The yellow corn which is very common nowadays with its sweet flavour and enduring colour attracts most of ours taste buds. Now is the time for something new to experiment and that is the coloured corn, which you will find in this article. Purple colour of this corn is mainly due to the pigment anthocyanin which give this corn its extraordinary look.
The purple corn originated from Mesoamerica is also known as the blue corn, a variety of Flint maize (Zea maize indurata) which is the variant of the common corn which is slightly harder than other variants of corn.
The people of Andes have been using purple corn to extract blue colour from it by soaking it in the same manner in which we use beetroot to get the anthocyanin for its natural colour in drinks and several health diets. This practice is now used in industries for colorant.
Purple corn is widely popular in Peru because it has an Andean origin which can be seen in ‘Chicha morada’, one of the drinks served by Andes people and now consumed at national level. It is prepared basically by boiling ground purple corn kernels with pineapple, cinnamon, clove and sugar with a dark purple colour.
Sweet dish is also prepared from purple corn called ‘Mazamorra’ which is a type of pudding. An other dish from purple corn is a smoothie which si served hot and called as ‘Inca’s dessert’ So, when you crave for this extraordinary colourful corn just rush to Bolivia,Ecuador and Peru for this flint variety of maize and try to bring it to your native country to have an additional enrichment to countries flora.
But isn’t it far away and you finding no time nut crave to try this colourful treat. Don’t worry we have a way out!
ALAS!! Last but not the least and most easiest way to get purple corn is ‘Amazon’ where you can order it for your own consumption. Isn’t that great !
Chemistry behind
The purple colour of the corn is basically due to the presence of the pigment anthocyanin with the concentration approximately equal to blueberries. Surprised to know the reason how it acquired purple colour is the field location and not the seedling density and soil potassium content. Higher sugar production by leaves during photosynthesis.
Uses:
Regular consumption of purple corn is proven to fight obesity and to help lower cholesterol levels. The phenolic acids found in purple corn contain antioxidants that help prevent coronary heart disease, strokes and cancer.
Chicha Morada (Traditional Purple Corn Beverage)
6 whole purple corn cobs
6 cups of water
3 cinnamon sticks
2 cloves
2 small pieces of pineapple skin (washed)
Skin of one orange (washed)
Juice of 2 limes or key limes (you can use lemons too)
Sugar to taste
In a pot, mix the corn with the water, cinnamon, cloves, pineapple and orange skins. Bring it to a boil. Reduce fire and let it cook for 30 minutes.
Let the mixture cool. Remove the nibbles from the corn and discard cobs. Using a blender or food processor, blend the mixture until completely liquefied. You can filter the liquid to avoid any leftover chunks. Add the lime juice and sugar to taste. Remove well. Serve chilled. Enjoy!
