Many centuries ago, Mexican cooks discovered that as good as corn is when eaten fresh or dried, it takes on an exciting new identity when treated with a solution of wood ashes, burnt seashells, or some other natural alkali. The process is called nixtamalización. Nixtamal, the resulting hominy-like product, is valuable both for nutritional reasons (some important nutrients are more available than in plain, untreated corn), and for the unique flavor that the kernels develop. If you taste Mexican tortillas or tamales side by side with some of the similar corn dishes from other Latin American countries where the nixtamal process is not used, you’ll recognize the difference. Compared with the haunting, penetrating, but subtle flavor and aroma of nixtamalized corn, something seems to be missing.

Check out my comprehensive article on corn, Mexico: Corn Is Life, on The Daily Meal. Also watch my videos on making tamales and other corn products.

Nixtamal

Making nixtamal at home at least once is worthwhile if only to see how simply corn is magically transformed into the foundation of the Mexican corn kitchen. The usual alkali today is cal, or calcium hydroxide. It can be ordered from drugstores by the ounce as "slaked lime." In New York you can get it at Tortilleria Nixtamal.

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Course Ingredient

Cuisine Mexican

Servings 0

Ingredients

  

• 2 pounds dried dent corn or starchy blue corn kernels
• 3 quarts water
• ¼ cup cal slaked lime

Instructions

 

• Place the corn in a colander and rinse under cold running water to wash off the dusty chaff. Combine the water and cal in a large nonreactive saucepan. Stir well to dissolve and add the corn, discarding any kernels that float.
• Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to low. The corn will be noticeably yellow (even blue corn will turn somewhat yellowish). Cook for 15 minutes, remove from heat, and let cool to room temperature. Let the corn soak, covered, for 4 hours at room temperature or overnight in the refrigerator. The kernels will now be visibly softened and swelled.
• The last step is to remove the outer skins, now soft and gelatinous. Pour the contents of the saucepan into a large colander and rinse thoroughly under cold water. With the cold tap running, rub the kernels between the palms of your hands until the last gelatinous coating rinses off to reveal the kernel and corn germ (the inset pointed tip, which Mexicans often remove but I usually leave intact). When the coating is completely gone, thoroughly drain the nixtamal. It is now ready to use.

Notes

Yield: About 3-3½ pounds (7-8 cups)

Nixtamal does not store well. It will keep, tightly covered, in the refrigerator for 2 or at the outside 3 days. If not using the full amount at once, freeze the surplus. It will keep for up to 3 months.

I like to cook the kernels in chicken stock until they pop open like flowers and eat the soup on a cold winter night.

Keyword corn, nixtamalización

NOTE: Nutrition values are approximate and for informational purposes only. Values do not include optional or alternate ingredients, nor do they include the nutritional values for any secondary recipes that may be listed in the ingredients.