Corn Flour: Africa's Oldest Confectionery Flour

Corn, commonly known as maize, is one of Africa’s dominant food crops and the most important cereal crop. It was introduced into the continent in the 1500's and indigenous cultures have long list of menu made form maize and other corn products to help bolster the nutrition of their foods.

According to 2007 FAO reports,  158 million hectares of maize are harvested worldwide and Africa harvests 29 million hectares, (with Nigeria, the largest producer in SSA, harvesting 3%, followed by Tanzania and Africa still imports 28% of the required maize from countries outside the continent).

The grains are rich in vitamins A, C and E, carbohydrates, and essential minerals, and contain 9% protein. They are also rich in dietary fiber and calories which are a good source of energy.

It has about 50 different species and consist of different colors, textures and grain shapes and sizes. White, yellow and red are the most common types. The white and yellow varieties are preferred by most people depending on the region.

Corn: Beyond Beauty

Over the centuries, Maize has been a staple in many African ethnic cuisines but recently, gained popularity worldwide as a substitute for wheat flour.  It can be processed and prepared in various forms depending on the country.

Maize is quite simply an integral ingredient in many foods and daily products. For example maize is used in plastic products, paper products, for fuel, and for animal food as well as food that is produced for human consumption. 
 In regards to food, maize is a key ingredient in products like canned corn (which is made from freshly harvested corn), tortillas (which are made from dried corn) hominy, breads, and many other common food stuffs.

Ground maize is prepared into porridge in Eastern and Southern Africa, while maize flour is prepared into porridge in West Africa. Ground maize is also fried or baked in many countries. In all parts of Africa, green (fresh) maize is boiled or roasted on its cob and served as a snack. Popcorn is also a popular snack.

The beauty of the crop lies in its parts, all of the crop are being used for food and non-food products. 

• Though corn may not appear as itself in many foods, it is often used in foods for its starch, which helps to thicken things like soups, and can also help to add nutrients to otherwise bland foods. 
• Maize or corn flower is often used in industrial applications in place of grain or wheat flour because it is often more stable and inexpensive than grain flour. 
• Cooking oil is extracted from Maize 
• Maize is generally used for animal feed  and the by-products are often used for bio fuels.
•  It is also the preferred animal feed in many regions as it gives a yellow color to poultry, egg yolks and animal fat.

Fresh maize have limited windows of opportunity before it goes rancid, to prevent these African dry Maize. This makes it far easier to process, store, and use in large scale applications. There are dozens of uses for maize and they are certainly not limited to holiday decoration. 

Corn Flour vs Corn Meal

Both are milled but corn flour is a fine white powder separated from the protein and other components of maize flour.

Corn Meal is the flour milled from corn . It is coarse in texture and the colour may vary from light yellow to dark yellow. It is generally used to make unleavened flat breads (called roti in Hindi).

Maize is an incredible thing and has a place in just about any application you can dream up. It is incredibly versatile and will continue to be a main ingredient in many of the things that we take for granted. We will explore over 50 indigenous homemade corn flour recipes on this site.