Three-Hour Polenta
You might think I’m playing an April Fool’s joke on you when I tell you I spent three hours cooking polenta on the stovetop.
But I kid you not.
That was part of the careful cooking instructions I was given when Oliveto Restaurant in Oakland gave me a sample bag of Floriani Red Flint Corn Polenta to try at home. The medium-course grind polenta is made from heritage red field corn that was originally developed in Northern Italy. It is whole-grain milled, meaning that the entire grain — including all the germ, bran and endosperm — is milled without separating any of those components out.
Because of that and because it’s a harder corn, it takes three hours to cook.
I was ready to start lifting more weights at the gym for this polenta workout that awaited me. My husband half-jested that he was going to hire a legal day-laborer to help me.
Fortunately, Oliveto Owner Bob Klein reassured me that this polenta did not take continuous stirring at the stove for all three hours. He said an occasional go-round with a wooden spoon would be just fine.
Whew!
Oliveto has long championed local, artisanal products. That interest led the restaurant to start trying to source locally milled flours and other grains for its housemade pastas. The result was the creation of Community Grains, begun by Oliveto and Certified Foods of Woodland, Calif., which has started working with farms to grow heritage Italian and rare California wheat varieties.
The Floriani Red Flint Corn Polenta is now available for purchase at Oliveto for $24 for a three-pound bag.
The first thing you notice when you open the bag is that this polenta is not uniformly bright golden yellow like others. Instead, it’s got flecks of yellow, but also red, white, sand and deep brown.
When cooking, use a ratio of about 1 cup of the polenta to 4 cups of water or stock. And be sure to use a heavy-duty, well-insulated pot so that the polenta doesn’t burn on the bottom.
Just a minute after pouring the polenta into the pot of simmering liquid, the mixture will thicken up fast. Keep it on a gentle simmer, giving it a stir every 20 minutes or so. If it starts to thicken up too much to your liking, just stir in a little more liquid.
As the hours tick by, the polenta will get more and more creamy in consistency.
Just before serving, stir in a little butter and grated cheese, if you like.
The polenta will be quite thick, almost porridge-like. But take a taste and you’ll find it surprisingly light and rather fluffy, as opposed to dense and heavy. The flavor is wonderfully nutty and hearty.
I served it as a bed for beef stew. But I can imagine it also being fabulous for breakfast with maple syrup or brown sugar.
I’ll just have to set my alarm clock super early, though, to have any chance of making it before lunch hits.
More: My Recent Dinner at Oliveto
And: Oliveto’s Whole Hog Event
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Friday, 1. April 2011 6:17
That polenta is beautiful and must taste wonderful! Wow, that takes time…
Cheers,
Rosa
Friday, 1. April 2011 6:48
I’m sure it was worth the wait!
Friday, 1. April 2011 7:54
[...] Tomorrow: Cooking My Own Whole-Grain Polenta from Oliveto [...]
Friday, 1. April 2011 8:10
I’ve learnt something new again! Luckily you didn’t have to continuously stir the pot for 3 hours
The polenta looks gorgeous though and I’m sure was worth the wait.
Friday, 1. April 2011 9:03
After reacqainting myself with quinoa, and finding a vibrant red royal variety, I am loving the look of your polenta find. I’m heading over to check out Community Grains right now!
Friday, 1. April 2011 9:47
Corn is one of my all time favorite grains(?) vegetables?(?) and polenta is something I haven’t tried making but love to get at restaurants.
I’m intrigued by this polenta – such unique colors! I love the idea that it includes the germ, bran, endosperm . . all the healthy stuff!
Friday, 1. April 2011 9:54
Carolyn, what did you do with the left overs? How much did you use and did you use water or stock with it? It looks very interesting!
Friday, 1. April 2011 10:05
What gorgeous colors. I wonder if you can make a firmer version to pan fry it for a crispy texture.
