Parched Corn

ateallthepies

Native
Aug 11, 2011
1,558
0
hertfordshire
Was wanting to make some Parched Corn for trail food but sourcing whole Corn Kernels is proving hard.
I see plenty of dried Corn Maize for fishing so was wondering if that would do?
 

Robson Valley

On a new journey
Nov 24, 2014
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McBride, BC
I've been content to use corn meal ( not corn flour, not corn starch) and bake a 30cm corn cake in the oven.
Quite a weak crumb so easy to nibble on pieces. Of course, with Crosby's #1 Fancy molasses, refreshing to say the least.
 

Toddy

Mod
Mod
Jan 21, 2005
39,133
4,810
S. Lanarkshire
If the whole corn used to make popcorn in a pan will do, then Holland and Barrett sell it.

M

p.s. if the cornmeal that Robson Valley suggests is of potential, then Tesco have it for £1.87 a kg bag …..well it was last week. Golden coloured stuff. Nice in cornbready things.
 

ateallthepies

Native
Aug 11, 2011
1,558
0
hertfordshire
I think popcorn kernels pop too much? The normal sweet corn kernels when heated sort of toasts with a small bit of popping which are then roughly crushed and eaten dry. Water then swells the corn in the stomach so keeping hunger at bay. Your supposedly able to eat just this and thrive for months!
 

tombear

On a new journey
Jul 9, 2004
4,494
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Rossendale, Lancashire
I used normal frozen sweet corn, put it through the wife's dehydrator then parched it in a heavy frying pan with a a wipe of oil. You used to be able to get jumbo sweet corn which didn't fall through the dehydrator so much as it shrivelled up but I've not seen it for years.

To be honest I just buy these from ASDA now

http://www.cofresh.co.uk/salted-corn-nuts

ATB

Tom
 

Toddy

Mod
Mod
Jan 21, 2005
39,133
4,810
S. Lanarkshire
Why not just buy corn cobs and shuck the kernals from that ? I'm presuming that the slow dry/parching effectively cooks and dries them too…..which is very much why popping corn won't do right enough :)

M
 

santaman2000

M.A.B (Mad About Bushcraft)
Jan 15, 2011
16,909
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68
Florida
Why not just buy corn cobs and shuck the kernals from that ? I'm presuming that the slow dry/parching effectively cooks and dries them too…..which is very much why popping corn won't do right enough :)

M

This is how you do it. But you "parch" something in the oven. The same way you parch coffee beans or peanuts. "Parched" over here means what "roasted" does over there when talking about these foods.
 

OurAmericanCousin

Tenderfoot
Feb 7, 2015
99
0
SoCalUSA
The bags of frozen corn work perfectly. When dried fully (pre-toasting) they will look like miserable little shriveled nuggets, not like smooth popping corn which is raised to be just that. Upon toasting the dried kernels, as tombear precisely described, they will "fill out" without popping. Popping occurs when the moisture trapped inside turns to steam. The parching kernels are too dry for that, and if cut do not provide a gas seal. Your results will be very, very similar to the packaged snack "Cornnuts", and could sometimes be mistaken as such by others.

Parched corn can be further condensed if simply crushed but not ground. It's easier to eat a handful of crushed than milled. Just remember to drink.


Parched corn has been a staple of my pack food for twenty years or more. Nothing has the all around nutritional content of corn pound for pound on the trail. I could talk about this in length ( I'm sure you all have no doubt regarding my long windedness lol ), but am starting to realize my input isn't quite what's needed at bcuk for the most part.
 

Robson Valley

On a new journey
Nov 24, 2014
9,959
2,669
McBride, BC
Prior to the arrival of C Columbus in North America, five basic kinds of corn were cultivated.
Some better suited to some climatic conditions than others.
Flint corn, flour corn, dent corn, sweet corn and pop corn. Their working properties are vastly different.
Possibly sweet corn/table corn would be the best for experiment.
Flour corn is for tortillas, easily milled.
Flint & dent corns have high yields and are processed for many corn products and livestock feeds.
Popcorn, you all know about. The water for the steam is in the core of soft starch in the middle.
Break a few with a hammer = the white core starch is very easy to see.
 

tombear

On a new journey
Jul 9, 2004
4,494
556
55
Rossendale, Lancashire
The bags of frozen corn work perfectly. When dried fully (pre-toasting) they will look like miserable little shriveled nuggets, not like smooth popping corn which is raised to be just that. Upon toasting the dried kernels, as tombear precisely described, they will "fill out" without popping. Popping occurs when the moisture trapped inside turns to steam. The parching kernels are too dry for that, and if cut do not provide a gas seal. Your results will be very, very similar to the packaged snack "Cornnuts", and could sometimes be mistaken as such by others.

