• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
Laylita's Recipes logo
  • Home
  • En Español
  • About Laylita
  • Videos
  • Recipe Index
  • Ecuadorian Recipes
    • Ecuadorian Breakfast Dishes
    • Ecuadorian Street Food
    • Ecuadorian Soups
    • Ecuadorian Main Meals
    • Ecuadorian Appetizers
  • Latin Recipes
    • Ceviches
    • Empanadas
    • Plantain Recipes
    • Fish and seafood
    • Latin desserts
  • Sites
    • Receitas da Laylita
    • Recettes de Laylita
    • Travel
    • Viajes
Home » All » By Ingredient » Corn » Hominy » How to cook dried hominy corn or mote – from scratch

How to cook dried hominy corn or mote – from scratch

By Layla Pujol 23 Comments

This is a basic recipe and instructions for cooking dry hominy corn from scratch. Hominy is known as mote in Ecuador, it’s called “maíz peto” in Colombia, and “maíz pozolero” in Mexico and Central America,

Homemade hominy corn or mote blanco
Jump to Recipe

Mote corn or hominy, is made from dry corn that is “peeled” by soaking and cooking it with calcium oxide, also known as cal in Spanish or quicklime in English. My mom used to make mote using dry unpeeled corn, she had this huge pot and would put it on a wood burning stove in the little hut (which she called her fabrica or factory) next to our house.

The process to “peel” the dry corn would take a whole day, once the corn was peeled she would boil it until it was puffy and soft. The type of corn that grows in the Andes – actually there are several different varieties of corn -, but the most common type is different than the one found in the US (and Europe),the kernels are larger, drier and not as sweet. I was so shocked at how sweet American corn was the first time I tried, I was sure someone added sugar to it, and while I’ve grown to like sweet corn it is still a challenge to adapt certain Ecuadorian corn based dishes using local corn, but it works out.

In the late 90’s, when I moved to the US, it was very hard to find mote or hominy and the only kind I could find was canned and already cooked,which was convenient because you just had to drain it, rinse it and use it, however the flavor of freshly cooked mote was missing.

Recently I discovered that it is possible to find the dried mote – which has already been “peeled”-and is ready to be boiled, the corn has to soak overnight and does take a few hours to cook, but it is so worth it! After eating this way it is very hard to go back to the canned version – but I still keep a can of hominy on hand just in case I have a last minute craving or need it quickly.

You can find the dry peeled corn at some of the Latin grocery stores, it is called Maiz Mote Pelado and comes in 1lb bags – usually next to all the dry beans/peas – you soak it overnight and boil it (just like you would with dry beans).

Boiled mote or hominy

Hominy is a great side dish, in Ecuador it is frequently served as a side to a lot of different meat dishes; simply add some salt (if needed) and it is ready. If you want to give the hominy a little bit more flavor you can also make a quick refrito (onions, garlic and other spices sautéed in oil or butter) and mix it with the hominy. A classic dish in the Andean highlands is mote pillo, a dish of hominy and eggs, it is one of the best breakfast dishes.Hominy is also added to soups and can also be ground to make dough for empanadas or tamales.

Homemade hominy corn or mote blanco

How to cook hominy corn {Ecuadorian mote}

Recipe and instructions for cooking dry hominy corn, called mote in Ecuador, from scratch.
5 from 4 votes
Print Pin Your Questions and Comments
Course: Side Dish
Cuisine: Andean, Central America, Ecuadorian, Latin, Mexican, South American
Keyword: Corn, Hominy, Mote
Cook Time: 2 hours 30 minutes
Soaking time: 8 hours
Total Time: 2 hours 30 minutes

Ingredients

  • 1 lb dried mote or hominy corn
  • Water
  • Salt

Instructions

  • Soak the dried mote corn overnight
  • Rinse it well, place it a large pot with plenty of lightly salted water and boil over medium heat until the corn is soft and starts to “pop”,about 2-3 hours, stir occasionally and add additional water if needed.
  • Drain and cool down, can be served plain as a side dish or used as a component for other dishes.

