• It can provide a bed for warm steamed shrimp or other seafood that has been tossed with a little raw garlic, chopped very, very fine, and extra virgin olive oil.
• It goes with any stewed, braised, or roasted meat or fowl. It is the ultimate accompaniment for squab, pigeons, or quail. Whenever polenta is served soft and warm, it is desirable to have enough juices available from the meat it accompanies to sauce it lightly.
When Allowed to Cool
• It can be sliced and grilled and served, as in Venice, alongside a fritto misto di pesce, a mixed fry of seafood and vegetables.
• It can be sliced and baked like lasagne, with a variety of fillings.
• It can be cut into thin sticks or wedges, fried crisp in vegetable oil, and served with salads, or alongside Sautéed Calf’s Liver and Onions, Venetian Style, or with aperitifs, before dinner.
There is both yellow and white polenta, depending on whether one uses meal from yellow or white corn, but yellow polenta is more common. The cornmeal itself may be either fine-grained or coarse. Coarse-grained yellow cornmeal is more robustly satisfying in texture and flavor, and it is the one suggested in the recipes below.
Making Polenta
About 4 cups
7 cups water
1 tablespoon salt
1⅔ cups coarse-grained imported Italian yellow cornmeal
An 8- to 10-cup bowl, preferably steel or copper
1. Bring the water to a boil in a large, heavy pot.
2. Add the salt, keep the water boiling at medium-high heat, and add the cornmeal in a very thin stream, letting a fistful of it run through nearly closed fingers. You should be able to see the individual grains spilling into the pot. The entire time you are adding the cornmeal, stir it with a whisk, and make sure the water is always boiling.
3. When you have put in all the meal, begin to stir with a long-handled wooden spoon, stirring continuously and with thoroughness, bringing the mixture up from the bottom, and loosening it from the sides of the pot. Continue to stir for 40 to 45 minutes. The cornmeal becomes polenta when it forms a mass that pulls cleanly away from the sides of the pot.
4. Moisten the inside of the bowl with cold water. Turn the polenta out of the pot and into the bowl. After 10 to 15 minutes, turn the bowl over onto a wooden block or a large round platter, unmolding the polenta, which will have a dome-like shape.
5. If serving it soft and hot, serve it at once. You may, if you wish, scoop out the upper central portion of the dome and fill it with whatever you have prepared to go with the polenta—sausages, pork ribs, a veal, beef, or lamb stew, fricasseed chicken, and so on.
Note on consistency As it begins to cool, polenta should be thick, and when moved, firm enough to quiver. From an Italian point of view, it is least appealing when it is as thin and runny as breakfast oatmeal.
Note If you are going to let it become completely cold and firm and later slice it, do not put the hot polenta in a bowl, but spread it flat on a board to a thickness of about 3 inches.
Ahead-of-time note If you are planning to slice polenta and grill it, bake it, or fry it, you must make it several hours in advance. It will keep for several days in the refrigerator. If you are refrigerating it for a few days, keep it whole, in one piece, and wrap it tightly with foil or plastic wrap.
Cleaning the pot After emptying the polenta from the pot, fill it with cold water and set it aside to soak overnight. In the morning most of the cornmeal film attached to the pot lifts off easily. If you are using an Italian-made unlined copper polenta pot, after emptying it in the morning and scraping away all the loosened residues, clean it with ¼ cup of vinegar and some salt. Rinse with plain water, without using any detergent, and wipe dry. Whenever you use an unlined copper pot, go over it again with vinegar and salt, and rinse thoroughly with plain water before each use.
Variation: Polenta by the No-Stirring Method
Stirring polenta in an open pot for the entire time it cooks undoubtedly yields the best product, mostly in terms of pure fragrance, and to a certain, but lesser extent in terms of overall flavor. It is nonetheless possible to make very good polenta with hardly any stirring. It will take the same amount of time, but it will free you from the stove for the better part of an hour. Use exactly the same ingredients in the basic recipe above, and proceed as follows:
1. Bring the water to a boil in a large, heavy pot.
2. Add the salt, keep the water boiling at medium-high heat, and add the cornmeal in a very thin stream, letting a fistful of it run through nearly closed fingers. You should be able to see the individual grains spilling into the pot. The entire time you are adding the cornmeal, stir it with a whisk, and make sure the water is always boiling.
3. When you have put in all the meal, stir with a long-handled wooden spoon for 2 minutes, then cover the pot. Adjust heat so that the water bubbles at a lively simmer, but not at a full boil. When the polenta has cooked for 10 minutes, uncover and stir for 1 full minute, then cover again. After another 10 minutes, stir again, then cover, let cook another 10 minutes, stir once more, and in 10 minutes, repeat the procedure.
4. Forty minutes will have elapsed, and the polenta will need another 5 minutes to shed its graininess and come together into a soft, creamy mass. Just before you take it off heat, stir it vigorously for about 1 minute, loosening it from the pot. Turn it out of the pot into a moistened bowl, and proceed as described in the basic recipe.
