<p>Any ideas for recipes that use it? I know it is corn meal, but not really sure when or how it is used. Is it a breakfast thing a side dish thing? What is your favorite way to eat it?</p>
<p>I have also heard people say that it is the same thing as grits (big difference is the price and how course they grind the corn)</p>
<p>I have never had grits or Polenta, and am looking to try new ideas.</p>
<p>Here’s what I do – saute onion and red pepper, then add to polenta along with some goat cheese --press into greased baking dish.</p>
<p>Cut in squares, serve with some broiled shrimp.</p>
<p>A traditional way to serve it is, fry the polenta cakes & serve it with spaghetti sauce.</p>
<p><a href=“Polenta With Parmesan and Tomato Sauce Recipe - NYT Cooking”>Polenta With Parmesan and Tomato Sauce Recipe - NYT Cooking;
I cut it into rounds after its cooled & fry it.</p>
<p>Like mashed potatoes, with a sauce of shallots and chanterelle mushrooms.</p>
<p>I like to add parmigiano cheese to the mixture, bake it in a meat loaf pan until done. Then cut triangular slices, drizzle with a tiny bit Tuscan flavored olive oil and broil until browned. You can serve this with just about anything. You can also store the broiled squares in the fridge for a few days and reheat them in a toaster oven as needed.</p>
<p>Husband has fond memories of his grandmother making polenta for lunch and all the cousins running down the street to her house to get a spot at the table. Polenta was served on a plate and topped with tomato sauce and fresh parmesan.</p>
<p>Good question!!! I bought a tube of the pre-cooked polenta a few weeks ago at World Market and I’m not sure what to do with it. Would these suggestions work for the pre-cooked variety?</p>
<p>Here’s a recipe I like that calls for the tube kind (very easy to use):</p>
<p>[Shrimp</a> Saltimbocca with Polenta Recipe | Eating Well](<a href=“http://www.eatingwell.com/recipes/shrimp_saltimbocca_polenta.html]Shrimp”>Shrimp Seasoning)</p>
<p>The pre-cooked variety is best pan fried and then served with some sort of sauce. It can also be sliced up and placed in a baking dish, covered with sauce, cheese, sausage, etc. and then baked.</p>
<p>It’s so easy and cheap to make. I have never bothered with the product in the tube. Just a side note—The further north you travel in Italy the denser the polenta gets. While they tend to eat a dense, sliced polenta in the Veneto, south of Rome it becomes more of a corn meal mush. Before the 70’s you rarely saw polenta in fine dining. It was the food of the poor. It gained popularity during WWII when the maize that was usually reserved to feed livestock was turned to for sustenance when food was scarce.</p>
<p>Thanks vballmon and mirabile! Time to pull that polenta out of the pantry and put it to work. Both options sound yummy!</p>
<p>The Greens cookbook has a very good recipe for layered polenta casserole, with a chunky homemade tomato sauce and cheeses. The recipe calls for fontina and Gorgonzola cheese; I use fontina and Humboldt Fog.</p>
<p>With the precooked polenta, cut into slices, brush it with olive oil and Italian seasoning and then sprinkle some parmesan or shredded mozzarella on top, broil for a few minutes. That’s a fun, delicious starchy side.</p>
<p>I usually make a big pot, and add in some cream and cheese and roasted garlic. We eat it like mashed potatoes the first night. Then I take the leftovers and spread into an oiled baking dish–the next night I either top the whole thing with sauce cheese and cook right in the dish, or I cut squares and top them. It’s always a good side with sausage, and really great with pot roast.</p>
<p>You can eat it for breakfast too, just fix it like you would grits or oatmeal.</p>
<p>I tried the tube polenta once when someone gave it to me. I found that it had a very odd, almost metallic, taste. </p>
<p>I usually make polenta with at least part milk, and add cheeses and sometimes other things. I had a great recipe that included golden raisins and gorgonzola. (Can’t recall where I got it…maybe the NYT Magazine.) I like it chilled, then cut and pan fried, or baked/broiled topped with basil butter, or poured on a plate with sauce or sauteed vegetables, shrimp, or anything. It’s great stuff. I make it with King Arthur stoneground yellow corn meal, whether you are supposed to or not. :)</p>
<p>BTW, a great way to form it into nice rounds without waste for later sauteeing/baking/broiling is to pour it into a lightly greased muffin tin.</p>
<p>One more link for those who love lots of details:</p>
<p>[Creamy</a> Parmesan Polenta Recipe - America’s Test Kitchen](<a href=“Recipes Featured on TV | America's Test Kitchen”>Recipes Featured on TV | America's Test Kitchen)</p>
<p>I generally make a creamy polenta - add some sharp cheddar at the end of stirring, crumble some bacon on top and serve with some spicy shrimp and a side of something green. I haven’t bought any prepackaged polenta. It’s so easy to make.</p>
<p>I like to roast traditional ratatouille vegetables and serve them over soft polenta with a little cheese on top. Another quick dinner I make is topping soft polenta with swiss chard or spinach saut</p>
<p>I had polenta at a restaurant Saturday night. It was served in squares and was a little crispy. It was topped with a smoked eggplant vinaigrette - delicious.</p>
<p>Wow, thanks so much. I knew I could count on CC. These recipes look great. It seem that cheese and sauce of some type are the most popular choices. I am going to make one tonight, I’ll let you know how it comes out. </p>
<p>I love trying new things!</p>
<p>Although I adore polenta, it is very high carb, so I can’t eat in any more. Sob.</p>