Fancy Navajo Blue Corn Mush Recipe - TheFancyNavajo (2024)
I’ve been feeling a little homesick these days and cooking some of my favorite Navajo foods makes me feel better. Growing up, one thing I always looked forward to each fall was getting blue corn mush while we waited for the Northern Navajo Nation Fair parade to start. I remember waiting patiently outside our vehicle at 6:30am for a parade vendor to walk by with a wagon and a sign that said BLUE CORN MUSH for sale. Usually it was a sweet Navajo grandma who served one heaping spoonful of mush into a Styrofoam cup and asked if you wanted sugar.
It’s such a sweet treat that holds so many happy memories.
Interestingly I didn’t learn how to make blue corn mush until after I graduated college and was living on my own as an adult. Blue corn mush was one of those recipes that we had for special occasions or picked up at a local flea market in the Southwest. I always assumed it was complicated to make, but after asking my mom to show me how to make it. It was quite simple! I get asked quite frequently how to make blue corn mush. So, if you have been wanting to learn how to make blue corn mush stay tuned.
The only complicated part of the recipe is perhaps the ingredients which consist of roasted blue cornmeal and juniper ash. Both of which may be difficult to find depending on where you live. But if you live in the southwest these are common ingredients that can be found at local trading posts and even grocery stores. If you haven’t had blue corn mush, it is similar to cream of wheat and oatmeal. It’s a hot porridge that can be eaten sweet or savory.
Blue corn mush or Tanaashgiizh, in Navajo has a lot of nutrients and calcium from the added juniper ash. So it is a healthy food option. I’ll share an article from NPR, that talks about the benefits and calcium in Juniper Ash here.
There are also other Native tribes and cultures that have a similar dish to Navajo Blue Corn Mush. My bestie shared she grew up eating blue corn atole which is a popular beverage/porridge from Mexico and Central America. I love learning about similarities between recipes with other cultures and have yet to try blue corn atole, but will have to cross that off my list of things to try this year.
You can change up the flavors of blue corn mush based on what you add to it. Long gone are the days of only adding sugar.
My favorite way to eat blue corn mush is sweet. I’ve come a long way from just adding sugar or Splenda to my blue corn mush. Today, I like adding honey, almonds, and raspberries for a fun twist. My husband enjoys eating his blue corn mush savory and likes to add butter and salt. I have even seen some people add it to their soups or add in chile. Both sound wonderfully delicious.
The recipe I am sharing today, is how I learned to make blue corn mush. There are many ways to make this dish, so there is no wrong or right way. That’s pretty much my motto when it comes to cooking. Just try it out and see what happens. I prefer to have a thick mush, so if you want a thinner mush add in extra cup of water. If you don’t have juniper ash, you can still make this dish. The color of the mush may be more of a gray color, but is still delicious.
Just have fun with the recipe and you’ll have to share a picture with me on Instagram or Facebook, if you make this. What is your favorite way to blue corn mush? Are you a savory or sweet mush person? Let me know!
*** If you use this for cultural workshops or food demonstrations please give credit to my website TheFancyNavajo.com. If you are interested in sharing recipes with your company or organization please email me TheFancyNavajo@gmail.com for permission***
Optional toppings – honey, chia seeds, fruits, butter, salt
Directions:
In a medium sized saucepan, boil 2 cups of water with juniper ash.
In a medium sized cup, add in blue corn meal and 1 cup water and mix thoroughly
Turn heat down to medium low and slowly add in blue corn mixture into boiling water and stir until fully combined
Continue to stir blue corn mush for 3 minutes to make sure there aren’t any lumps. Let it boil for another 5-10 minutes stirring occasionally.
