Recipe for Soft Polenta: Double-Boiler Technique

Recipes title

Soft Polenta: Double-Boiler Technique

Serves 4-6

This technique produces flavorful polenta without a great deal of hands-on attention. Use it when you will be in the kitchen attending to other tasks.

6 cups boiling water
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1 cup coarse-ground polenta
2 tablespoons butter
2 ounces Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, grated

Fill the bottom half of a double boiler with enough water so that it will touch the second half when it is inserted. Bring the water to a boil, reduce the heat, and keep the water at a simmer.
Place the 4 cups of boiling water in the top portion of the double boiler, stir in the salt and polenta, and set it in the bottom half of the double boiler. Bring the water and polenta back to a boil, cover very tightly, and simmer over medium-low heat until the polenta is soft and tender. Every 20 minutes or so, remove the lid, and stir the polenta, using a long-handled wooden spoon. Continue this process, adding additional water as necessary, until the polenta is thick, tender, and pulls away from the sides of the pot, about 1-1/2 hours. Add the butter and cheese during the last 10 minutes of cooking. When it is done, remove the polenta from the heat, pour onto a large platter or bowl or into individual dishes, and serve immediately.

From:
Polenta
by Michele Anna Jordan
Broadway Books
$19.95; 1997
ISBN 0-553-06732-X
Copyright © 1997 Michele Anna Jordan.
Reprinted by permission.