I was a picky child, and even as adult, I still am. The foods every member of my family enjoyed were the ones I disliked. I preferred fruits, lots of vegetables. I would have made a good vegetarian, but nah, I still like meat and fish, hehehe.
Back then, I would cry, wail and throw tantrums just so I won't eat these foods. Even before they're cooked, I would have started crying till they're served.
One of those foods was cornmeal porridge
Cornmeal is ground dried corn. It's a staple ingredient in many cultures and can be prepared in a variety of ways, depending on the region.
There's the cornmeal porridge, cornmeal dough, cornmeal fritters, cornmeal bread, just name it.
The cornmeal porridge was a staple breakfast dish my mom often prepared. She would add meat, fish and vegetables to spice it up yet I hated it.
But you know what, mom won't have any of it. You dare not refuse any food, else you’ll go hungry. In fact, she won't give you the option of going hungry else they say she wasn't feeding you well, you must eat it!
Hear her, "after taking the pains to cook this delicious food which others love, you're rejecting it. Seems like you want to eat cry?. I'll give you enough if you don't start eating now?"
In my mind I'll be like "why not take the pain to prepare rice, moi moi with pap, pasta or fried egg and yam with tea, why cornmeal?, lol. In my little brain, these were the best foods ever, lol.
Then armed with her cane or slippers, she'll make me eat it, sometimes to the last spoon or if she's satisfied with the much I've eaten. Cry and wail all I can, she won't be perturbed, typical of some African moms, hehehe.
With that teary face, I'll start picking the food making her go again, "you're not even thankful that you have cornmeal to eat when some other kids go to school hungry", reminding me of this popular meal song :
some have food but cannot eat. Some can eat but have no food....
She'll then end with "eat that food like a human being before I land this cane on you. Remember lateness to school attracts punishment, so you'd better eat up"
Imagine all these threats on my poor self just so I can eat the dammed cornmeal, ah! Who does that? I guess it's only my mom or did you experience it too?
The unfortunate thing is that the cry wouldn't just end at home, I'll cry all the way down to the school. My immediate elder brother would make matters worse by dragging me to walk faster, his urgency fueled by our mom's strict punctuality expectations. Tears streamed down my face as I struggled to keep up, earning me a sympathetic glance from passersby. Oh, poor me! I had it tough with him back then.
So I went to market yesterday and bought the cornmeal flour and today prepared the cornmeal porridge and oh my gosh, this food is simply yummy, delicious and nutritious! Ah! why did I hate it back then? I guess it was just those childhood things. I'm making up for lost time! Cornmeal porridge is now a staple in my kitchen, and I'm loving every spoonful.
So here's the recipe for the cornmeal porridge. I actually asked her for it and she was like "don't tell me you want to prepare this food you hated."
Ingredients
- Cornmeal - 1 cup
- Fish - I used dried fish.
- 3 cups of water
- Pepper
- Crayfish, you can also use seasoning cube if you want.
- Salt to taste
- Scent leaf for flavor
- Onion
Procedure
- Wash the fish and set aside.
- Wash and dice the onion, do same with the scent leaf
- Pour the water in your pot, non sticky preferably and set on fire. Once it starts boiling, add the fish, pepper, onion, salt, crayfish and allow to boil for 5 minutes.
- Then pour the cornmeal flour in a bowl, add warm water and stir continuously to form a smooth soft paste.
- Pour the mixture in the pot and continue stirring to avoid lumps, while adding more water as it cooks. Do this for about 15 minutes.
- Finally add the scent leaf, stir for a minute and then put the pot down. Your cornmeal porridge is ready to be served.
- Enjoy while it's still hot.
There are other ways to prepare it but this is mom's style.
By the way, I'm so using this her cane tricks on my kids if they refuse to eat any food. After all, she taught me so 🤣.
Thank you for reading.
Still the #threadsaddict 😂
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