Parched corn can be further condensed if simply crushed but not ground. It's easier to eat a handful of crushed than milled. Just remember to drink.


Parched corn has been a staple of my pack food for twenty years or more. Nothing has the all around nutritional content of corn pound for pound on the trail. I could talk about this in length ( I'm sure you all have no doubt regarding my long windedness lol ), but am starting to realize my input isn't quite what's needed at bcuk for the most part.

Dear god no! I may be speaking for myself but I much prefer if folk assume I know nowt and give the fullest details they can give the time to doing. If other folk want less they can skim through it but to turn your nose up at another's generously given experience I just find stupid. For every time I've been accused of being long winded I've had many more expressions of thanks for bothering to go into detail.

There's a certain retinance about thanking folk for their input at times, on my own part it is usually so I don't sound overly enthusiastic when I am thanking one of my known associates and I don't want to be seen as part of a mutual appreciation society. There is something I refer to as the art of the micro nod where I've lived ( Mercia , North Wales and now South Lancashire) which boils down to the ability for one man to express his thanks, appreciation and even affection to another by the smallest possible nod of the head. Being loud and enthusiastic just isn't considered the done thing!

ATB

Tom
 

Toddy

Mod
Mod
Jan 21, 2005
39,133
4,810
S. Lanarkshire
Hear! Hear! :D

Threads from folks like Tom, British Red, Boatman, John, me, and others who make and do a wide variety of stuff, do well when folks add their thoughts to them :D
Thread drift that we all follow along on, is often a very good thing. We all learn something that way.

I can't digest gluten well these days :sigh: so corn has become something of a staple. Some of the grades are truly awful to try to eat….white cornmeal for instance. I tried every damned thing I could think of to make that edible. In the end I threw it out to the pigeons and it took those greedy gannets three days to eat it :dunno: yet golden cornmeal I use a lot, and I recently managed to buy masa haring and it's brilliant :D

So, to make parched corn, we need good eating (sweetcorn?) corn, dry it out (dehydrator or low oven ?) and then roast it….in the oven or in a dry frying pan ? or under the grill ? (American broiler ? )

cheers,
Toddy
 

tombear

On a new journey
Jul 9, 2004
4,494
556
55
Rossendale, Lancashire
It worked well for me with a almost dry frying pan using a fish slice to keep turning it rather than stirring. It keeps extremely well. I should try using it crushed.

I must have a look at Herselfs new dehydrator, see if the trays are better for doing it, the old one would sound like a very slow version of one of those Japanese ball bearing gaming machines as the kernals shrank and dropped from tray to tray.... I tried finding some mesh or something but gave up too early.

incidentaly can anyone recommend a uk brand of really big kerneld frozen sweet corn, all my googling as come to nought?

atb

Tom
 
Feb 21, 2015
393
0
Durham
Dear god no! I may be speaking for myself but I much prefer if folk assume I know nowt and give the fullest details they can give the time to doing. If other folk want less they can skim through it but to turn your nose up at another's generously given experience I just find stupid. For every time I've been accused of being long winded I've had many more expressions of thanks for bothering to go into detail.

There's a certain retinance about thanking folk for their input at times, on my own part it is usually so I don't sound overly enthusiastic when I am thanking one of my known associates and I don't want to be seen as part of a mutual appreciation society. There is something I refer to as the art of the micro nod where I've lived ( Mercia , North Wales and now South Lancashire) which boils down to the ability for one man to express his thanks, appreciation and even affection to another by the smallest possible nod of the head. Being loud and enthusiastic just isn't considered the done thing!

ATB

Tom

Aye...... ........
 
Feb 21, 2015
393
0
Durham
The bags of frozen corn work perfectly. When dried fully (pre-toasting) they will look like miserable little shriveled nuggets, not like smooth popping corn which is raised to be just that. Upon toasting the dried kernels, as tombear precisely described, they will "fill out" without popping. Popping occurs when the moisture trapped inside turns to steam. The parching kernels are too dry for that, and if cut do not provide a gas seal. Your results will be very, very similar to the packaged snack "Cornnuts", and could sometimes be mistaken as such by others.

Parched corn can be further condensed if simply crushed but not ground. It's easier to eat a handful of crushed than milled. Just remember to drink.


Parched corn has been a staple of my pack food for twenty years or more. Nothing has the all around nutritional content of corn pound for pound on the trail. I could talk about this in length ( I'm sure you all have no doubt regarding my long windedness lol ), but am starting to realize my input isn't quite what's needed at bcuk for the most part.

