Corny Polenta Recipes

CHEF JOHN'S THREE CORN POLENTA

Steps:

• Melt 1 teaspoon butter and olive oil in a saucepan over medium-low heat. Cook and stir 2/3 of the corn, with a pinch of salt and a pinch of cayenne pepper in the hot butter and oil until the corn is fragrant and golden, about 10 minutes. Add garlic; cook and stir until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
• Pour 2 cups water into corn mixture; bring to a simmer and whisk polenta into mixture. Bring to a simmer again, reduce heat to low, and simmer, stirring occasionally, until mixture is thick and polenta absorbs the water, 20 minutes. Add remaining 1/2 cup water and stir; cook for until water is completely absorbed, about 10 minutes more.
• Stir remaining corn and 1 teaspoon butter into polenta mixture. Remove from heat, cover the pot, and let sit for 5 minutes before serving.

CHEESY POLENTA

Steps:

• Bring the water to a boil in a large, heavy pot. Add the salt. Gradually whisk in the cornmeal. Reduce the heat to low and cook, stirring often, until the mixture thickens and the cornmeal is tender, 15 to 20 minutes. Remove the pot from the heat. Add the cheese, milk, butter, and parsley. Stir until the butter and cheese have melted. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Transfer the polenta to a bowl and serve.

CHEESY POLENTA

Steps:

• In a large pot over medium-high heat, bring milk, water, and salt to a boil. Gradually whisk in polenta. Reduce heat to low, and cover. Cook 20 minutes, until creamy, lifting the lid and stirring every 3 or 4 minutes to prevent sticking. Remove pot from stove, stir in pepper and butter. Gradually stir in cheese. Serve.

CORN AND POLENTA FRITTERS

Steps:

• Combine flour, polenta, baking powder, and salt in large bowl. Whisk together buttermilk, olive oil, maple syrup, and egg yolks in separate bowl. Stir buttermilk mixture into flour mixture.
• Beat egg whites with electric mixer until stiff peaks form. Fold egg whites into batter, then fold in corn.
• Coat griddle or large skillet with olive oil, and heat over medium heat. Spoon 2 Tbs. batter onto griddle for each fritter, and cook 3 to 4 minutes per side, or until browned and crisp. Transfer to serving plate, and keep warm until all fritters are done.

HOW TO MAKE BASIC POLENTA RECIPE

Steps:

• Bring water to a boil with 1 tablespoon coarse salt. When the water begins to boil, pour in the corn flour slowly and gradually. Stir constantly and at first with a hand whisk: it helps to avoid lumps. Never stop stirring as you pour in the flour. The TRICK is to pour the flour in slowly while stirring quickly.
• lower the heat to low. Cook the polenta without ever stopping stirring, always in the same direction, with a long-handled wooden spoon, so that the mixture does not stick to the bottom of the pot. Cook the polenta for about 40-60 minutes.
• Once cooked, pour the polenta on a wooden cutting board if its consistency is hard and firm, as in our recipe. If you prefer a soft polenta, then pour it in a serving bowl. Serve hot.

CREAMY CHEESY POLENTA

Steps:

• Heat the water, milk and salt in a saucepan over medium high heat. When it is steaming, slowly pour in the cornmeal while whisking the mixture in the pan.
• Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and continue stirring occasionally over the next 10-15 minutes while the mixture thickens.
• Remove the thickened polenta from the stove and add the butter and the cheese. Stir until smooth and creamy. Taste, adjust the salt if needed and serve warm. Enjoy!

CHEESY POLENTA

Steps:

• In a pot, combine milk, broth, salt and cornmeal. Place over medium-high heat and whisk constantly until liquid is boiling. Reduce heat to low, cover and cook 20 minutes until creamy, stirring every 3-4 minutes to prevent sticking and burning.
• Remove from heat. Stir in pepper, butter, cheeses and optional herbs.

CREAMY CORN POLENTA

Steps:

• Bring the broth, 2 1/2 cups water, butter and 1 teaspoon salt to a boil in a heavy, large saucepan over high heat. Gradually whisk in the polenta. Continue to whisk until the polenta begins to thicken, 2 to 3 minutes. Reduce the heat to low. Cover and cook until the polenta is very thick and tender, stirring often with a flat-bottom spoon or heatproof rubber spatula to prevent sticking or burning, about 20 minutes. Blend the corn in a mini processor until a coarse puree forms. Stir the corn puree into the polenta. Season with more salt if desired.

CHEESY POLENTA

Steps:

• One of the more under-utilized sides dishes (at least in the starch category) is polenta. Polenta is simply ground corn...and generally the same as Grits - although some will point out the corn may be ground to different sizes, and/or be from yellow as opposed to white corn. When simmered in water, the hard bits of corn soften up, just like pasta, to form a porridge, that is great on its own, but can also be flavored with all kinds of other ingredients. In this recipe video, I show you how to make a cheesy polenta buy using (shockingly I know) cheese, and some cream. The result is a smooth, and silky combo, that goes great with roast meats, and heavy sauces. Hope you enjoy it as much as I do. Recipe Overview and Keys to Success To make the best polenta I want you to play close attention to these few cooking techniques: You can start off by following the directions on the package, but I find I always need to add more water as I go. If the polenta gets so stiff you can't easily stir it...just add some more water - no biggie Same thing when it comes to time. I like the polenta grains to get nice and soft, so I generally cook them for about 15 minutes longer than suggested You gotta cook over low heat, and stir every 5 minutes or so to prevent burning Finally, when ready to add the cream and cheese near the end of the process, do so in a few steps, tasting as you go. This will allow you to figure out if it tastes great where it's at, or you need to add additional cheese/cream. RECIPE FOR CREAMY POLENTA Ingredients (for two) Half cup of polenta 2 cups of chicken stock, or water Half cup of gruyere (or other Swiss) cheese 2 - 3 tablespoons of cream Salt and pepper Making the Polenta Add the stock to a pot and bring to a simmer Once simmering, slowly whisk in the polenta Over the next few minutes the polenta will thicken quite a bit; which is normal Season with a few pinches of salt and pepper, and continue to cook, stirring for a few seconds, every 7 -8 minutes or so After about 30 minutes, the polenta will be nice and soft, as well as thick. You may have to add more water several times during the cooking process. Note, it's no problem, if you ever add too much, just cook uncovered and let the water evaporate Once the grains have softened, add about 1/2 the grated gruyere cheese, and 1/2 the cream; stir to combine Taste the polenta, and if you'd like add the remaining cheese, cream and more salt/pepper Taste again, and make any final adjustments Sever and enjoy!! I love to use polenta in place of mashed potatoes, rice, pasta and other sides....give it a try, and you'll love it.