Instant Polenta
IT IS SO EASY and it takes such little time to make polenta using the instant product, that I wish I could regard it more favorably. Unfortunately, if you are acquainted with the texture and flavor of polenta cooked by the conventional slow method, you might not be wholly satisfied by the results the shortcut brings.
Not to be completely discouraging, I would recommend you rely on the instant polenta when you plan to integrate polenta with other savory ingredients, such as in the layered polenta, or with a juicy dish of sausages, in which its shortcomings would become negligible. If it is to stand on its own, however, next to a fine roast quail, for example, you’d be likely to enjoy traditional polenta more. 4 heaping cups
6½ cups water
1 tablespoon salt
2 cups imported Italian instant polenta flour
1. Bring the water to a boil.
2. Add the salt, wait for the water to resume a fast boil, then add the polenta flour in a thin stream. Stir it with a whisk or wooden spoon as you add it. Continue stirring for 1 full minute, cover the pot, and cook for 15 minutes, longer than most instructions on the packages indicate. Stir for 1 minute before turning it out of the pot and into a moistened bowl, as described in the basic recipe.
Baked Polenta with Bolognese Meat Sauce
Polenta is used here as though it were pasta for lasagne: It is sliced, layered with meat sauce and béchamel, and baked.
For 6 servings
Béchamel Sauce, prepared as directed, using 2 cups milk, 4 tablespoons (½ stick) butter, 3 tablespoons flour, and ¼ teaspoon salt
Polenta, produced with this this recipe, allowed to become cold and firm for slicing
A lasagne pan and butter for smearing it
2 cups Bolognese Meat Sauce, prepared with this recipe
⅔ cup freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese
1. Prepare the béchamel sauce, making it rather thin, the consistency of sour cream. When done, keep it warm in the upper half of a double boiler, with the heat turned to very low. Stir it just before using.
2. Preheat oven to 450°.
3. Slice the cold polenta into layers about ½ inch thick, watching both sides of the mass as you cut to be sure to produce even slices.
4. Smear the lasagne pan lightly with butter. Cover with a layer of polenta, patching with more polenta where necessary to fill in gaps. Combine the meat sauce and the béchamel, spread some of it over the polenta, then add a sprinkling of grated Parmesan. Cover with another layer of polenta, repeating the entire procedure, leaving
just enough of the béchamel and meat sauce mixture and grated cheese for a light topping over the next and final layer of polenta. Dot sparingly with butter.
5. Bake on the uppermost rack of the preheated oven for about 10 to 15 minutes, until a light brown crust has formed on top. After removing from the oven, allow to settle for a few minutes before serving.
FRITTATE
Defining frittate A frittata may be described as an open-faced Italian omelet. Like an omelet, it consists of eggs cooked in butter with a variety of fillings. But the texture, appearance, and cooking procedure of a frittata are quite unlike those of other types of omelets. Instead of being creamy or runny, it is firm and set, although never to the point of being stiff and dry. It is not folded over into a thick, padded, tapered shape, but consists of a single thin layer, round in shape like the bottom of the pan in which it was made. The variable ingredients that determine the flavor of a frittata are mixed with the eggs while these are raw and become an integral part of them. Frittate are always cooked very slowly, over low heat.
Making a frittata The basic method consists of the following steps:
1. Break the eggs into a bowl and beat them with a fork or whisk until the yolks and whites are evenly blended. Add the vegetables, cheese, or other flavor components required by the specific recipe, and mix thoroughly until all the ingredients are evenly combined.
2. Turn on your broiler. (See note below.)
3. Melt the butter in a skillet, preferably with non-stick surface, over medium heat. Do not let the butter become colored, but as soon as it begins to foam, pour the egg mixture—stirring it with a fork while tipping it out of the bowl—into the pan. Turn the heat down to very low. When the eggs have set and thickened, and only the surface is runny, run the skillet under the broiler for a few seconds. Take it out as soon as the “face” of the frittata sets, before it becomes browned.
Note A frittata must be cooked on both sides and running it under a broiler, as described above, is the method I find most satisfactory. I have seen people flip a frittata in the air, like a flapjack, and continue cooking it over the stove. Others turn it over onto a plate, and slide it back into the pan. Or, if you like working with the oven, you can do it entirely there: Pour the mixture into a buttered baking pan, preferably round, and put it into a preheated 350° oven for 15 minutes, or until the frittata is no longer runny.
4. When ready, loosen the frittata with a spatula, slide it onto a platter, and cut it into serving wedges, like a pie.
Serving a frittata Frittate taste equally good when hot, warm, or at room temperature. They are at their least appealing cold out of the refrigerator. When cut into pie-like wedges, a frittata or an assortment of them will enrich an antipasto platter, make a very nice sandwich, travel beautifully to any picnic, or become a welcome addition to any buffet table.
Pan size All the frittate that follow were made in a 10-inch non-stick skillet. The pan must have a metal, flameproof handle so you can place it under the broiler.
