Polenta

The process is straight forward. You'll need:

• 1 pound or slightly more of coarsely ground corn meal (you want corn meal the consistency of fine to medium-grained sand, not flour, and if possible stone-ground)
• 2 quarts boiling water (have more handy)
• A heaping teaspoon of salt

Set the water on the fire in a wide bottomed pot and add the salt. When it comes to a boil, add the corn meal in a very slow stream (you don't want the pot to stop boiling), stirring constantly with a wooden spoon to keep lumps from forming. Continue stirring, in the same direction, as the mush thickens, for about a half-hour (the longer you stir the better the polenta will be; the finished polenta should have the consistency of firm mashed potatoes), adding boiling water as necessary. The polenta is done when it peels easily off the sides of the pot.

Serves 4.

This is the standard technique you will find in all Italian cookbooks, and it does take a fair amount of effort because if you stop stirring the polenta will stick and burn -- enough effort that a company makes paioli (traditional copper polenta pots) that have motorized attachments to take care of the stirring. They work quite well, but you do have to buy one.

John instead wrote to tell me of a vastly simpler technique:
"Fancied doing your "Verza e Luganega" as it's chilly here too (Arese, just outside Milan), so consulted your polenta recipe as well. This repeated the timeless mantra that you have to stir, stir, stir. This we have always believed and confess that it tended to douse enthusiasm for frequent polenta making.

"That's until our friend Patrizia recounted a family visit to the Valle d'Aosta. They went into a trattoria quite late in the afternoon, way past lunchtime, and asked if they could eat. Yes they could. And was there polenta? Yes of course, subito. Even at half past three in the afternoon. This seemed odd if it always had to be made specially in 40 minute batches.

"Then they were told the secret:
"Prepare your polenta exactly as before, but once you've drizzled the corn flour into the boiling water, you cover it with brown paper (I just open up the brown paper bag we get our bread in), clamp the lid on, move to the back burner and turn the heat right down to minimum. Then, after the statutory 40 minutes, hey presto, your polenta's ready - with no stirring. It will also stay warm for... anyone turning up two hours late for lunch.

"We've tried it and it really does work."

Remo suggests yet another method that is perfect if you plan ahead:
"My old grandmother (born in Italy) taught me years ago how to avoid the drudgery of having to stir and stir and stir polenta. Put the basic recipie in a slow cooker. Cook on low over night (at least about 6 hours). In the morning you will have the smoothest, creamiest polenta you only dreamed about. A single portion can be made in a bowl set in water as in a double-boiler arrangement (level to match bowl contents) -- saves having to clean the cooker pot."

Loris read Remo's suggestion and says,
"Great idea if you’re making enough for a few people. However, when we make it, it is a family affair usually involving 5-10 persons, or more, for dinner. What we’ve found, in order to avoid the lumps associated with adding the corn meal in the boiling water, is to use a hand mixer. The mixer does not replace the stirring that is involved in order to avoid the polenta from sticking to the bottom of the pot, but zero lumps are guaranteed."

A final observation: While polenta is nice year round, making it in the summer will heat your kitchen, which is something you would likely rather do without. Commercially prepared polenta doesn't have the consistency of the home-made variety, but will work and is a terrific timesaver. Not to mention cool.

Polenta: History and background | Polenta Recipes and recipes well suited to polenta