How To Nixtamalize With Wood Ash By The Sioux Chef AKA Sean Sherman of Owamni Restaurant
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- Опубліковано 5 лют 2025
- Sean Sherman, also known as the Sioux Chef, demonstrates one of the oldest methods for nixtamalizing corn, using ash from hard wood trees like birch or oak.
Without nixtamalization, there is no masa, and without alkali, there is no nixtamal.
Historically, the alkali used in nixtamalization has been derived from many substances: the peoples of Mesoamerica primarily used (and still use) slaked lime, ash, and tequesquite, whereas those north of Mexico chiefly nixtamalized with lye made from wood ash.
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I found this while going down a rabbit hole of mesoamerican history and the development of the nixtamalization process, and this was very insightful to watch. Also, the name “The Sioux Chef” is fantastic
Thanks for watching! We're glad you enjoyed the video and found it insightful.
Sean Sherman comes by that name honestly, as he's a member of the Oglala Lakota Sioux tribe. He has an amazing fine dining restaurant in Minnesota using all native ingredients.
I feel like in present day America there is something important lost in stovetop cooking or microwave cooking. Carefully selected wood ash (from trees or shrubbery not having toxic heavy metals) have important minerals in them that help make humans healthy. There are so many ailments afflicting Americans today that didn't affect them 50 years ago. The influx of large amounts of fatty seed oils and sugar definitely play a part in this. I don't have any solid proof but my intuition from being a picky eater and strongly acidic stomach and sporadic depression and memory problems motivate me to try to find a solution, if there is one, to our current and mine, especially, health crisis.
Next level Nixtamal technique of using ash from Sean's fireplace!
Yes!
Thank you for such a detailed instruction. It gives more detail than the others I have seen.
We are glad you enjoyed it!
I've been looking all over the web for this exact nixtamal breakdown! thx
So glad you found it and thank you for watching!
Same! Can’t wait to try!
I did this years ago with I guess feeder corn that dried on the stalk. We call it hominy. It turned bright orange and my method was much cruder than this lol. I didn’t strain anything just cooked the corn and ashes together for a long time til the hills loosened. then rinsed it and rubbed between my hands to remove all the hulls.
It was so delicious. I sautéed it in bacon grease and a little butter with salt and black pepper, southern-style.
This is awesome, outside of corn, what else can you nixtamalise?
That as so clean and simple.
Nice, thank you for making this video and making the magic of this process easy to learn
Nice to have an alternative to kal. Some areas, you just don't have access to.
Thank you! Exactly how I want to try making masa from my own dent corn.
This is wonderful information. Thank you! I will definitely be trying this. : )
So glad you enjoyed! Let us know how it turns out. There's tons more info like this in our upcoming cookbook, MASA: masienda.com/products/masa-book. We've also just published a post with lots more info on ash nixtamalization on our blog: masienda.com/blogs/learn/wood-ash-nixtamal
@@Masienda Thank you for the reply, I will check out the links. @habaneroagogo Australia.
Fantastic! Thank you for this video.
Thanks so much for watching!
I’ve cured olives using madrone wood ash. Maybe I’ll try it with some of my Masienda corn!
Ooo, let us know how it comes out!
I just read the Masa book (it's awesome) and the wood ash technique has me fascinated. I heat my home with Osage Orange firewood. It's a hardwood that grows all over the midwest. Has a lot of silica in it. You think I could safely use the ash?
Yep. It’s fine. Just make sure your fire starter is something that’s not going to contaminate the ash with heavy metals or other chemicals
I’m glad you asked this question, I heat with multiple hardwoods, primarily black locust, but I read the hardwoods in North Carolina with the most mineral Content are dogwood , redbud and tulip poplar so I use a combination of the four for ash that I make in a small outdoor stove I’m using just for this purpose. Starting with fine wood shavings no paper no cardboard nothing to contaminate the final ash in any way .
How do you grind soft hominy? Seems like it would just mush. Drying first seems essential. How does one dry it?
Good question! Soft hominy is usually ground while it’s still moist using something like a stone grinder or food processor-it won’t mush if done right. But if you want to dry it first, just spread the kernels out on a tray and let them air dry, or use a dehydrator on low. Once it’s dry, you can grind it into flour or rehydrate it for masa later. Let us know if you have any additional questions.
I need whatever this music is 😂❤
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??
Hi there! We're not too familiar with test strips you are using, but maybe the highly alkaline nature of the ash solution is throwing off the strips?
@@Masienda thanks for replying. Tested with Cal instead of ash and comes up with same lead indications. I'm hoping it's as you've suggested. Will try and get a conclusive explanation from the test strip company. Will share my findings.
@@Masienda great news! Test strip company got back to me and as you suggested, the high alkalinity of the lye solution gives a false reading on the test strips...PHEW! Wood ash nixtamalization is a go :D
Is the ratio of 3:1 water to ash -by weight, or by volume?
Volume!
Is that 3:1 ratio of water to ash measured by volume or weight?
volume!
Very interesting. Is the taste of the corn very different than with using cal?
You may find that you get some flavor notes from the wood -- a little bit floral, a little bit earthy. It's really something special.
Absolutely different. Cal is pure, wood ash has potassium and all the minerals that tree used to live. The difference between distilled water and Evian is similar. Wood ash hominy is amazing
Want more flavor? Do it the Shawn Brock way and simply add equal parts ash and corn with water and rinse the next day.
