Cornmeal Substitutes

Cornmeal is great for adding texture to various recipes and it can seem like the end of the world when there’s none left in your pantry. Take a deep breath, relax, and see if you have at least one of these excellent cornmeal substitutes. Any of them can save your dish!

It’s hard for people outside the kitchen to understand the dilemma of realizing, mid-recipe, that you’re missing an essential ingredient.

Typically, it’s an easy fix. You just need to get it from the grocery store or ask someone to do it for you.

The problem happens when your recipe requires a particular ingredient right now, and there’s no possibility of reaching a grocery store for some reason. 

Finely ground substances like flour, salt, or sugar are notorious for putting us in that situation.

However, the spotlight today lies on a different culprit; cornmeal. Is there a cornmeal substitute?

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🌽What Is Cornmeal?

Cornmeal is a coarse flour made from the corn kernel. It’s often confused with corn flour which is basically the same thing.

The difference is that corn flour is cornmeal that’s finely ground.

Cornmeal goes a long way in making pizza, pasta, marinades, lasagna, baked goods, classic recipes like hush puppies, and more. Sometimes it’s even used as a salad dressing.

Cornmeal could either be white or yellow. This purely depends on the color of the kernels where the corn was ground.

Because cornmeal is made from corn, it has a profound corn taste, especially in yellow cornmeal, which also tastes sweeter than white cornmeal. 

📌Best Cornmeal Substitutes

There are various substitutes for cornmeal. Some of them give you almost identical tastes and textures, like corn grits and polenta, while others come close but not as close.

We’ll show you 7 cornmeal substitutes that, if around by any chance, are life-savers when you’re in a pickle.

Substitute	Conversion (Cornmeal: Substitute)	Notes
Corn Grits	1: 3/4	1:1 after blending or processing corn grits.
Polenta	1:1/2-3/4 (for coarse polenta) 1:1 (for fine polenta)	–
Corn Flour	1:1	For similar grain size.
Semolina	1:1	May need to use a bit more semolina, depending on the recipe.
Corn Chips	1:1	Ground in a food processor or blender.
Ground Flaxseed	1:1	Ground in a food processor or blender.
Rice Flour	1:1	Ground to similar size.

Corn Grits (Same Taste, Same Texture)

Corn grits are essentially the larger version of cornmeal. They will give you an identical flavor to cornmeal but with a slightly different texture.

The grains of corn grits are slightly larger than those of cornmeal, giving them a grainier consistency to your recipes.

This could come to some people’s liking, but if you’re not one of them, you can still replicate the texture of cornmeal.

All you have to do is reduce the grain sizes of corn grits using a food processor or a blender. If you reduce the grains to a smaller size, your substitute ratio will be 1:1.

Alternatively, if you keep the larger grains, you should start with a 3/4 quantity of the original cornmeal. 

Keep in mind that the grain size affects how fast they will absorb liquid. Therefore, if your recipe demands a lot of liquid usage, you should adjust the grain size accordingly.

Corn grits won’t only give you the identical taste and texture of cornmeal; you can also get that orangey, yellow color by using yellow corn grits instead of the white ones.

All in all, corn grits are a healthy substitute for cornmeal that can replicate the taste, texture, and color. It’s easily sitting on the top shelf when it comes to alternatives. 

Polenta (Same Taste, Same Texture)

Originally a north Italian dish, polenta is often sold in supermarkets as a coarser form of cornmeal.

Much like corn grits, polenta can give you an almost identical flavor to cornmeal. They also have larger grains, so they still provide that extra gritty texture to food. 

Fortunately, polenta is available in both coarse and fine textures. Therefore, if you choose to substitute your cornmeal with fine-textured polenta, you can safely use the 1:1 ratio without any problems.

If you have the coarser form of polenta, you should start by using 3/4 or even 1/2 the amount you’d use of cornmeal. Then, keep preparing your recipe; if it calls for more, simply add more.

Corn Flour (Same Taste, Semi-similar Texture)

This is an excellent substitute for cornmeal if you’re making cornbread, dumplings, or biscuits. It’s basically just refined cornmeal.

Corn flour can give you the same flavor as cornmeal with a pretty similar texture. The texture depends on the grain size of corn flour.

It’s best to use grains of similar size to replicate the texture as much as possible.

Keep in mind that we’re talking about corn flour here, not corn starch.

If you live in the United Kingdom, corn starch is branded as cornmeal for some reason.

Corn starch serves a different purpose, and you shouldn’t use it as a replacement for cornmeal-based recipes.

To differentiate between the two, look for the color. For example, corn flour is a yellow powder compared to the white color of corn starch.

If you use corn flour grains similar to your cornmeal grains, you can reliably use a 1:1 ratio without worrying about messing up your recipe.

