Many Questions About Cornmeal, etc

[atoll]

Originally Posted by Dockhead

Thanks for the tip -- I'll give that a try . . .

Now if I could only find buttermilk . . .

It's no problem in the Eastern Med or in Eastern Europe -- they call it Kefir there. But in the UK it has been totally impossible to find, and not even anything close. The only fermented milk product you guys eat is yoghurt.

I don't know how people bake without buttermilk/kefir . . .

Or what you drink for your hangovers . . .

you could try making your own
Kombucha | Kombucha Tea | Milk Kefir | Kefir Grains | Probiotic Drinks

[Entlie]

I ditto bay leaves. I bag whole 5# bags of flour double in ziplocks, putting several bay leaves around the bag and some in the inner bag. Alternate the zippers so they aren't together. Corn meal and any dry staples like that the same. It doesn't affect the flavor and we have never had bugs in anything like that. I even used one of the round containers of corn meal for two cruises, double bagged with bay leaves.

Entlie
Sailing Catamaran Sunspot Baby

[Breezy]

I live in Central America and haven't see self-rising cornmeal or buttermilk in years. As a Southern Belle I missed my cornbread and buttermilk biscuits. Here is what I've learned:

You can make a buttermilk substitute by adding 1 tablespoon of white vinegar per cup of whole milk. Let it sit for 10 minutes. Excellent for baked goods like biscuits & cornbread, add an egg for a 'wash' and dip your chicken fired steak, fried chicken, Okra, etc. in it before dredging in flour.

And as far as 'Martha White self-rising cornmeal' it's easy to substitute that as well. Use a ratio of about 1 part all purpose (white) flour, 1 to 2 parts corn flour (masa harina) to 1 part Polenta. Vary the Polenta/masa harina ratio to your liking for coarseness or 'grain'. Add 1/2 tsp of baking powder and 1/8 tsp baking soda, 1/8 tsp salt and 1 tsp sugar per cup of flour. Store in airtight container in cool/dry place. then all you need is the wet ingredients (milk, egg, oil) to make cornbread

For example, the flour ratio for my 'Southern Style' cornbread recipe for an 8" cast iron skillet is

1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup Polenta
1 cup masa harina (corn flour)
1 tbsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp kosher salt
3/4 cup 'buttermilk'
2 large eggs
1/4 cup corn oil

preheat oven to 425 deg. Place cast iron skillet *with oil* in oven to preheat. Put slight tsp white vinegar in 3/4 cup of milk. Let stand while mixing the rest of the ingredients.

Use two cups of the 'Martha White substitute' or follow amounts above. Add eggs to 'buttermilk' and mix well. Add egg/milk mixture to flour/masa/polenta mix. Stir until just combined (do not overwork). Once oven has reached 425 deg remove skillet (careful!) and pour hot oil into batter (careful!). Stir well and pour batter into hot skillet (careful!). Preheating skillet creates a crispy brown crusty bottom & sides typical of good ol Southern cornbread.