Recipes, Sides

Perfect Polenta

Polenta is coarsely ground cornmeal. The classic ratio is 1 part polenta to 5 parts liquid (see below). Your guide for Perfect Polenta, every time.

Polenta is delicious, cheap, and can easily be made in large amounts that can serve a crowd. Economical cooking, sign-me up! This simple recipe is easy to do, however, it can also be hard to do well. I always say people may have had a ‘not-so-great’ experience with a food and that forms their opinion. Polenta can easily turn out lumpy, pasty, and under seasoned. However, with a few tips and tricks you’ll have a ‘great’ experience with my perfect polenta.

The basic polenta to liquid ratio is technically 1:5, however, to start, I’ll use four parts water to one part polenta and then add in one part milk later on in the cooking process. I use 4 cups of water, 1 cup of polenta, and 1 cup of milk here to make about four servings. We’re aiming for perfect polenta my friends, that’ll turn that non-believer into a believer!

Ingredients: Perfect Polenta

Corn Meal: Coarse, stone-ground yellow corn. This makes the most delicious polenta. Do not purchase instant polenta as that’s parboiled, and will yield a gummy and goopy mess. Coarse or extra coarse is what you’re looking for (not the soft fine one either as pictured below).
Water: Polenta should be made with water. Some Americanized recipes will start with milk and/or stock, but you want to hydrate your polenta. Water allows the flavor of the corn to shine. If you use stock, the flavor is just that, stock, and not the flavor of the corn. Polenta made with all milk is just too heavy. Add some milk later on to give it a luscious texture.
Salt: Corn needs a lot of salt (it’s a starch) to reach its full flavor potential. While normally I’d say to watch the salt, keep in mind the function of salt does serve a purpose here. And of course, if there is a dietary concern, the Parmesan cheese will help provide some sodium.
Parmesan Cheese: or Pecorino Romano. The cheese melts right into the polenta creating a creamier texture.
Olive Oil: Many recipes use butter, however, I opted for olive oil.
Other Herbs: Salt and a smidge of black pepper is all I used here. If you have rosemary and/or thyme lying around you can add those in. Rosemary is strong, so just a sprig or two. Thyme you can add a few more.

How To Make Perfect Polenta

Boil: Bring 4 cups of lightly salted water to a boil.
Pour: Once boiling, slowly pour in the polenta in a thin, steady stream while whisking vigorously. Reduce heat to low, continue whisking every so often. You can’t over stir polenta and the more you stir, the creamier it will turn out!
Taste: After 10 minutes, taste the polenta. It will be very thick and it will have started to soften. Add 3/4 cup of milk, slowly drizzle in the milk whisking well in between additions, along with a dash of black pepper.
Cook: for another 10 minutes or so and taste again. This time around there should be no grittiness, and will be smooth and creamier. At this point, if it is too thick for your liking, you can add the remaining 1/4 cup of milk. I like mine a little thinner, so I do add the remaining 1/4 cup of milk.
Whisk: in the cheese and cook until it melts and is incorporated. Remove from the heat and stir in the olive oil. Taste one last time and adjust as needed with a dash or two of salt and/or pepper.

Perfect Polenta - adding the cornmeal into the pot of boiling water

Perfect Polenta: FAQs

Do you need to constantly stir polenta for it to turn out?

This is an old wives’ tale. You also don’t have to stir it clockwise or with a wooden spoon. This is not practical. Use a whisk at the beginning to make sure your polenta is void of any lumps. You really can’t stir polenta too much. Simply remember to stir it every so often because the more you stir it, the fewer lumps it’ll have and the smoother it will be.

What do you eat polenta with?

The options are limitless when it comes to serving polenta. Serve it as a side dish or top with your favorite meat or veggies. My favorite? Roasted Mushrooms, Sauteed Greens, and a Poached Egg.

How do you store polenta?

Whatever container you store the leftover polenta in it will take that shape. I like to store it in an 8×8 baking dish and then cut the polenta into smaller square pieces and pan-fry them. Serve it as you would pasta, ladle the meat sauce on top, and voila, your next meal is served.

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Perfect Polenta

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Print Recipe

Polenta is coarsely ground cornmeal. The classic ratio is 1 part polenta to 5 parts liquid (see below). Your guide for Perfect Polenta, every time.

Total Time: 25 minutes
Yield: 4 1x

Ingredients

Units Scale

1 cup polenta
4 cups water
3/4 – 1 cup whole milk
1/3 cup grated Parmesan Cheese
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and Pepper to taste

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Instructions

Boil: Bring 4 cups of lightly salted water to a boil.
Pour: Once boiling, slowly pour in the polenta in a thin, steady stream while whisking vigorously. Reduce heat to low, continue whisking every so often. You can’t over stir polenta and the more you stir, the creamier it will turn out!
Taste: After 10 minutes, taste the polenta. It will be very thick and it will have started to soften. Add 3/4 cup of milk, slowly drizzle in the milk whisking well in between additions, along with a dash of black pepper.
Cook: for another 10 minutes or so and taste again. This time around there should be no grittiness, and will be smooth and creamier. At this point, if it is too thick for your liking, you can add the remaining 1/4 cup of milk. I like mine a little thinner, so I do add the remaining 1/4 cup of milk.
Whisk in the cheese and cook until it melts and incorporated. Remove from the heat and stir in the olive oil. Taste one last time and adjust as needed with a dash or two of salt and/or pepper.