Winter’s Balm: A Bubbling Pot of Polenta (Published 2013) (2024)

I’M ALWAYS IN THE MOOD for polenta. Furthermore, I always make it from scratch, stirring a pot of good cornmeal slowly over a low flame. Yes, there is instant polenta, and the packaged type in plastic tubes — shun them. You wouldn’t buy instant coffee, would you?

Polenta is basically cornmeal mush, and you can make it with any kind of cornmeal. Italian groceries stock the best brands, which can be ground coarse, medium or fine, all of which have the potential to be delicious. As with most ingredients, the better the cornmeal, the better the polenta.

There’s no getting around the fact that you need nearly an hour to make real polenta, but it’s not such a chore. It does need a little nursing, but once you get the hang of it, you can almost do it in your sleep. Then you can start riffing.

In Italy, I’ve had a humble slice of polenta served with a meaty ragù in Bologna and cuttlefish stew in Viareggio. In Venice I had an extravagant dish in which polenta was adorned with black truffles and quail eggs.

I offer two simple suggestions here: grilling squares of polenta and serving them with eggs and a spicy tomato sauce, and baking the polenta with a rich stuffing of spinach and cheese.

Let’s talk a little bit more about how to cook it. I like to use the technique employed by grandmothers all over Italy: Bring a pot of water to a rapid boil and slowly pour in the cornmeal, whisking for 3 to 5 minutes until it thickens. Turn the flame very low, and let the polenta bubble gently. As the mixture cooks, it actually speaks, making little puffing sounds while sputtering air at the surface.

Despite what fanatics will advise, I stir it only every 10 minutes or so, or when I think of it, as opposed to constantly. The main thing is to check the moisture and to make sure it’s cooking evenly; if the polenta gets too thick, it won’t cook properly. Depending upon the cornmeal you use, you may need to stir in a little more water from time to time. The general proportions of water to cornmeal are 5 to 1 for soft polenta (best in a bowl topped with butter and Parmesan) and 4 to 1 for firm (best for grilling, baking or frying).

All of this is to say that making a fine pot of polenta is well within your grasp, even if you’re not an Italian grandmother.