Corn promoter of long life

Press, 25 February 1984, Page 12

Corn promoter of long life

Good eating

Janice Bremer

DIETiTIAN

“For a long healthy life” ,s the toast to a new year. And those of us who believe that what we eat should prolong a happy, healthy life will be wary when perusing the feast of new foods to arrive on supermarket shelves this year.

New processed foods, whether based upon natural foods or largely comprising refined ingredients, will baffle our nutritional sense while whetting our appetite for diversity in our meals. A long life:

The secret of a long life may rest in family medical history, but nevertheless it is intriguing that some observers of population groups in which people live to more than 100-years-old firmly believe that those individuals surviving to adult life (and who overcome the diseases of childhood) owe their long life to dietary factors. The diet of these communities is . largely based on wheat or maize (corn). To continue this series of articles suggesting a variety of cereals for a cereal-based diet, we look at corn which has the reputation as “poor man’s cereal.” It has often been necessary, because of climatic and economic factors, for people to have a staple or predominant food to provide most of the daily calories. (But a wide variety of foods is safer for protein, mineral and vitamin needs).

New Zealanders consider their “staple” food to be bread and potatoes, only because other communities label their staple foods as the predominant cereal food which will generally supply some 50 per cent or more of daily calories. But little more than 15 per cent of our daily calories are derived from bread and when potatoes are added, the two contribute less than 20 per cent.

But meat and meat products head our list of individual foods contributing to our total calories — they contribute some 18 per cent. Dairy products are a close second, giving 17 per cent. As one of the largest meateating nations in the world we cannot but confess that our staple food, the one on which we have relied upon for our survival, is meat. These columns have discussed those staples in highest production and contributing most significantly to meeting world nutritional needs (wheat and rice) but maize is second to wheat in world food production although much of this is used

as feed for livestock — to make our meat! Corn and corn products can create interest and nutritional diversity in our meals along with meaningful nutrients. The grain itself is used for anything from oil, corn starch, glucose and syrups to bourbon whiskies. Corn is native to the Americas and a staple of Mexico and some South American countries. It is used largely as ground corn or cornmeal, the main ingredient of the Mexican tortilla Cornbread and spoonbread are popular in the United States and the traditional recipes incorporate eggs and milk. As corn protein does not match that of wheat or rice in quality, the eggs and milk make up the balance. Tortillas, on the other hand, are made from cornmeal and water but are generally eaten with beans to improve the protein quality when they are relied upon as the major source of protein in the diet.

Fresh corn as vegetable: On the other hand, the protein in fresh corn-on-the-cob lias about the best use in the human body of any fresh vegetable protein, and an invaluable rating in the diets of vegetarians. Many people avoid corn as a vegetable because it is concentrated in starch but it rates nutritionally well as a substitute for potato or bread. For a 100 calorie serving (a thick slice of bread or a medium potato or ¥2 a cob of corn) corn nearly matches or supercedes either potato or bread for virtually every nutrient. It has the same amount of fibre and starch as bread; almost as much protein; and more vitamin C than potato. In fact, apart from having a lower content of the vitamin, niacin, it is probably the most nutritionally balanced of all the socalled grain foods. But in recent years, poor man’s cereal has come a

long way in modern food technology. Cornmeal and corngrits now feature popularly on health food shop shelves but what of cornsyrup, cornflour, corn chips, cornflakes and the new ready-to-eat taco shells, tortillas and tortilla chips? Misconceptions: * Cornmeal is finely ground corn and retains the best nutritional value if it is not degerminated or “bolted.” * Processing of corn to extract the starch produces cornstarch or cornflour. Further processing to syrups and sugars extracts virtually all other nutrients, leaving the most highly refined product, virtually totally sugar. Cornflour as we know it adds little food value but it does have twice the thickening power of wheat flour. * Popcorn is usually made from poor quality porn but is useful as a low calorie snack if fats and sugars are not added in the cooking. * Many popular “cornbreads” available from bakers do not contain corn at all. Cracked or kibbled wheat is often called “corn,” an English term for the local staple food no matter what cereal it is. Cornmeal is yellow so that yellow flecks are typically seen in a loaf that contains cornmeal as an ingredient. * The taco shells and tortilla chips now available may be very high in salt and the latter at least high in fat. Tortillas: The following recipe is a New Zealand version of how to make low salt, low fat tortillas (which are round flat breads). They can be cooked until soft if they are to be rolled up like pancakes, or until crisp if they are to be used as a base or stacked. Soft tortillas can be filled like a sandwich. They are quicker to make than pita or lebanese bread but can be used in a similar manner by folding over, as there is no “pocket.” Mix one cup of cornmeal with 1 cup of boiling water and leave to stand for 10 minutes. Add IVz cups of wholemeal flour and knead until mixed. Divide into 15 pieces, roll each into a little ball and roll out on a bench sprinkled with cornmeal to a circle of about 15cm in diameter (very thin). Whilst rolling pinch the edges together if they break for an even rim.

Heat a heavy-based frypan to very hot, wipe a smear of oil from a paper

towel across the surface. Cook tortillas a few minutes each side until lightly browned and desired crispness. Serve hot with a stuffing inside rollups or between layers of stacked flat tortillas, or reheat in the oven with a sauce poured over (cut stacks into wedges). For the stuffing, make a vegetable mixture of any or all of these ingredients: mushrooms, green peppers, cooked dried beans (kidney beans or chickpeas), onion grated carrot, fresh corn kernels, courgettes, tomatoes. They can be all cooked together with a little of the sauce. For the sauce, mix together: Vz cup red wine, a cup of tomato juice, grated onion and garlic, a table-

spoon of either curry or chilli powder, a teaspoon oi ground cumin. Boil altogether for 15 minutes thicken with cornflour ii desired. Top the sauce, once served, with a mixture ol cottage cheese and plair yoghurt if the sauce is a little hot. Each tortilla has the fooc value of a medium slice oi bread (60 calories) and does not require butter Thee keep a few days in the refrigerator and freeze wel but are best refreshed bj steaming or heating covered, in the oven, anc sprinkled with water. Salt can be added to the recipe. In the final in this serie: of articles we will look a> other ways that wheat it eaten as a staple food.