PM sent...tell me more please.
 

ateallthepies

Native
Aug 11, 2011
1,558
0
hertfordshire
Yep, the more info the better, especially from someone who has been using it for years on the trail! It's the nutritional value plus the storability plus the low weigh and the fact it swells in the stomach reducing hunger that's appealing!
 

OurAmericanCousin

Tenderfoot
Feb 7, 2015
99
0
SoCalUSA
Very well :) .

Parched corn, let's call it PC for the sake of this thread, is, as stated, the only survival food you really need until you can get to a more balanced diet.

It has the best proportion of long term energy vs short term "pow!" than any other food I've come across. It is natural, and as such the carbs and sugars won't play with your blood sugar anywhere near like a processed bar or M&M laced "trail mix" will. This is a consideration for me as I have been a Type I diabetic for the last 45 years. For instances when I need that sugar jolt due to unforseen factors, I have Mexican chocolate that fits the bill and stays within my historical period. But, with due diligence PC can fulfill my usual needs. Much more so a "normal" person.

The preparation is simple; dry the kernels, then parch (roast, toast, etc) them in a pan until they fill out. Now is the time where I'd add a bit of salt (when hot).
I wait until the weather is cooperative for drying all my stuff; corn, vegetables, meat, etc. This would be on days where the surface of the tray or just the direct sun itself is too hot for flies or birds to molest my project. In cooler climates, an oven on low and cracked open or even over a radiator would work. Keep the kernels moved around occasionally to prevent sticking and ensure full drying. All the while, try to keep your depth very thin to also speed the drying.

When dry, as tombear also said, I heat a cast iron pan and lightly wipe with a bit of oil. Just enough to make it shiny is about right. Put enough kernels to cover the bottom and shake or spin constantly until the kernels aren't wrinkly anymore. It goes fast, so be watchful. While hot, I add salt. I guess it helps as a preservative to some degree, but mostly it's for taste.

I try and store any dried stuff, PC included, that I intend to use within a couplethree weeks in cotton, muslin, or linen sacks to let it breathe. Any longer and it gets hard (vegetables start darkening and lose flavor). For longer storage, paper sacks and even (gasp) zip lock bags. Check for mold if stored a long while.

You can pop small handfuls of PC in your mouth, chew and swallow like dried nuts only crunchier. Each kernel does have a smallish air pocket, so you can further compactify (my word) it by smashing a bit. Ground cornmeal is not PC, and ground PC might not be all that fun to have a mouthful of without plenty of water.

The Eastern Woodland Indians made tubelike belts that tied around their waists to carry their PC in. Traveling fast. On foot through those forests, they could grab a handful of PC at the run then dip a hand in the very common streams for a swig of water to wash it down....all at the run.

Hope this helps. :)
 
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Toddy

Mod
Mod
Jan 21, 2005
39,133
4,810
S. Lanarkshire
It does indeed :)

We need good corn I suspect.

Would it work with the pre-cooked stuff (Jolly Green Giant, for instance) that comes in tins ? That stuff's cheap enough and readily available. Bit of a pain to dry out though.

Sweetcorn on the cob when it comes into the greengrocer's is usually a bit of a glut, and in the supermarkets it can be found in the reduced items stand. Tempted to try some if I spot it like that.

As an aside, in the UK, oats were much used in the same way, and so were 'fried' peas (Xylaria posted a recipe/instructions for those a while back).

cheers,
Toddy
 

tombear

On a new journey
Jul 9, 2004
4,494
556
55
Rossendale, Lancashire
That's great, Thanks! If we get a summer i'll try drying outside.

if its not impertinent, what is your period? Over the last few years I've had a growing interest in the 1740s/50s and, more as a excuse to make things than anything else, been putting together a travelling kit. Saying that I've a general interest going as far forward as the 1850s and as far back as the late Iron Age / up to 2nd century roman via 9th/10th century Anglo Saxon /Norse when it comes to travel equipment and food.

ATB

Tom

Psi missed the fried peas, where exactly please?
 
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santaman2000

M.A.B (Mad About Bushcraft)
Jan 15, 2011
16,909
1,120
68
Florida
.....
I can't digest gluten well these days :sigh: so corn has become something of a staple. Some of the grades are truly awful to try to eat….white cornmeal for instance. I tried every damned thing I could think of to make that edible. .....

I try to only eat white corn whether it be actual corn (corn on the cob, corn niblets, etc) or corn products (corn meal, corn starch/corn flower, masa, grits, hominy, etc) But that's just a cultural thing TBH as there's no difference in either the corn or the products due to the color. If what you had was bad it was due to something other than color (bad milling, or even a chemical might have been added)

I do want to try some blue corn though. I've had the blue potatoes and they're expensive; they do make an interesting change though if you're frying your own crisps
 
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