An Experiment

I want to make Corn Bread (or Mielie Bread) for the Braai.
Corn bread uses baking powder not yeast and it contains no preservatives so it has to be eaten shortly after baking.

My tried and trusted recipe calls for the loaves to be baked at 190 for an hour and a half. There is a problem though. The Braai will be at Sean's in Tonbridge and he doesn't have a controllable oven. He has an Aga, and the top oven is very hot and the lower oven which is lukewarm. If I bake in Folkestone, the bread won't be nice after travelling all that way.

So I have been scouting around for recipes, and I think I got lucky because the recipe calls for the loaf to be steamed. I have a vegetable steamer that the loaf tin fits in to. So I am trying it and have put the mixture in the steamer in the loaf tin. Its on the go as I write. I'll let you know how it turns out.

The Recipe I am trying:
Zulu Steamed Corn Bread

CORN BREAD INGREDIENTS:-
1. 2 cups green mealies (shucked corn)
2. 2 cups all purpose flour
3. 2 Tbsp sugar
4. 4 tsp baking powder
5. 1 tsp salt
6. cold water

METHOD FOR MAKING CORN BREAD
1. Grind the corn using a mortar and pestle or the grinding blade of a blender/liquidiser

2. Mix all the ingredients together and add enough water to form a stiff dough.

3. Set aside for 10 minutes

4. Place the mixture in a greased loaf pan and steam for about 1½ hours.

5. Actually, the traditionally correct way to make this corn bread is to put the dough into empty, clean, greased, 1lb vegetable tins, filling them ¾ full. These are actually easier to steam.

6. This corn bread recipe will make the equivalent of a 1 lb loaf, and as a steamed bread has an unusual texture and delicious taste