La Polenta, from America to Italy: How food tells us about our history

Raw polenta

Many times we approach our food without wondering where it came from or how it got to our table.
But most foods we consume have an interesting story that tells us about how humans have being moving around the world. Corn or maiz has moved my interest way before I came to Mexico in 1997 and this is why: Many years ago, after I finished my history courses in university I decided to go on to Veterinarian school. One of the first exams is about how to feed farm animals, with basically a botanic exam. Corn was there, among the other plants because in Europe it has a privileged place in the animal feeding chain.

Mexican Corn

 Many populations in Italy consume corn in the form of polenta, which is equivalent to grits in northern America.
When Columbus came to America he was amazed by the use of corn in the indigenous communities and decided to bring it to Italy. Corn grows faster that other cereals and it is not as delicate to weather conditions, so it was immediately adopted as a main cereal by the farmers of mostly northern Italy populations, partly because the land owners saw the possibility to save more noble seeds for their use and economics.
The mills in Europe were very well developed since the times of the first use of wheat, so the corn was thrown in the mills and crushed directly.

Nixtamal

Metate

The Europeans had ignored a process which the indigenous used before consuming corn: NIXTAMALIZACIÓN. The maiz was , and is today, picked from the plant and then boiled with lime until tender. Corn has a big amount of vitamins of the B group but in a form that is not assimilable for humans. The acidity of the lime breaks the moleculas of the corn and turns it into digestible for humans. The nixtamalized corn is drained from the water with lime and dried in the sun. Only after this long process is crushed with a metate. In the mainland of Mexico it is very common to see this process done by indigenous women in every town Fiesta. And the best tortillas are the ones which still have a bit of corn crushed coursley so you feel it crunchy under your teeth. I imagine that when the Europeans came to America and saw this all process, with the classic mentality of the conquerer they must have though " look at this Indians, they loose so much time in preparing the flour because they where never able to build a mill, haha, So let's import it and just chrush it with our fabulous technology! The result was a desaster for many years. Up to the mid twentieth century we still had people in Italy dying from Pellagra, an illness provoqued by the lack of vitamin B.

Polenta puré

Polenta with butter and parmesan

Polenta from the Abruzzo Appenine with sausage and tomato

Grilled polenta

In Italy polenta is prepared mostly as a puré of corn, with water and salt. Once the polenta is made, the seasoning is what changes the presentation: The simplest is butter and parmesan cheese. Corn is grown in the north of the country, where the main dairy comes from cows, so butter is always available. Normally polenta accompanies meat, either grilled or stewed, but going towards the mountains of the south, in the Appenines we find less cows and more sheep and pork, so instead of butter we find the polenta with pork sausages, usually with tomato sauce and pecorino cheese. In the farmers cuisine it is a sin to throw away food, so there is a very interesting use for leftover polenta. Sliced and fried or grilled it is a wonderful substitute for bruschetta. It can be served with tomato sauce, with grilled cheese, mushrooms, sautéd vegetables.