How To Cook Our Stone-Ground Polenta.

Cooking our polenta is easy. Just don't burn it! It usually takes about 20 minutes.

For the liquid you can use water, stock, cream (probably best cut with some water), or even a combination of any of these. You can only do it wrong if you don't like the flavor!

The formula can be expanded. Be sure to add some salt at the beginning if you eat salt (if you use salted stock this may vary).

Add the cheese and/or butter to finish.

Ratios

1 Part Polenta

3 Parts Liquid

1 Teaspoon Salt Per Dry Cup Polenta (or to taste)

• Combine the dry polenta, liquid, and salt together cold on the stovetop in a heavy-bottomed pot.
• Turn heat to medium or so and stir frequently until the mixture boils.
• When a boil occurs, adjust heat to a simmer. Stir frequently, and take care to loosen the polenta in the bottom of the pot. Watch the heat level and take care not to burn it.
• If the mixture stiffens and becomes too thick before the desired softness of the polenta is reached, add more liquid sparingly.
• Cooking usually takes around 20 minutes. However, the only real measure of doneness is the softness and smoothness of the polenta. This requires a careful taste for texture (don't burn your mouth!).
• Finishing is largely up to taste. I usually add more salt, freshly grated hard cheese, and maybe butter. . For a fried polenta, you probably want to add some cheese while the polenta is hot. Like most porridges, polenta is supremely flexible. This topic is so vast I will (hopefully) revisit it and elaborate more later.