h-o-m-i-n-y

Well evidently food still has a hard time crossing the mason-dixon line and the south might possibly be another country. Friday I has these great plans of cooking up giant batches of no chop chili and chicken posole soup so I could serve them with yummy breads and salads and lava cakes to my Friday night dinner guests and also for my Sunday dinner guests. Well evidently hominy is not an easy ingredient to come by here in New England. When i inquired with the manager at my local stop and shop he looked at me blankly...

me: Yes I wondered if you could help me- I am looking for canned hominy

stop and shop manager: "Could you spell that please?"

me: (what is this a spelling bee?) H-O-M-I-N-Y
(before he could venture "Could you use it in a sentence" or "Can you give me a definition")You often use it is soups or eat it creamed- It's kind of in between corn and a chick pea...A common southern food" (forgive me i don't know the origin of the word!)

Stop and shop manager: Well then I'd guess it would be over here with the canned beans and vegetables (proceeds to look blankly at the bean and veggie shelf)

Me: Yes- I looked here but didn't see any...so i wondered if I was looking in the right place or if it was sold out, or even if you carry it...

Stop and shop manager: hmmm....(evidently puzzled by this quandary) (here is when i get a brilliant idea that could revolutionize the product inquiry process at stop and shop- maybe somewhere on the premises you could have a computer (even in a managers back office that could house a simple list of products carried and someone could simply type the word hominy and press search and voila- ANSWER!)- and this whole process could be shaved down from 20 min to 20 seconds!
(over the walky talky "yes i have a customer here on aisle six she says she is looking for hominy?...she says its a kind of southern food, kind of like chick peas that you put in soup)

Stop and Shop worker emerges from back room

Worker: "Now hominy you know is really a southern food- hmmmmm.... ( a word you must master to work in grocery store customer service) hmmmmmm... hmmm....maybe try a store with a bigger ethnic section (maybe they forgot the south was just a region and not another country?)

I called a few stores and finally located this banished confederate food and smart daddy-o when and got my 4 cans-

and in case you need an introduction to the world of hominy here is the fab soup recipe (a great party favorite)...

Chicken Posole
> serves 8
> prep time: 20 minutes
> total time: 50 minutes
>
> 1 T olive oil
> 2 medium onions, chopped
> 8 garlic cloves, minced
> 1/3 cupt tomato paste
> 3 T chili powder
> 1 t dried oregano
> 4 cans (14.5 oz each) chicken broth
> 4 cans (15 oz each) white hominy, drained
> 6 3/4 cups shredded cooked chicken or turkey meat (about 2 pounds)
> coarse salt and ground pepper
> assorted garnishes: diced avocado, sliced radishes, crumbled tortilla
> chips, shredded cheese
>
> 1. Heat oil in a 5-quart saucepan over medium heat. Add onions; cook
> until translucent, 3 to 5 minutes. Add garlic, tomato paste, chili
> powder, and oregano; cook, stirring constantly, until evenly distributed.
>
> 2. Add 4 cups water, broth, and hominy. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to
> a simmer, and cook until fragrant, about 30 minutes.
>
> 3. Stir in chicken; season with 1 teaspoon salt and 1/4 tsp pepper. Cook
> until heated through.