G'day team, Dan here from Australia. Question. Once you've made the wood ash solution/lye. Have you ever tested it for heavy metals? I had some test strips left from when i tested our drinking water and thought I'd test the lye solution. I was shocked. With 3 different hardwoods , I reduced to ash separately then boiled in water, cooled then proceeded to dunk the testing strips in solution. I was shocked to find a high lead indication across all 3 hardwood ashes. Am I missing something? A reaction with stainless steel saucepan??
Why do you use wood ash? I'm interested in it because it is an organic substance (plant source) as opposed to the lime which is mineral sourced. I was recently diagnosed with "calcific aortic valve disease" and I'm now paranoid about all mineral sourced calcium. How long to boil? Where do you get your hardwood ash?
Thank you for your questions and the opportunity to highlight all the cool things that are going on in this process. Wood ash, like baking soda, is very alkaline meaning that it has a high pH (typically 9-11). This alkalinity helps to dissolve the outer coating on the corn kernel releasing niacin. On paper, corn is a good source of the B-vitamin niacin, but typically niacin is so strongly attached to coating on the kernel that it makes it nearly inaccessible to your body. However, by dissolving the coating you are breaking this bond, making the niacin in the corn available for the body to absorb. This process is commonly referred to as nixtamalization, and has a long history of use in traditional communities. We were instructed by elders to use hardwood ash and that is what we have always used. This can be made simply by burning hardwood logs to ash in a safe, clean space on the ground or in a grill, always following local burning codes and restrictions. Allow the ashes to cool completely before sifting to remove material that did not burn fully. One note, the ashes you are making will be used to make food, it's important that the wood is burned on a surface that is not contaminated with toxic chemicals or that may release toxic chemicals and that the wood is not burned with other materials which may release toxins. Wood ash is not the only option for nixtamalization, you can use baking soda or another alkaline, food safe ingredient. Always follow instructions when using these materials. To answer your question about how long to boil, that will depend on the size of the batch and the temperature of the water and your heat source. For the batch we used in the video it took about 3 hours. The hominy is ready to be "cleaned", the process of washing away the coating on the kernel, when you can press a kernel between your thumb and forefinger and the kernel coating slips off.
@@glifwc hmm very interesting. Can i use briquette coal ash or lump charcoal ash? OR does it have to be a real piece of hardwood oak burned down to ashes? lol i know its a noob question....
@@ftmhlcv4645 During the manufacturing process of making charcoal briquettes they add binders to help the briquettes to hold it's shape so depending on if the binders used were natural or artificial you might end up with more than just wood ash after burning the briquettes. That's also why they recommend not using briquette ash for an additive to potting soil as it can interfere with a plant roots ability to intake water.
@@never2late454 awesome. thanks for the reply. Do you guys have a print out manual or book for nixtimalization with wood ash? Would love to get my hands on something like this. İ heard this process produces are better flavor masa than just using supermarket cal
Very good job , young lady . Great info
I'm surprised that you aren't using a stainless steel pot. Lye is a caustic and will dissolve the aluminum, which is related to many health issues.
G'day team, Dan here from Australia. Question. Once you've made the wood ash solution/lye. Have you ever tested it for heavy metals? I had some test strips left from when i tested our drinking water and thought I'd test the lye solution. I was shocked. With 3 different hardwoods , I reduced to ash separately then boiled in water, cooled then proceeded to dunk the testing strips in solution. I was shocked to find a high lead indication across all 3 hardwood ashes. Am I missing something? A reaction with stainless steel saucepan??
Update: it's a false positive due to the high alkalinity
My paternal grandmother always used a clean sock to hold the ash.
I wouldn't eat that after nixtamalization in an aluminum pot. You just added heavy metals to your corn.
Why do you use wood ash? I'm interested in it because it is an organic substance (plant source) as opposed to the lime which is mineral sourced. I was recently diagnosed with "calcific aortic valve disease" and I'm now paranoid about all mineral sourced calcium. How long to boil? Where do you get your hardwood ash?
Thank you for your questions and the opportunity to highlight all the cool things that are going on in this process. Wood ash, like baking soda, is very alkaline meaning that it has a high pH (typically 9-11). This alkalinity helps to dissolve the outer coating on the corn kernel releasing niacin. On paper, corn is a good source of the B-vitamin niacin, but typically niacin is so strongly attached to coating on the kernel that it makes it nearly inaccessible to your body. However, by dissolving the coating you are breaking this bond, making the niacin in the corn available for the body to absorb. This process is commonly referred to as nixtamalization, and has a long history of use in traditional communities.
We were instructed by elders to use hardwood ash and that is what we have always used. This can be made simply by burning hardwood logs to ash in a safe, clean space on the ground or in a grill, always following local burning codes and restrictions. Allow the ashes to cool completely before sifting to remove material that did not burn fully. One note, the ashes you are making will be used to make food, it's important that the wood is burned on a surface that is not contaminated with toxic chemicals or that may release toxic chemicals and that the wood is not burned with other materials which may release toxins. Wood ash is not the only option for nixtamalization, you can use baking soda or another alkaline, food safe ingredient. Always follow instructions when using these materials.
To answer your question about how long to boil, that will depend on the size of the batch and the temperature of the water and your heat source. For the batch we used in the video it took about 3 hours. The hominy is ready to be "cleaned", the process of washing away the coating on the kernel, when you can press a kernel between your thumb and forefinger and the kernel coating slips off.
@@glifwc hmm very interesting. Can i use briquette coal ash or lump charcoal ash? OR does it have to be a real piece of hardwood oak burned down to ashes? lol i know its a noob question....
@@ftmhlcv4645 During the manufacturing process of making charcoal briquettes they add binders to help the briquettes to hold it's shape so depending on if the binders used were natural or artificial you might end up with more than just wood ash after burning the briquettes. That's also why they recommend not using briquette ash for an additive to potting soil as it can interfere with a plant roots ability to intake water.
@@never2late454 awesome. thanks for the reply. Do you guys have a print out manual or book for nixtimalization with wood ash? Would love to get my hands on something like this. İ heard this process produces are better flavor masa than just using supermarket cal
Paranoid about natural lime? Please
Where do you get your hard wood ash?
Lol
make a fire from oak wood or other hard woods then you have hard wood ash