Making Polenta
In the world of cooking, few dishes have the stigma attached to their preparation as polenta does. Much of Italy's polenta is still made the tedious old-fashioned way using a round bottom copper pot known as a Paiolo and a long wooden spoon known as a Tarello. Today in a modern kitchen with a good heavy pot, polenta preparation is not so painstaking, but it still does need attention and occasional stirring. Here is our basic recipe for polenta and four different ways you can serve it.
Adapted From The Splendid Table by Lynne Rossetto Kasper, a book every cook should have.
Basic Polenta
Serves 8 to 10
*have on hand a large stainless steel bowl, a whisk and a large heatproof measuring cup
2 teaspoons salt
3 10 ½ cups water
3 ½ cups stone ground polenta
Fill a 6-quart pot three-quarters full of water and bring it to a strong boil over high heat. Meanwhile fill a kettle or a separate pot with the 10 ½ cups water and bring it to a boil over high heat. Measure the salt into your large stainless steel bowl, have the cornmeal in another bowl ready to pour. When the 10 ½ cups of water comes to a boil pour the water into the large stainless bowl. Using the whisk, stir the water into a whirlpool as you slowly pour in the cornmeal. Keep stirring in the same direction until the cornmeal is completely blended and there are no lumps.
Cover the bowl with foil, sealing the edges securely. Set the bowl over the bubbling water in the 6-quart pot. Check that the bowl does not touch the water, if necessary, ladle off a little water. Cook 1 ½ hours, keeping the water bubbling at a moderate rate over medium heat. Three of four times during cooking, use a rubber spatula to stir the polenta, scraping down the bottom of the bowl to check for sticking. Don’t panic if a little sticks to the bowls surface. Reseal the foil after each stirring. After 1 ½ hours, the polenta with be thick, smooth and have to suggestion of rawness in its taste. Use it immediately, or treat it in any of the following ways.
1. Baked Polenta
Turn your hot polenta out onto a board or large baking sheet and allow it to cool. The polenta will make a spreading mound. Use a string or a knife dipped in water to cut in into ½ inch-thick slices and place the cooled polenta slices in a single layer in an oiled shallow pan. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 30 minutes or until heated through.
Serve drizzled with a little melted butter or warmed olive oil and grated Parmesan. Or serve as a bed for braises, stews. We love it in the morning topped with butter, cinnamon, nutmeg, real maple syrup and fresh fruit.
2. Grilled Polenta
Cool the hot polenta on a board or in a large cake pan. Slice it about ¼ inch thick and then cut it into 1 inch squares. Brush with olive oil and grill over a barbeque, on a griddled skillet, or under the broiler, 8 minutes, or until browned on both sides. We love this with grilled peppers, roasted chicken or quail.
3. Fried Polenta
Cool the polenta on a board or in a large cake pan. Slice it about 1/8 inch thick and cut it into rectangles the size of a playing card. Deep-fry in vegetable oil at 375 degrees, 3 minutes, or until crusty and golden brown. Drain on paper towels and serve as a snack or drizzle with honey and dust with powdered sugar for a sweet treat.
4. Creamy Polenta
Add 2 cups heavy organic cream to the basic polenta recipe. We sometimes add fresh thyme at the end and serve with beef stew, oxtail ragu or roast chicken.
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