Remove from heat and top with your favorite toppings
*** If you use this for personal cultural workshops or food demonstrations please give credit to my website TheFancyNavajo.com. If you are interested in sharing recipes with your company or organization please email me TheFancyNavajo@gmail.com for permission***
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Want to learn how to make more recipes with blue corn? Then head here to learn how to make https://thefancynavajo.com/2017/02/19/fancy-blue-corn-cupcakes/
Aside from its splendid color, blue corn mush is somewhat like cream of wheat. But this traditional Najavo food is more than a simple source of calories and comfort. Thanks to a sprinkling of nutritious juniper ash, it also helps maintain bone health. Many Navajo people are lactose intolerant.
Traditionally among some families, after a woman gives birth, she eats tooshchiin (blue corn mush) and juniper tea to heal and recover her strength. Blue corn dishes also hold ceremonial value. Before hat'aali (medicine men/women) were compensated with money, they were paid with these valuable, sacred foods.
It is typically used in its ground form and cannot be eaten off the cob like yellow corn. In addition to its role as a ceremonial food for the Hopi, blue corn has a wide range of culinary applications, from traditional Mexican dishes like tlacoyos and tamales, to tortilla chips, taco shells, cornbread, and pancake mix.
Under the yellow ear of corn they put the feather of a yellow eagle. They told the people to stand at a distance so that the wind could enter. The White Wind, Níłchʼi Łigai blew between the buckskins, and while the wind blew, each of the Holy People walked four times around them, and the feathers were seen to move.
Corn is a very sacred plant to the Navajo along with beans, squash, and tobacco. The Navajo creation story says they were created from an ear of corn and the skin of Changing Woman, their most important deity.
It also has about 20% more protein than yellow corn and a lower glycemic index. This means less sugar spikes and crashes. Anthocyanins found in blue corn contain antioxidants with anti-inflammatory properties. These may aid the body in fighting inflammatory metabolic and cardiac diseases.
This flavonoid has been shown to reduce the proliferation of several cancer cell lines, and improve memory in animal studies. There's also evidence that the anthocyanin in blue corn can help protect against diabetes.
Mush is the same thick, cooked mixture as polenta but it can be made by using any grind of cornmeal. A mush of nearly baby-powder texture when raw can become the lightest silken liquid, with a weight just this side of a light sauce.
Blue corn is much easier to digest than yellow corn because it contains less indigestible starch. This means it is easier for enzymes in the body to break down blue corn, aiding in digestion and making it easier for nutrients to be absorbed in the body.
Later, the dried corn would be ground into cornmeal for use in tortillas, tamales and other meals. Blue corn is still commonly used in many foods today, such as blue corn chips and blue corn pancakes.
Traditionally, the Navajo farmed vegetables, including beans, squash, and corn, which grew in many colors and was eaten dried (and ground) or fresh. The Navajo hunted deer and other small mammals for protein.
Blue corn is much harder to grow, harvest and source, but we work hard to find the best and we're willing to pay the price. We're proud to be working with Masienda and their heirloom blue corn. It's an homage to the cosmopolitan palate of Mexico City and to all the great taqueros before us.
Yellow cornmeal has the most prominent corn flavor, while white cornmeal has a more subtle, delicate flavor (it's especially nice in a ricotta cornmeal cake). Blue cornmeal is usually an heirloom variety with indigenous roots across the American South. It has a sweet, unique flavor and striking lavender-blue color.
Blue corn meal is a corn meal that is ground from whole blue corn and has a sweet flavor. It is also a staple of New Mexican cuisine used commonly to make tortillas.
Blue corn (also known as Hopi maize, Yoeme Blue, Tarahumara Maiz Azul, and Rio Grande Blue) is a group of several closely related varieties of flint corn grown in Mexico, the Southwestern United States, and the Southeastern United States.
The Navajo word tádídíín is the word for corn pollen. Tádídíín is a fundamental aspect of Navajo traditional culture. It comes from the tassels of a mature corn plant, and can only be collected by a female. It is then blessed and used by all as the primary means of communicating with the Navajo Holy People.
Introduction: My name is Greg O'Connell, I am a delightful, colorful, talented, kind, lively, modern, tender person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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