Frittata with Cheese
For 4 to 6 servings
6 eggs
Salt
Black pepper, ground fresh from the mill
1 cup freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano OR Swiss cheese
2 tablespoons butter
Beat the eggs in a bowl and add the salt, a few grindings of pepper, and the grated Parmesan or Swiss cheese. Mix thoroughly until evenly blended. Melt the butter in the pan and when it begins to foam add the egg mixture and make the frittata following the basic method.
Frittata with Onions
LIKE A large part of Italian cooking, particularly that of the North, this frittata rests on a foundation of browned onions. If you want to, you can build on it, adding vegetables, herbs, sausages, or shrimp, according to your inclination or what you happen to have on hand. Anything may be added, but nothing need be because it is complete and satisfying just as it is.
For 4 to 6 servings
4 cups onion sliced very thin
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Salt
5 eggs
⅔ cup freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese
Black pepper, ground fresh from the mill
2 tablespoons butter
1. Put the onions, olive oil, and some salt into a large sauté pan, turn the heat on to low, and cover the pan. Cook until the onions wilt and become greatly diminished in bulk, then uncover and continue cooking until the onions become colored a rich golden brown.
2. Beat the eggs in a bowl and add the onions, grated Parmesan, salt, and a few grindings of pepper. When adding the onions, drain them of oil by using a slotted spoon or spatula to transfer them from the pan. Mix thoroughly. Melt the butter in the pan, and when it begins to foam, add the egg mixture and make the frittata following the basic method.
Ahead-of-time note You can cook the onions up to this point several hours or even a day or two in advance. You do not need to refrigerate them if you are going to use them later the same day. Let them come to room temperature before mixing them with the eggs.
Frittata with Zucchini and Basil
For 4 to 6 servings
1 cup onion sliced very thin
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
Salt
3 medium zucchini (see note below)
5 eggs
⅔ cup freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese
Black pepper, ground fresh from the mill
6 to 8 fresh basil leaves, torn into pieces, OR 1 tablespoon parsley chopped fine
2 tablespoons butter
1. Put the onion, olive oil, and some salt into a large sauté pan, turn the heat on to low, and cover the pan. Cook until the onion wilts and becomes greatly diminished in bulk, then uncover and continue cooking until the onion becomes colored a rich golden brown.
2. While the onion is cooking, soak the zucchini in cold water, scrub them clean, and cut off both ends, as described in greater detail. Cut the cleaned zucchini into disks ¼ inch thin. If you are using leftover cores, chop them into coarse pieces.
3. When the onion is done, add salt and the zucchini. Cook over medium heat until the zucchini have become colored a light nut brown, or if you are using the cores, until they have become a light brown, creamy pulp. Off heat, tip the pan, push the zucchini and onion toward the upended edge of the pan, and spoon off the oil that collects at the bottom. When drained of oil, transfer the vegetables to a bowl until their heat abates.
4. Make the frittata following the basic method, adding the grated Parmesan, the zucchini and onion, a pinch of salt, and a few grindings of pepper to the beaten egg. After mixing thoroughly to combine the ingredients well, add the torn-up basil or chopped parsley.
Note If you have just made the stuffed zucchini, or any other stuffed zucchini dish, use the leftover cores of 6 to 8 zucchini for this frittata.
Frittata with Tomato, Onion, and Basil
For 4 to 6 servings
3 cups onion sliced very thin
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
Salt
1 cup fresh, ripe plum tomatoes, skinned raw with a peeler, seeded, and chopped, OR canned imported Italian plum tomatoes, drained and chopped
5 eggs
2 tablespoons freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese
Black pepper, ground fresh from the mill
½ cup fresh basil, torn into very small pieces
2 tablespoons butter
1. Put the onion, olive oil, and some salt into a large sauté pan, turn the heat on to low, and cover the pan. Cook until the onion wilts and becomes greatly diminished in bulk, then uncover and continue cooking until the onion becomes colored a rich golden brown.
2. Add the tomatoes and salt, turn the ingredients over thoroughly to coat well, and adjust heat to cook at a steady simmer for about 15 or 20 minutes, until the oil floats free of the tomatoes. Tip the pan, push the tomatoes and onion toward the upended edge of the pan, and spoon off the oil that collects at the bottom. Wh
en drained of oil, transfer the vegetables to a bowl until their heat abates.
3. Beat the eggs in a bowl and add the tomatoes and onion, a pinch of salt, the grated Parmesan, and a few grindings of pepper. After mixing thoroughly to combine the ingredients well, add the torn-up basil. Melt the butter in the pan, and when it begins to foam, add the egg mixture and make the frittata following the basic method.
Ahead-of-time note You can cook the onion and tomatoes up to this point several hours or even a day or two in advance. You do not need to refrigerate them if you are going to use them later the same day. If refrigerated, bring them to room temperature before proceeding with the frittata.
Frittata with Artichokes
For 6 servings
2 medium artichokes
½ lemon
1 teaspoon garlic chopped very fine
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons parsley chopped very fine
Salt
Black pepper, ground fresh from the mill
5 eggs
¼ cup freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese
2 tablespoons butter
1. Trim the artichokes of all their tough parts following these detailed instructions. As you work, rub the cut artichokes with the lemon to keep them from turning black.
Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking Page 31