Cornmeal for Muffins - What Can I Use Instead?

Asked by elisegoura. Answered on 10th March 2011

Full question

I want to make the blueberry muffins in Nigella's Kitchen book and it calls for cornmeal. I'm in Australia and I have not been able to find this in the supermarket. Is it called something else in Australia?

Our answer

The most common substitute for cornmeal in recipes is polenta which should be easier to find in most supermarkets. They are both made from ground corn but the size of the grain can very. A quick-cooking type of polenta should be fine but if the grains do look large then give the cornmeal a quick whizz in a food processor before using it and it should make the grains a little finer (we would suggest if you do this then weigh the polenta first rather than using a cup measure as the two will vary slightly - you need 100g or 3 1/2 ounces).

Quaker brand cornmeal can also be bought on-line in Australia via the link below.

http://www.usafoods.com.au/p1638/groceries/quaker-yellow-corn-meal/