Polenta with Tomatoes & Olives
Submitted by CelticMoon88
Pan-fried polenta wedges with briny olives and a slow-simmered garlic tomato sauce. A rustic Italian dish that turns simple cornmeal into a crisp golden base for a fragrant herbed sauce.
YIELD
6 servingsPREP
10 minCOOK
30 minREADY
40 minThis is the proper Italian way with polenta, a two-stage technique that turns humble cornmeal into something restaurant-worthy. First, the polenta is cooked low and slow until it pulls away from the pan, then set firm in a pan and chilled into a sliceable disc. Wedges get pan-fried in hot olive oil or butter for that crackly golden crust against a creamy interior.
Stir constantly while the polenta cooks. The starchy grain is notorious for sticking and scorching the second your back is turned. Twenty minutes of steady stirring builds the gluten-like structure that gives polenta its silky body. Your wrist will know when it is done.
The tomato sauce simmers a slow forty minutes with onion, garlic, and a herb bouquet of rosemary, bay, and thyme, reducing into something deeply savory and concentrated.
Serve the fried wedges piping hot under that sauce, with grated Parmesan or extra olives alongside. In the Veneto region this same combination accompanies fried fish or skewered game birds.
Chef Tips
- Trickle the polenta through your fingers into the boiling water while stirring vigorously to prevent lumps
- Use a heavy-bottomed pot, thin pans scorch the polenta on the bottom while you try to stir
- Chill the set polenta at least two hours, fully cold and firm is non-skippable for clean wedges that hold up to frying
- Use a non-stick or well-seasoned pan for frying, sticking polenta tears apart on the flip
- Tie the herb bouquet with kitchen twine so you can fish it out clean before serving
Variations
- Stir grated Parmesan into the polenta along with the oil for richer, cheesier wedges
- Use sundried tomatoes blended into the sauce for a deeper, sweeter base
- Top with crumbled goat cheese or a fried egg for an easy meatless dinner upgrade
Ingredients
Directions
Bring 1¾ pints salted water to the boil.
Reduce the heat to low and add the grain as though you were making porridge: let the polenta trickle slowly through your fingers and stir the contents of the pan very vigorously all the time to prevent lumps forming.
Cook over the gentlest possible heat for about 20 minutes, stirring more or less continuously - like porridge and semolina, polenta is a great sticker.
The mixture is ready when it begins to come away from the sides of the pan, is perfectly smooth and so thick that your wrist aches from stirring.
Away from the heat beat in 1 tablespoon oil, the stoned olives if using them, and some salt and pepper.
Use the remaining 1 tablespoon oil to grease the interior of an 11 to 12 inch frying pan.
Turn the polenta into the frying pan, pack it down smoothly and level the top with an oiled spoon.
Set aside for a couple of hours until the polenta is cold and solid.
Loosen it with a palette knife, turn it out of the pan and cut into 6 -8 wedges.
To make the sauce, chop the onion finely and sweat it in the oil for 10 to 12 minutes.
Add the roughly chopped tomatoes and their juices, several cloves of finely chopped garlic and a little bouquet of rosemary, bay and thyme, or plenty of well-flavoured herbs of your choice.
Let the mixture bubble away gently for 40 minutes or so, just stirring occasionally, until reduced to a rich and fragrant sauce.
Remove the bouquet of herbs, season with salt and pepper and add extra fresh chopped herbs to taste.
Fry the wedges of polenta in very hot olive oil or unsalted butter, or a mixture of the two, for 4 to 5 minutes on each side until lightly crusted and heated right through.
Serve piping hot with the garlicky tomato sauce, and with a bowl of olives or grated Parmesan if you wish.
In the Veneto polenta sometimes accompanies small silvery fried fish, or a dish of Fergato alla Veneziana.
Quail or other tiny game birds threaded on to skewers and cooked on a spit, or a sauté of chicken livers, and grilled sausages, are other good choices but polenta can be served on its own just as well.
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