Semolina (Semi-similar Taste, Same Texture)

Semolina is a fine purified powder made from durum wheat. Unlike our previous three substitutes, semolina won’t give you an identical flavor.

Nevertheless, it’s gluten-free, which throws any gluten allergies out of the window. 

You get a bit more of an earthy taste than you’d get from cornmeal. That’s why semolina is mainly used to make sweet puddings, pasta, and couscous.

Semolina will give you a very similar consistency and texture to cornmeal. Again, you may need to grind it to a similar grain size to the cornmeal you intended to use.

You can use a 1:1 ratio if semolina is your cornmeal substitute. However, you may run into some grainy texture issues.

You may be better off using a slightly higher amount of semolina in comparison to cornmeal. This will help you achieve a better texture.

Corn Chips (Same Taste, Semi-similar Texture)

Sometimes you just have no access to wheat or corn products. The store is closed or too far or whatever; you just can’t get your hand on any viable cornmeal substitute at the moment.

You do, however, have some corn chips lying around. So you can actually use those. It’ll just take a bit of time and effort to get the consistency right.

You have to grind or process them in a blender to reach that fine consistency you seek.

Additionally, most corn chips are often heavily salted. You’ll have to consider that while preparing your recipe and adjust accordingly.

Don’t feel like leaving the house to get corn chips? Try this homemade corn chips recipe and you won’t be sorry. The flavor is so much better than any store-bought chips and you can customize it to your liking.

As a cornmeal replacement, it would be better if you could use unsalted corn chips.

If you grind them to the same size, you can use them at a 1:1 ratio to replicate the same taste and a very close texture.

Ground Flaxseed (Different Taste, Same Texture)

Flaxseed is arguably a healthier cornmeal substitute. In addition, it can provide you with a very similar texture and consistency, especially if it’s ground to a similar grain size.

You might already have it in your pantry as an ingredient for homemade muesli or baked goods.

However, unlike all our previous items on the list, which may slightly be off the mark, ground flaxseed has a noticeably different taste than cornmeal; the taste is a bit more bitter.

Still, flaxseed is rich in protein and low in carbs, making it a good cornmeal substitute for those who need less calorie intake.

If you grind the flaxseed to similar grains of cornmeal, you can use them at a 1:1 ratio.

Rice Flour (Different Taste, Different Texture)

Rice flour is basically just finely ground rice. The fine starch-like consistency or ground rice can still substitute cornmeal if you need to thicken sauces and soaps.

However, rice flour is the least favorable option on our list because both the taste and the texture will be considerably off the mark.

Rice might give you a slightly stickier consistency paired with a sweetened taste. The sweetness comes from the natural starch composition that produces sugary glucose when hydrolyzed.

The one advantage of rice flour over any items on our list is its availability. Almost all households have a bag or two of rice lying around.

You can quickly grind some of that rice to create a flour that can hold your food together.

If you grind the rice to a similar consistency to cornmeal, you can use it at a 1:1 ratio.

You may need to experiment with salt and sugar to try and get the taste as close as possible. There’s no universal rule here because every recipe might need a specific alteration.

Still, tasting your mixture on the go will always be a viable option.

All of your substitutes needs all in one handy reference spot! Comprehensive list substitutes here or to print off for your own menu binder. You to find an ingredient option that will allow you to not run out to the store or you may find a flavor combination you love even better than the original. Garlic Powder Substitute, Cojita Cheese Substitute, Parsley Substitute, Green Chilis Substitute, Italian Seasoning Substitute, Mustard Seed Substitute, Cilantro Substitute, Sriracha Substitute, White Pepper Substitute, Onion Powder Substitute, Five Spice Substitute, Turmeric Substitutes, White Wine Vinegar, Cardamon Substitute, Parsley Substitute, Cremini Mushroom Substitute, Egg Yolk, Leeks, Egg Wash, Coconut Cream, Tomato, Stewed Tomatoes, Coconut Sugar, Palm Sugar, Hoisin, Adobo, Chili Sauce, Oyster Sauce, Escarole, Watercress, Rice Wine Vinegar, Ketchup, Tomato Puree, Tomato Paste, Lemongrass, Chervil, Cheesecloth, Worcestershire Sauce, Fennel, Dark Soy Sauce.

🍴Final Thoughts

Those were our 7 cornmeal substitutes that might just help you finish that recipe. It’s important to understand that any substitute may have a difference in taste, texture, color, and appearance.

As a cook, it’s up to you to decide how similar a substitute needs to be.

For example, if you’re making a pizza, texture matters more than taste since it will already be overlapped by other toppings.

For making cupcakes or muffins, taste takes priority, so be sure to judge your recipe using your experience. It’s not just about filling the gap with a random substitute.

That being said, happy cooking!