What is polenta?!
What is polenta?
Answers:
Cornmeal boiled in water. It's like a thick mush.
boiled ground corn meal which one uses in a variety of uses and dishes
"Polenta is made with either coarsely, gigantic or finely ground dried yellow or white cornmeal (ground maize), depending on the region and the texture desired.[1] 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 smooth creamy textures, caused by the presence of starch molecules dissolved into the water.
Cooked polenta can also be shaped into balls, patties, or sticks and fried in oil until it is golden brown and crispy; this variety of polenta is called crostini di polenta or polenta fritta. Similarly, once formed into a shape it can also be grilled using, for example, a brustolina grill."
"Regional variations
In Croatia, polenta is common on the Adriatic coast, where it is known as palenta or pura; in Slovenia and the northwestern part of Croatia, in and around Zagreb, it is known simply as polenta.
The Corsican variety is called pulenta, and it is made with sweet chestnut flour rather than cornmeal.
The Macedonian variety is known as ka?amak (качамак)
In Bulgaria, the dish is called kachamak (качамак)
The Serbian variety is called palenta.
The Romanian and Moldavian variety is called m?m?lig?; this word is also borrowed into the Russian (ru:Мамалыга).
In southern Austria Polenta is also eaten for breakfast (sweet Polenta); the Polenta pieces are either dipped in Milkcoffee or served in a bowl with Milkcoffee poured on top of it (kids favourite
Italian delicious paste or mush made with cornmeal, similar to southern grits but with a deeper yellowish color .
They are quite goooood!
It's the Italian name for boiled cornmeal mush. In the southern part of the United States, a very similar dish is called "grits". When cornmeal is boiled, the starch in the meal dissolves in the hot water and gives the dish a creamy texture. It can be served in this creamy state or it can be chilled until it's solid, sliced and sauteed. It's popular in many cultures and is a very nice starch to serve with entrees.
If you're looking for a recipe for it, here's a particularly easy one and one of my favorites:
2 tablespoons olive oil, plus extra for grilling or sauteing if desired
3/4 cup finely chopped red onion
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 quart chicken stock or broth
1 cup coarse ground cornmeal
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 ounces Parmesan, grated
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
In a large, oven-safe saucepan heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the red onion and salt and sweat until the onions begin to turn translucent, approximately 4 to 5 minutes. Reduce the heat to low, add the garlic, and saute for 1 to 2 minutes, making sure the garlic does not burn.
Turn the heat up to high, add the chicken stock, bring to a boil. Gradually add the cornmeal while continually whisking. Once you have added all of the cornmeal, cover the pot and place it in the oven. Cook for 35 to 40 minutes, stirring every
10 minutes to prevent lumps. Once the mixture is creamy, remove from the oven and add the butter, salt, and pepper. Once they are incorporated, gradually add the Parmesan.
Serve as is, or pour the polenta into 9 by 13-inch cake pan lined with parchment paper. Place in the refrigerator to cool completely.
Once set, turn the polenta out onto a cutting board and cut into squares, rounds, or triangles. Brush each side with olive oil and saute in a nonstick skillet over medium heat, or grill.
Polenta translates as corn meal mush, but it's much more. It's the staple food of northern Italy, where it still outshines pasta, and can be served in innumerable ways, as a first course, baked, with stews, or even as a bread substitute.
Polenta was the staple for northern Italians for many years. It is a thick corn mush. It traditionally is poured out of the pot and on to a round board to cool off or in to a deep pan - again to cool off and then to be cut into chunks and served. OR - it gets spooned out of the pot and directly on to your plate.
As a staple for poor folk there are many stories. The most important is that while the local governments gave breaks to the farmers who grew corn (and therefore made polenta food for all) many at first didn't realize that it wasn't a complete food and so many people suffered vitamin deficiencies.
Poor folk had polenta for breakfast, lunch and dinner. For breakfast they may have had it with some milk. Lunch and dinner was certainly polenta but with with a boiled vegetable. A story told is of families that used to hang a smoked fish from a beam over the table and the family would all rub a piece of their polenta on the fish to give the polenta some flavor. Now this is poor.
Today polenta has gone gourmet. You find it on the tables of the rich and famous, in the best restaurants and so no longer a food of the poor.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/polenta...
Greetings from Hamburg, Germany
Heinz
its made from cornmeal..it comes in a sausage like log...you can slice it...and sautè
Polenta is a popular food dish that has long been common in Italian and other European cuisine, but has recently gained attention in the United States as well. It is made from ground cornmeal, which is then boiled in water to create a porridge-like substance. Depending on the variety, it can be ground either coarsely or finely, and may be made from either yellow or white cornmeal.
The word "polenta" can be used to refer to the ground cornmeal itself, or to the prepared dish after boiling with water. Traditionally, it can take an hour or longer to prepare polenta, and must be stirred frequently during that time. Recently, however, quick-cook polenta has gained in popularity. This type can be prepared in just several minutes in a microwave, though food critics say that the taste of quick-cook polenta is far inferior to the slow cooked version.
Cooked polenta can be used as a base for toppings, such as sauces, cheeses, vegetables, and meat, much the same way that pasta can. In Northern Italy, polenta is even more popular than pasta is. Under various names, it's also very common in countries such as Mexico, Switzerland, Slovenia, and Romania.
After polenta has been cooked, it can be left in a refrigerator to set overnight, which will allow it to harden into a dough-like texture. At this point, you can cut the polenta into squares, which can be baked in the oven or grilled. Lighter than cornbread, it can be delicious with grilled meats such as a rack of ribs. Alternatively, the dough-like polenta can be pressed into a pan and baked, and can serve as an excellent base for an unusual type of pizza.
Polenta is very similar to the traditional American dish of grits, which has been popular in the South for many generations. Both are made from corn, but grits are always made from white corn, and are chemically treated before grinding. However, the difference in flavor between polenta and grits is minimal, and both can be prepared in the same methods.
Italy's grits.
Cornmeal boiled with water or cream and seasoning al gusto.