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Polenta: Easy and Versatile
By Charlie Burke
Click here for printer-friendly version of this recipe
Polenta is classic, elemental food, made of cornmeal, water and salt. Like
pasta, it is a blank slate, taking on the flavors and nuances of the many dishes
with which it is served. Served soft from the pot, its creamy mellow flavor is
perfect with the sauces from braises or stews. Spread into a one to two inch
thick layer on a sheet pan or cutting board and allowed to cool, it can be cut
into squares and sautéed in olive oil to form a golden crust or brushed with
olive oil and broiled or grilled over charcoal to be served, sprinkled with
cheese or herbs, with fish dishes or roasts. I frequently serve mushroom ragout
over either soft polenta or grilled slices for a satisfying vegetarian meal or
layer polenta slices with cheese and tomato sauce to bake like lasagna. In Italy,
the combinations are endless; as with pasta, every cook and region features
unique combinations, with grated cheese and herbs being occasionally added
to the cornmeal as it cooks
Every cookbook I’ve read, including those by Marcella Hazan, the Julia Child
of Italian cooking, stresses the importance of constantly stirring polenta for as
long as forty minutes. Several years ago I found that, although it cannot be
ignored, polenta needs only an occasional stir and usually cooks in about a
half hour. I concluded that polenta recipes had been handed down and
accepted without question for generations. Who, after all, would doubt their
Nonna’s recipe for making a beloved family tradition? I was amused, then, to
read in “Heat”, a book about Mario Batali and Italian food traditions* that in
Batali’s restaurant the polenta pot bubbles away untended, with passersby
giving it an occasional stir. Although many home cooks make fresh pasta, far
fewer attempt polenta, perhaps deterred by the daunting recipes. It is
important that the cornmeal be added slowly to boiling water and stirred with
a whisk to prevent clumping, but after that, if stirred occasionally and cooked
at a slow simmer, the results are the same as if constantly stirred. I prefer
coarsely ground cornmeal and have had great results with the stone ground
organic cornmeal from the Littleton Grist Mill in Littleton, New Hampshire
Four to six servings
1 ½ cups coarsely ground corn meal
6 cups water
2 teaspoons kosher or sea salt
Bring water to a boil in a heavy bottomed 4 -6 quart pot. Add salt and slowly
add polenta while whisking. Cook over low heat at a slow simmer, stirring
every 4 – 5 minutes, preferably with a flat wooden spatula. As the polenta
thickens, it should bubble slowly, releasing steam though the thick bubbles.
Cook in this manner for approximately 25 minutes, stirring more frequently
toward the end of cooking. The polenta is done when it pulls away from the
side of the pot when stirred and is slow to flow back into the path of the spoon.
Serve immediately with sauce, olive oil, or butter with grated parmesan cheese
or spread onto a flat surface, smoothing it to 1 -2 inches of thickness with a
spatula moistened with water. When cooled, it can be cut into pieces for
sautéing, grilling or broiling. Polenta is as versatile as pasta, so incorporate it
into your Italian recipes and enjoy this satisfying peasant fare.
*Heat, Bill Buford, Alfred A. Knopf, New York, 2006
About the author:
An organic farmer and avid cook, writer Charlie Burke is the vice president of
the New Hampshire Farmer'sMarket Association, president of the NH Farm to
Restaurant Connection and helps run the Sanbornton (NH) Farmers' Market.
Along with his wife, Joanne, Charlie grows certified organic herbs, greens and
berries at Weather Hill Farm in Sanbornton, NH.
By Charlie Burke
Click here for printer-friendly version of this recipe
Polenta is classic, elemental food, made of cornmeal, water and salt. Like
pasta, it is a blank slate, taking on the flavors and nuances of the many dishes
with which it is served. Served soft from the pot, its creamy mellow flavor is
perfect with the sauces from braises or stews. Spread into a one to two inch
thick layer on a sheet pan or cutting board and allowed to cool, it can be cut
into squares and sautéed in olive oil to form a golden crust or brushed with
olive oil and broiled or grilled over charcoal to be served, sprinkled with
cheese or herbs, with fish dishes or roasts. I frequently serve mushroom ragout
over either soft polenta or grilled slices for a satisfying vegetarian meal or
layer polenta slices with cheese and tomato sauce to bake like lasagna. In Italy,
the combinations are endless; as with pasta, every cook and region features
unique combinations, with grated cheese and herbs being occasionally added
to the cornmeal as it cooks
Every cookbook I’ve read, including those by Marcella Hazan, the Julia Child
of Italian cooking, stresses the importance of constantly stirring polenta for as
long as forty minutes. Several years ago I found that, although it cannot be
ignored, polenta needs only an occasional stir and usually cooks in about a
half hour. I concluded that polenta recipes had been handed down and
accepted without question for generations. Who, after all, would doubt their
Nonna’s recipe for making a beloved family tradition? I was amused, then, to
read in “Heat”, a book about Mario Batali and Italian food traditions* that in
Batali’s restaurant the polenta pot bubbles away untended, with passersby
giving it an occasional stir. Although many home cooks make fresh pasta, far
fewer attempt polenta, perhaps deterred by the daunting recipes. It is
important that the cornmeal be added slowly to boiling water and stirred with
a whisk to prevent clumping, but after that, if stirred occasionally and cooked
at a slow simmer, the results are the same as if constantly stirred. I prefer
coarsely ground cornmeal and have had great results with the stone ground
organic cornmeal from the Littleton Grist Mill in Littleton, New Hampshire
Four to six servings
1 ½ cups coarsely ground corn meal
6 cups water
2 teaspoons kosher or sea salt
Bring water to a boil in a heavy bottomed 4 -6 quart pot. Add salt and slowly
add polenta while whisking. Cook over low heat at a slow simmer, stirring
every 4 – 5 minutes, preferably with a flat wooden spatula. As the polenta
thickens, it should bubble slowly, releasing steam though the thick bubbles.
Cook in this manner for approximately 25 minutes, stirring more frequently
toward the end of cooking. The polenta is done when it pulls away from the
side of the pot when stirred and is slow to flow back into the path of the spoon.
Serve immediately with sauce, olive oil, or butter with grated parmesan cheese
or spread onto a flat surface, smoothing it to 1 -2 inches of thickness with a
spatula moistened with water. When cooled, it can be cut into pieces for
sautéing, grilling or broiling. Polenta is as versatile as pasta, so incorporate it
into your Italian recipes and enjoy this satisfying peasant fare.
*Heat, Bill Buford, Alfred A. Knopf, New York, 2006
About the author:
An organic farmer and avid cook, writer Charlie Burke is the vice president of
the New Hampshire Farmer'sMarket Association, president of the NH Farm to
Restaurant Connection and helps run the Sanbornton (NH) Farmers' Market.
Along with his wife, Joanne, Charlie grows certified organic herbs, greens and
berries at Weather Hill Farm in Sanbornton, NH.
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