dried and hulled maize kernels, coarsely ground and prepared for consumption in various ways, including puddings and breads. The term is most commonly met in ‘hominy grits’, for which a finer grinding or a double grinding is used; see groats and grits. Mariani (1994) says of hominy that:
It was one of the first foods European settlers readily accepted from the Native Americans, and the word, from one or another Algonquian words, such as rockahominie (‘parched corn’) or tackbummin (‘hulled corn’), was used as early as 1629. Different terms describe hominy that has been treated or ground in different ways. ‘Great hominy,’ also called ‘whole hominy,’ ‘pearl hominy’ (from its pearly appearance), and ‘samp’ (from the Narraganset nasàump, ‘corn mush’), is coarsely ground and prepared by scalding shelled corn in water and wood ash to separate the hulls, called the ‘eyes’.
Alan Davidson was a distinguished author and publisher, and one of the world's best-known writers on fish and fish cookery. In 1975 he retired early from the diplomatic service—after serving in, among other places, Washington, Egypt, Tunisia, and Laos, where he was British Ambassador—to pursue a fruitful second career as a food historian and food writer extraordinaire. Among his popular books are Seafood of South-East Asia, North Atlantic Seafood, and Mediterranean Seafood. In 2003, shortly before his death, he was awarded the Erasmus Prize for his contribution to European culture.
Mariani, John (1994), The Dictionary of American Food and Drink, 2nd rev edn, New York: Hearst.
