Just a few weeks ago I was invited to an all Italian pot luck picnic out in the country outside of Vicenza.
They had all this great Italian food and among it was polenta. Also had several actually more than several
different kinds of wines and I tried them all. Needless to say we had a fun, fun time.

Polenta is a dish made from boiled cornmeal. Although the word "polenta" is borrowed into English from Italian,
and it is a traditional staple food throughout much of Northern Italy, the same dish (under various names) is
also found in Slovenian, Savoyard, Swiss, American Southern, Austrian, Portuguese, Bosnian, Croatian, Cuba,
Hungarian, Serbian, Romanian, Bulgarian, Georgian, Corsican, Argentine, Uruguayan, Brazilian, Peruvian,
Venezuelan, Haitian, Mexican and Turkish cuisines.

Polenta is made with ground yellow or white cornmeal (ground maize) originaly made with Chestnut meal in ancient times.
It can be ground coarsely or finely depending on the region and the texture desired. As it is known today, polenta
derives from earlier forms of grain mush (known as puls or pulmentum in Latin or more commonly as gruel or porridge)
commonly eaten in Roman times and after. Early forms of polenta were made with such starches as the grain farro and
chestnut flour, both of which are still used in small quantity today. When boiled, polenta has a smooth, creamy texture
due to the gelatinization of starch in the grain, though it may not be completely homogeneous if a coarse grind or a
particularly hard grain such as flint corn is used.

Polenta was originally and still is a peasant food. However, since the late 20th century, polenta has also become a
premium product. Polenta dishes are on the menu in many high-end restaurants, and prepared polenta can be found in
supermarkets at high prices. Many current polenta recipes have given new life to an essentially bland and common food,
invigorating it with various cheeses or tomato sauces.

i love polenta
polenta and gorgonzola
polenta and sausage
these are my favourites



by the way people of north italy are called "polentoni"

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I have 2 grandparents from the Naples area and 2 from the North. I was born and spend my first 6 years in Brescia and I had plenty of polenta growing up.
Here is the history and some data from Justin
http://www.lifeinitaly.com/food/polenta.asp

Relatives on my mother's side were from Piemonte (north) where polenta is a tyipcal dish. (la cucina tipica). As you are all aware Italy is not only known for great foods, but moreover the regional cooking and local dishes.

I grew up in the states and remember eating "pollo al cacciatore", but I'm sure my family americanized it a bit.
Anyway, as you are learning, Polenta is a popular dish in Northern Italy and is even becoming popular in the states...but I think its now being served in different ways here.

I can remember eating polenta with sausage as a kid. Sometimes, we would just boil it on the stove but other times we would finish cooking it in the oven. yum

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is it much different than corn bread?

Yes it is different from cornbread. Polenta isn't sweet like cornbread (at least I have never had it that way) and they have rather different textures. Polenta is often served with meat in the same way you might serve cornbread with chicken. Although I'm pretty sure that polenta is a "primo" which means you would it eat it as a first course before the main one.)

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paolo: your link includes a link to a recipe...which doesn't work

anyone have a recipe to share?

I wrote a load on this late last night and when it was almost finished my PC 'crashed' - all gone in a nano second.

I'll write it again this afternoon - well the 'alpine' version that is! Attached is one of the alpine polenta dishes with pork ribs and sausage.

Attached Images

Polenta e costolette!.JPG (110.9 KB, 3 views)

Polenta

Ingredients:

2 cups finely ground corn meal
7 cups water
1 Tbsp olive oil
salt to taste



Instructions:

1. Add the oil to the water, bring the water to a boil in a large pan.

2. Add the polenta a bit at a time mixing constantly with a wire whisk. Be careful, as the polenta thickens up it will splash.

3. Once all the polenta is mixed reduce to a low heat.

4. Add a pinch a salt. Mix it in and taste to see if it is salty
enough. If not repeat this step.

5. Cover and let simmer for 45 minutes. If you have a nice stainless steel pan with a thick bottom you can leave it simmer alone. If you don’t have such a pan you are going to have to mix it often with a wooden spoon.

6. If the polenta is too thick you can add a little bit of boiling water to thin it out.

Note: be sure the polenta you are using is not instant...if it is then follow the directions on the package.

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