Clean recipe · cooking.nytimes.com
No-Stir Polenta
Though polenta is traditionally made on the stovetop, simmered in water to become creamy and porridge-like, its results often skew inconsistent. Not to mention that standing over a pot stirring for upwards of an hour is simply a bit of a drag. Enter oven-baked polenta, a no-stir, set-it-and-forget approach to Italian cornmeal that’s infallible. Simply whisk coarse polenta with water and salt, slip it into the oven and let it do its thing while you do yours. Return and you have a creamy bed to rest everything from a saucy ragú or chickpeas all’arrabbiata to sausage and peppers or shrimp scampi.
Original recipe: cooking.nytimes.com
- Yield:
- 4 servings
- Prep:
- 5 min
- Cook:
- 50 min
- Total:
- 55 min
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Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 cup coarse-ground polenta (not instant or quick-cooking)
- Salt
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cubed
- ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese (optional)
Instructions
- Heat oven to 350 degrees. Drizzle the olive oil into a 10- to 12-inch cast-iron skillet or 8-inch square baking dish and use your hands to evenly coat the bottom and sides.
- Combine the polenta, 1 teaspoon salt and 4 cups of water in the pan. Bake, uncovered, for 40 minutes.
- Whisk in the butter and cheese, if using, and continue to bake for 5 minutes more. Whisk again, then taste and season with additional salt as needed. Serve immediately.