@@tycer7 Thank you very much. I'll try it. Greetings from Austria.
@@tycer7 is that equal parts by volume or weight?
@@k2wi I used to do by weight but now volume as it’s less messy and works perfectly.
Great info! How would you dispose of the lye water and ash sediment? Is it weak enough to go down the drain as is or does it need to be diluted?
we do put it down the drain (it definitely cleans those pipes!) even if you're maybe not technically supposed to
I am trying to to this wood ash process with fresh sweetcorn. Is this possible?
Hi, unfortunately you can't nixtamalize sweet corn.
I would love to try this. What wood ash do you recommend to use. Do I buy the ash or burn my own wood and use the ash? If so, what kind of wood should I use?
Hi Vivian, you can do either! Lots more info here: masienda.com/blogs/learn/wood-ash-nixtamal
Does it soak in the solution over night?
Yes!
Can I just burn up a pile of cardboard and paper trash instead of wood?
Can I just let the water/ash mix just sit overnight (or 24 hours) without heating it at all?
Does not removing the hulls at the end make a big difference to the flavour or texture once the kernels are ground up into a fine powder?
not all woods have the same ph, and so given that cardboard and paper have other ingredients in them (i.e., are processed) we can't speak to density or ph, but suppose that technically you could? you need to heat it in order for the cell walls to begin breaking down--energy (i.e., heat) is absolutely needed to initiate the nixtamalization process. flavor of the kernels is dependent upon how much cal or alkaline is used, and therefore how much is absorbed into the kernel or skins, but expect more of that alkaline flavor the more skins you leave.
I would not advise using the byproduct of cardboard or paper ash to cook with.
Those are consumer but not necessarily food-grade products which likely contain other substances you don't want to be ingesting (cardboard can contain plastic, regular paper has been treated with bleaching agents, inks, and a number of other unsavory things).
Can you run it through a grain mill like a flour mill after it’s dried out
Yes, which is exactly why I am here. I want to know how to do this process so I can make corn meal later then year when the corn is ready for harvest.
Yes, you can run nixtamalized corn through a grain mill like a flour mill after it's dried out. However, it's important to note that the texture may be different from freshly ground masa. Dry nixtamalized corn can be ground into a coarse flour, often used for certain recipes like tortillas or tamales, but it won't have the same consistency as fresh masa. If you're aiming for masa, it's typically better to grind the nixtamalized corn fresh or keep it hydrated for optimal results.
@@Masienda thank you. I have a mill that I can get it pretty fine and get a puff.
I recently ordered your Conico Azul corn and tried to do the wood ash nixtalimization process. I used hardwood Oak ashes and followed everything exactly. I actually didn’t use quite as many ashes as was recommended but pretty close. Everything looked fine until I put the lid on to let sit overnight and then when I woke up this morning, about 10 hours soaking it smells kind of sour and lost all of the blue color and is falling apart when you barely touch it just turning into mashed potato almost .. And doesn’t smell right at all …It just looks completely rancid and lost all of the blue color. I’m going to re-order and try again and I’m just wondering if you could give me some tips. Do you think I let it soak too long? Thanks very much.
Found this answer to “How Can You Tell if Dried Corn is Bad?” on the Quora site. To be honest, you might have posted the question.
Answer:
Khadiji writes, “To determine if dried corn has gone bad, you can look for the following signs:
1. **Mold or unusual discoloration:** Check for the presence of any mold, dark spots, or discoloration on the dried corn, as these are indicators of spoilage.
2. **Unpleasant odor:** If the dried corn emits a foul or rancid odor, it's likely spoiled and should not be consumed.
3. **Texture changes:** Examine the texture of the dried corn. If it appears excessively soft, mushy, or has an abnormal texture, it may have deteriorated.
If you notice any of these signs, it's advisable to discard the dried corn to avoid the risk of foodborne illness or adverse health effects.”
Thank you!
Hello! Thanks for your question. It seems you might have used excessive ash, overcooked the corn, which may have caused the corn to disintegrate. The color loss is due to alkalinity, and our blue corn isn’t ideal with ash. By chance, do you have our masa book? If not, please let us know if we could email you a page that walks you through the process. 😊
Hello and thank you very much for the information. Yes we have the book and have been following those instructions in the book. Good to know that the blue is not ideal. The book called for. I think it was around Third of weight of the ash for how much corn which I thought was a little much. I’d seen some other recipes online for about a 1 to 10 ratio. Appreciate it.
Is it possible to over steep? I understand I may have overcooked. We just steeped overnight.
Wait i thought you could nixtamal without lye? I thought that was the purpose of the ash
Absolutely! While lye is commonly used for nixtamalization, historically, ashes were also utilized for the same purpose. Ash contains alkaline properties that help soften the corn kernels and improve their nutritional value. So, you're right! Nixtamalization with ash is another traditional method that achieves similar results.
Everybody copies Mexican Food because have everything: Tasty, tradition, care, etc
No…everyone copies the indigenous components of Mexico including Mexicans themselves.
Believe it or not: people like sharing food.
When it turns into an ego game though, you make the food taste like trash.
Nothing turns off interest in a culture more than acting like you're better than all the other cultures.
Hmmmm....mesquite ash?
Yes!