There is no feeling more cherishable than munching on some well baked or roasted corn during the rainy season. This one is for all you corn lovers. Maize, popularly known in many English speaking countries as ‘mealle’ or ‘mielle’ is a actually a grain familiarised in Mesoamerica during the prehistoric period by the indigenous people. (Remember it has no connection to the horror movie, “Children of the corn”, apart for the corn that is!)Today, maize is widely cultivated all across the globe in which the United States of America is at the top of the charts, producing about forty percent of the world’s harvest, followed by countries like China, Brazil, Mexico and Indonesia. India is the sixth largest producer of maize in the world and as of 2009, churns out about 17, 300, 000 tonnes per year. In 2010, the maize producing area in the U.S was a staggering 87.9 million acres. (Wow, they do like their mealles, don’t they!)
What the maize lovers might not know is that after being introduced in Africa by the Portuguese during the 16th century, maize has become one of its most important staple food crops. When out for a movie at the theatre, your experience is not complete without a nice big bucket of popcorn right? Pop’corn’, as the name suggests consists of maize kernels which are heated to prepare this snack. Maybe next time you go for a movie with your cursh, this might be a good conversation starter if you’re the nervous kind.
If you are a true beer drinker, then this is something you would definitely like to know; Maize is sometimes used for preparing beer as it acts as a starch source. Amazing isn’t it? Beer, pop-corn, it seems like Maize is the mother of many ‘fun-foods’.