Step by step preparation photos for cooking hominy corn or mote at home:

Some of my recipes that use hominy or mote:

Mote pillo

Mote refrito con hornado or hominy with pork gravy

Caldo de patas or cow feet soup

Llapingachos de mote or hominy patties stuffed with cheese or meat

  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on WhatsApp (Opens in new window)
  • Click to email this to a friend (Opens in new window)

Similar Recipes

Filed Under: Andean, Basics, Central America, Corn, Ecuador, Hominy, Latin America, Mexico, Sides, South America, Vegetarian

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Laura says

    September 18, 2020 at 6:36 pm

    Thank you for all of the amazing recipes Laylita!

    For those with a slow cooker, you can also cook your mote/pozole/hominy overnight. I always put my dried mote in the slow cooker with PLENTY of water and let it cook for 11-12 hours on high. I add salt once cooked. It is super simple and provides nice hot mote for motepillo first thing in the morning.

    Reply
« Older Comments

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Primary Sidebar

Post notifications by email

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Available Now ¡Cómpralo ahora!

Yo cocino latino cookbook

Recipes by Category

Welcome

 Layla Pujol is an Ecuadorian modern-day nomad who loves to cook and travel. She lives in Seattle and is currently working on her first cookbook, which will focus on delicious Ecuadorian and Latin recipes (adapted to her style). More

Traditional Ecuadorian

  • Pan de yuca or cassava cheese bread

    Pan de yuca or cassava cheese bread

    Pan de yuca, also known as cheese bread or yuca bread, are yummy melt in your mouth warm breads made with cheese and yuca or …
  • Chaulafan de pollo {Ecuadorian chicken fried rice}

    Chaulafan de pollo {Ecuadorian chicken fried rice}

    Chaulafan de pollo is an Ecuadorian chicken fried rice made with rice, chicken, bacon, onions, garlic, peppers, bell peppers, peas, carrots, scrambled eggs, raisins, spices …
  • Humitas or steamed fresh corn cakes

    Humitas or steamed fresh corn cakes

    Humitas are savory steamed fresh corn cakes made from a mixture of freshly ground corn, onion, garlic, cheese, eggs, and cream, which is placed inside …

Footer

Stay connected

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

laylapujol

{Ceviche de camarón con mango y aguacate} Shrimp {Ceviche de camarón con mango y aguacate} Shrimp mango ceviche with avocado 

{La receta está en el blog} // Recipe on the blog

#ceviche #cevichedecamaron #mango #shrimpceviche #aguacate #ecuadorianfood #latinfood #comidaecuatoriana #comidalatina #recetasfaciles #recetasdelaylita #laylitasrecipes
It’s finally here!!! #YoCocinoLatino Por fin ll It’s finally here!!! #YoCocinoLatino

Por fin llego el día oficial y ya está a la venta este hermoso libro de cocina que hicimos con Vero de @lacocinadevero Clara de @simplebyclara Ale de @piloncilloyvainilla y Erica de @mycolombianrecipes 

Lo pueden encontrar en http://penguinespanol.com/ (el link también está en mi perfil)
 
#comidalatinoamericana #comidalatina  #comidacriolla  #recetaslatinas #recetas #delicioso #cocina #food #comida #foodie 
#librosenespañol #penguinenespañol #librosderecetas #laylitasrecipes #recetasdelaylita
Quick lunch salad with smoked salmon, avocado, tom Quick lunch salad with smoked salmon, avocado, tomato, cucumber, pickled onions and a soft boiled egg - on top of a bed of salad greens (tossed with a simple lemon olive oil dressing)

#easysalad #smokedsalmonsalad #softboiledegg #avocado #quicklunch #ensalada #salmonahumado #aguacate
{Patacones rellenos con cóctel de camarones en sa {Patacones rellenos con cóctel de camarones en salsa rosada picante y aguacate } Green plantain baskets filled with spicy shrimp cocktail + avocado 

#patacones #cocteldecamaron #salsarosada #plantains #shrimpcocktail #latinfood #ecuadorianfood #comidaecuatoriana #comidalatina #adios2020 #goodbye2020
Load More... Follow on Instagram
  • En Español

© Laylita.com 2021, all rights reserved. No copy without authorization. Privacy policy | Contact

loading Cancel
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Email check failed, please try again
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.