posole is somewhat reminiscent of
> chunks of candle wax floating around in there.

That is beauty in detail! Can I steal this as a sig?

The Ranger

The Ranger asked:

>> Yes, the texture. Because if its texture, the
>> hominy in posole is somewhat reminiscent of
>> chunks of candle wax floating around in there.
>
> That is beauty in detail! Can I steal this as a sig?

Fine by me, but if you do, could you please fix the typo so that it reads,
"Because of its texture"?

Bob

dtwright37 wrote:
> On Feb 25, 6:02 pm, "Lin" > wrote:
>
>> Grits: hominy or otherwise ... ick, phew, yucky, gag.
>>
>> Pasole with hominy ... ick, ick, ick. Can you have pasole WITHOUT
>> hominy? Pasole would be awesome without the ick ick ick.
>
> No, you can't. In the first place, it's posole, which is the name for
> the New Mexican stew, and pozole, in the Mexican spelling. It's also
> the name for the treated corn that you want us to know that you
> despise.
>>
>> Maybe my true issue with grits is hominy. Maybe the issue is the
>> consistency. Not sure.
>
> Maybe you're trying to tell us that you don't know what your're
> complaining about.
>
> David

I adore hominy and the spicy Mexican stew known as Menudo. Not everyone
likes honeycomb tripe. Not everyone likes hominy. Lots of people won't
touch tripe. Put them together with a nice spicy thick broth and (to me)
OOOOH! YUM! (chuckling)

The hominy just adds a little extra something. I even buy canned menudo. I
rarely eat at restaurants and the local places only seem to have Menudo on a
Sunday as a hangover cure. You have to ask them special for it. But it's
really good stuff!

Jill

Emory Mast wrote:
> HAS ANY ONE HEARD OF HOMINY FLAKES? MANY YEARS AGO MY MOTHER USED TO
> BUY THEM AND WHEN SHE WOULD COOK THEM SHE WOULD PUT IN A CAN OF
> SALMAN AND WHEN YOU WOULD FRY IT IT WAS LIKE EATING FISH IT JUST
> FLAKED APART LIKE FISH AND OH SO GOOD BUT I CANT FIND A PLACE TO BUY
> THEM ANY MORE I WOULD LOVE TO KNOW.

Well first of all, please turn off your CAPS lock. It's not the proper way
to post to a Usenet group. I recognize that you are using WebTV but we
don't SHOUT at each other.

Secondly, I've never heard of flaked grits. Maybe I don't know; I've only
lived in "grits land" for 35 years LOL

I have no idea what you're familiar with in terms of her "filler". Many
salmon patties or even tuna patties were loaded with some sort of filler.
Crushed bread, crushed soda crackers, whatever. Mom used crushed
cornflakes; I still do. I don't have problems with sodium and it makes
salmon patties taste wonderful.

I wouldn't worry about it too much if whatever it is tastes good to you
unless you have a health issue to worry about.

Jill

jmcquown wrote:

> I adore hominy and the spicy Mexican stew known as Menudo. Not
> everyone likes honeycomb tripe. Not everyone likes hominy. Lots of
> people won't touch tripe. Put them together with a nice spicy thick
> broth and (to me) OOOOH! YUM! (chuckling)
>
> The hominy just adds a little extra something. I even buy canned
> menudo. I rarely eat at restaurants and the local places only seem to
> have Menudo on a Sunday as a hangover cure. You have to ask them
> special for it. But it's really good stuff!

Sizzler, a USan chain steak house has just added (at least in some
locations - I'm in Los Angeles) a corn and poblano chowder. It's yummy.


--
Blinky RLU 297263
Killing all posts from Google Groups
The Usenet Improvement Project: http://blinkynet.net/comp/uip5.html