How To Cook Polenta
Polenta is a type of maize porridge made from ground yellow or white cornmeal (ground maize). The coarseness of the grind can vary depending on the dish and the region. Grits, for instance, which are popular in the Southern USA are made from a more coarsely ground corn meal.
Originally polenta was a rather bland peasant food, a type of corn mush, commonly eaten since Roman times. But recently polenta has been popularized in more exciting and tasty recipes which make use of fried or grilled polenta combined with cheeses and tomato sauces.
Ingredients:
3 cups instant polenta (G.M.O. free)
8 cups water
2 T olive oil
salt
Instructions:
Cooking Polenta
In a large pot add the water, a generous amount of salt and olive oil. Bring to a boil and let the water boil for a couple of minutes.
Remove the pot from the heat and quickly pour in all the polenta, stirring continuously with a wooden spoon.
Put the pot back on the stove and cook for 5-6 minutes on medium-high heat, stirring constantly.
Turn the heat off and let sit for 1 minute. Your polenta is now ready for use, or eating.
For a softer or firmer polenta add more or less water.
Serves 5-6.
Cautions:
Corn is such a delicious and versatile wheat-free grain alternative that you might be tempted to rely on it as a staple food. Unfortunately, too much reliance on corn as a staple can cause a vitamin deficiency disease called Pellagra.
Corn is a poor source of niacin (vitamin B3) and tryptophan which can cause your body to become deficient in these two essential nutrients if you don't have a balanced diet. Take care to balance your corn intake with proteins a variety of sources, such as beans, and make sure you have an otherwise balance and varied diet.
Hi Kat, thank you for the compliment. IBS is a big problem for many people. But the good news is that you can heal it, it’s not that hard. Here is a MUST READ article for everyone who suffers from IBS, by Donna Gates one of the top experts in probiotics and fermented foods, it’s called Is Body Ecology an IBS Solution? If You Have Irritable Bowel Syndrome, A Must Read. It’s a great, informative article, which includes 9 tips for helping your body to heal IBS. The tips include foods to avoid, foods to add to your diet, good practices (like cleansing) and little things you can do differently that will help a great deal.
There is also a lot of information about the nasty side effects of the prescription drugs used to ‘treat’ IBS in this article… I am continually amazed at how these dangerous drugs are still being used when there is a safe, natural treatment – which actually helps your body heal, it’s not just a band-aid approach to easing symptoms. Anyway, don’t get me started on that one! But do have a read of that article, it’s so important to understand what’s really behind most (if not all) food allergies and conditions like IBS. There is no need to suffer with it.
Hi,
IBS can definitely mess up with your lifestyle. There are contradicting opinions over the web about IBS diets, so you should be careful as to what you follow and what you don’t. Also, each body reacts differently to a particular method of treatment. The key is to know your body and understand what works for you.
-Rudy
Hi Rudy, I think you are so right in what you say! I don’t have IBS but I have had digestive problems my whole life, and I can just imagine how difficult IBS must be. Your advice about following diets you read about on the web is good. I would extend that to every form of media including to books in print, and for every kind of diet, as well as general information like what foods are good for us and what are not. All these factors that affect consumer choices make someone money (or not), and whenever that’s the case you have to do some due diligence, because there is a lot of marketing and propaganda that’s being passed off as fact or research (that’s been the case at least since the 1950s). I think the key is exactly what you say, that we are each unique, not just our personalities but our bodies as well. Research is great, I place a lot of value in it, and it’s often where I start my journey in learning more or solving a problem. The most important thing is to understand and listen to your body.
I had no idea what Polenta was until I read your blog. I am going to try your recipe to compliment a fish dish I am preparing
Corn is suggested for people with celiac disease, because it is about the only grain that doesn’t contain gluten, but little do people realize that corn is universally contaminated with mycotoxins, so over-consumption may really instigate the disease. Check out the article by Dr. Mercola at
http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2003/09/13/inflammatory-bowel-disease.aspx, or get the book by Doug Kaufman and Dr.David Holland “The Fungus Link”
Thanks for the great recipe. Corn polenta has no been eaten quite as long as is stated in the recipe. The ancient Romans had no maize(corn)! They did love other boiled grain porridges. I wonder if the word Polenta refers to the cooking process or the grain itself? Food history, so many questions!
Be Well,
Brian
Has anyone tried to make polenta in the microwave? If you were sucessful please tell me your secret.