Pinole Azul (Heirloom Blue Corn Pinole)
Free shipping on orders $50+
Toasted heirloom blue corn is ground with canela and piloncillo for making a slightly sweet, rich drink.
Our pinole is a fascinating product made from ground heirloom blue corn in Mexico. Unlike most corn products, it's not made from nixtamal, the process of removing the skins with cal. With pinole, the corn is lightly toasted and then ground to a fine powder and mixed with a little piloncillo (raw sugar) and canela (true cinnamon).
First and foremost you can make a refreshing drink out of it by adding about 1 cup of pinole per liter of water. Start with cold water and allow it to boil for about five minutes. You then can add a little milk, almond milk or more flavors like fruits or nuts. The texture should be thick but very much a liquid. I've noticed the longer it cooks, the more velvety the texture, but if you decide to extend the cooking, you'll need to stir constantly to avoid scorching.
Possibly the most popular use for pinole is as a licking powder, like a pre-Colombian Pixie Stick. Add a little to the palm of your hand and go at it. Not very elegant but it's hard to stop once you've started.
Even with a small amount of sweetener, some cooks like to dip a chicken or turkey cutlet onto a plate of pinole mixed with salt and fresh ground pepper before pan frying. It sounds weird, but you may find it addictive. In fact you can use it as a flour substitute. Don't miss incredible pancakes made with pinole. You'll need to experiment to see what works for you but we suggest subbing a quarter cup of flour with pinole for each cup of flour you use.
Not available for shipping to Canada.
Country of origin
Mexico
Shipping Details
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The Rancho Gordo Story
You Can Blame it All on the Dutch
I was shopping one August for tomatoes and, despite Napa being one of the world's most magnificent agricultural regions, all the tomatoes were from a hothouse in Holland! Worse, they were hard and pale pink instead of the ripe tomatoes I was craving. I started to grow my own tomatoes and this eventually led to beans.
My first harvested heirloom bean was Rio Zape. They were pretty and easy to grow but I had no idea what to expect when I cooked them. They were similar to the pintos I liked but there was so much more going on. Hints of chocolate and coffee mixed with an earthy texture made my head spin. I was blown away by Rio Zape and the other heirloom beans I was growing, but also really confused why they were such a big secret. I took the beans to the farmers market, organizing things on my kitchen table. Soon there was a warehouse, followed by more markets and mail order. It seems we had struck a nerve. People agreed that heirloom beans were worth saving, growing and cooking. Currently our warehouse, a retail shop, and offices are in Napa, California, and a stop here is part of many tours of the wine country.
All of my agricultural pursuits have been based on being someone who likes to cook but gets frustrated by the lack of ingredients, especially those that are native to the Americas. One of the things that originally drew me to beans was the fact that they are indigenous to the Americas. It seems to me these indigenous ingredients should be familiar, if not common. American cuisine is re-inventing itself and I'd love to include ingredients, traditions and recipes from north and south of the border as part of the equation. I love the concept of The Americas. I feel as if it's just as important as the European heritage many of us share.
You can read more about the Rancho Gordo story here.