[Joe McPherson on Dining] Grits from the Chinese grocery

There is a lot of corn in Korea, from street stalls to pizza toppings -- yet there is little cornmeal to be found. Why is that?

Korea`s big next-door neighbor is second only to the United States in corn production. If you are sorely missing your Southern grandmother`s grits or your Italian grandmother`s polenta, you only need look as far as your nearest Chinese grocery store.

Chinese groceries are a lot of fun to explore. One good find is yellow cornmeal. It usually comes in 2,000 won ($2.10) unlabeled plastic bags -- you`ll know it when you see it. At home, keep it in a zipper bag in the freezer. There are natural fats in there, and they go rancid if kept at room temperature too long.

There is a lot you can do with this simple bag of cornmeal.

First off, grits. This is my latest version, based on the award-winning "Lee Bros. Southern Cookbook." Combine and boil a cup of milk, a cup of water and a clove of chopped garlic. Rinse a half cup of cornmeal and slowly add it to the pot with a healthy pinch of salt. Reduce the heat to medium and stir constantly for around five minutes until it gives off a nice corn aroma.

Take the heat down to barely a flame and let it sit for 15 to 20 minutes. Stir every few minutes to keep it from sticking to the pot. Turn off the heat and add grated cheese, black pepper and butter.

You can also make a classic northern Italian polenta with the very same stuff. Slowly sweat half a chopped onion in some olive oil with a little salt. Add a clove of chopped garlic and two cups of chicken broth and bring to a boil. Slowly shake in a half cup of cornmeal, cover the pot with a lid and let it simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Turn off the heat and add a hunk of butter, some black pepper and, if available, some Parmesan cheese. From there, you can dress up your polenta however you want -- with tomato sauce, fresh herbs or just served plain with some hearty stewed chicken.

If you have leftovers, spread the grits or polenta on a plate, cover and refrigerate until they`re hard. You can then cut them into shapes and pan fry, deep fry or even grill them.

Speaking of which, if you can grind it a little more in the blender, you can also make some hush puppies. Beat together an egg, a chopped onion and half a cup of milk. In a another bowl, combine a half cup of cornmeal, a half cup of flour, three-quarters teaspoon of baking powder, a quarter teaspoon of baking soda and a quarter teaspoon of salt. Drop the mixture by spoonfuls into some hot oil and fry until golden brown. For the Jamaican variation, known as festival, take away the onions and add a tablespoon of brown sugar with a quarter teaspoon of nutmeg, cinnamon or vanilla.

Around the world on a bag of cornmeal. Who`da thunk?