Friday, 1. April 2011 11:49
Do you think you could make this in a slow cooker or a fuzzy logic rice cooker on porridge setting? I love using those appliances for long cooked things because the heat control is so stable and no more soaking and scraping pan bottoms.
Friday, 1. April 2011 14:44
Karen Tran: I be you could use a slow cooker of fuzzy logic rice cooker to make this. Would be a great way to not have to watch it so closely on the stove, too. One of my friends uses her slow cooker for polenta all the time.
Tami: I often crisp up leftover polenta in cake-form the next day. I bet it would work well with this polenta, too.
Sharon: I used chicken stock to cook my polenta. But you could use water instead if you prefer.
Friday, 1. April 2011 17:53
Wow, three hours! Amazing! It sure does not look like a regular polenta, I bet it’s fantastic, would love to try!
Friday, 1. April 2011 18:52
Wow, I have never heard of such a thing! But it looks like it was all worth the effort, I bet it tasted amazing too!
Saturday, 2. April 2011 9:24
I like Karen’s idea for using a fuzzy logic rice cooker for this. You’re a brave woman Carolyn to stick near the stove for three hours!
L
Saturday, 2. April 2011 17:27
I’d love to make polenta and parmesan chips out of this! Unfortunately I’ve never seen anything like that in these parts, but I’ll keep looking
Sunday, 3. April 2011 2:45
WOW! That looks great! I keep hearing about all the heirloom grains. I really need to get with it and try some out. Love the melted cheese on top. YUM YUM!!
Sunday, 3. April 2011 6:33
it looks wonderful & surely worth the wait !!
Sunday, 3. April 2011 7:21
Wow 3 whole hours of labour must’ve made this dish so yummy! I’ve yet to give ordinary polenta a try, looks like I’ll start with the easy ones first
Sunday, 3. April 2011 9:15
Wow, now I feel like a polenta hack. I made it last night for a dinner party and only spent 15 or 20 minutes. I love all the colors in yours. It really puts the “art” in artisanal!
Sunday, 3. April 2011 11:28
Lentil Breakdown: LOL That sounds like the Rachael Ray 30-Minute version. You can probably get away with cooking the polenta for less than three hours. But the texture does get creamier the longer you cook it. If you like a more coarse texture, though, by all means, enjoy it that way.
Sunday, 3. April 2011 15:36
3 hrs!?!? No joke. But glad it was not constant stirring for 3 hrs :0
It happens that I just cooked polenta (or is it cornmeal?) over the weekend like a gruel a.k.a porridge. I had to keep on stirring though to prevent lumping!
Sunday, 3. April 2011 15:58
3 hr polenta – impressive!
Monday, 4. April 2011 22:42
I’ve never come across polenta that takes 3 hours to cook but thank goodness it didn’t require constant stirring. Now that would be a test of patience!
Monday, 4. April 2011 23:14
whole grain polenta looks amazing–i’ve never seen it before! i’m not known for my patience, but some things are just worth it.
Tuesday, 5. April 2011 4:44
I adore polenta and I must admit that this three-hour polenta looks gorgeous and so flavorful! It really does look like it has a nuttier flavor than regular yellow polenta. I would definitely try it!
Tuesday, 5. April 2011 13:16
Oh my, can I use the pressure cooker? hehe
Tuesday, 5. April 2011 17:19
Wow now that’s dedication but I bet the creamy texture was awesome!
Thursday, 7. April 2011 12:49
oh wow i would love to try that. it looks wonderful!
Friday, 8. April 2011 9:01
Mmm, I love creamy polenta. One of my ultimate comfort foods!
Friday, 15. April 2011 14:06
Carolyn, Do you know if I can get this in NYC?
Friday, 15. April 2011 15:07
Dina: I don’t think you can get it in New York. Right now, it’s only available for purchase at Oliveto Restaurant in Oakland. However, Community Grains hopes to start selling it on its Web site in the near future. So, stay tuned.