Have you ever tasted polenta? As well as the popular staples of pasta, pizza and risotto, polenta is an extremely popular food in northern Italy. The original recipe was extremely nutritious as it was made by grinding down mixed grains like farro, millet and sometimes chickpeas before mixing with water to make a paste.
It’s then cooked in a pot as a type of porridge but it was commonly poured onto a hot slap of stone and cooked on the side of a fire to make a type of cake. It’s believed that this method may have even pre-dated the making of leavened bread.
It’s then cooked in a pot as a type of porridge but it was commonly poured onto a hot slap of stone and cooked on the side of a fire to make a type of cake. It’s believed that this method may have even pre-dated the making of leavened bread.
Although dubbed as a poor man’s food, polenta grew massively in popularity and started to diversify into a range of tasty sweet and savoury dishes. The flavour depended on the types of grains used but a mass produced polenta was made from cornmeal.
Farmers could plant vast fields of corn and sell off the sweetcorn vegetable for profit. Some sweetcorn was kept back to dry and turn into maize which was then ground down into a fine flour called cornmeal and used to make a simple polenta.
Polenta features heavily in Venetian and Tuscan dishes especially where many delicious adaptions have transformed this simple staple into a top class restaurant dish. But to taste polenta in its traditional form it must be cooked as porridge in a round bottom copper pot called a Paiolo and stirred with a long wooden spoon.
Farmers could plant vast fields of corn and sell off the sweetcorn vegetable for profit. Some sweetcorn was kept back to dry and turn into maize which was then ground down into a fine flour called cornmeal and used to make a simple polenta.
Polenta features heavily in Venetian and Tuscan dishes especially where many delicious adaptions have transformed this simple staple into a top class restaurant dish. But to taste polenta in its traditional form it must be cooked as porridge in a round bottom copper pot called a Paiolo and stirred with a long wooden spoon.
Taste some interesting variations of polenta during your next gastronomic theme holiday to Italy and while you’re here you can also learn all about the process of making wine and olive oil.
And be sure to savour the incredible flavours of the Slow Food of Tuscany to satisfy your taste buds and appetite!
Stay in a relaxing vacation rental with a pool in Veneto and experience the very finest in accommodation, culture, scenery and cuisine during your magical Italian holiday!
And be sure to savour the incredible flavours of the Slow Food of Tuscany to satisfy your taste buds and appetite!
Stay in a relaxing vacation rental with a pool in Veneto and experience the very finest in accommodation, culture, scenery and cuisine during your magical Italian holiday!
Photo credits
picture 1: Ghirlandajo / CC BY-SA 3.0;
picture 2: Northamerica1000 / CC BY 2.0;
picture 1: Ghirlandajo / CC BY-SA 3.0;
picture 2: Northamerica1000 / CC BY 2.0;