As with most things that are not cooked or seasoned properly, polenta has an undeserved bad reputation. Please let this recipe for Polenta with Mushroom Ragu change your mind. Yes, you can purchase pre-cooked polenta, but why would you bother when freshly made polenta is cheap, easy and quick. What is not to like? The key to making good polenta, is to season it correctly. Bread would be very bland without salt, polenta is too; after all it is just coarsely ground maize. In this recipe, the polenta also gets a bit of help from butter, cheese and fresh herbs.
This recipe calls for letting the polenta set up and then reheating it in the oven. Alternatively, the polenta can be served soft and poured into a serving bowl when ready, in Italy, it would be like this family style, and poured straight onto a cutting board.
POLENTA WITH MUSHROOM RAGU
POLENTA
800ml vegetable stock
15g butter, at room temperature
150g quick-cooking polenta
75g hard Italian cheese, grated
1 tsp dried mixed herbs or 2 tbsp fresh (parsley, oregano, thyme, rosemary, basil)
Salt and pepper
MUSHROOM RAGU
2 tbsp olive oil, not extra virgin
400g chestnut mushrooms, quartered
2 onions or 1 large, finely chopped
salt and pepper
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
150ml dry white wine or Marsala
150ml vegetable stock
1 tbsp plain flour or rice flour for gluten free
30g butter
2 tbsp chopped fresh herbs, finely chopped (parsley, oregano, thyme, rosemary, basil)
1. Bring the stock and 15g butter to a boil in a heavy medium saucepan. Gradually whisk in the polenta. Reduce the heat to medium-low. Stir constantly until the polenta thickens, about 5 minutes.
2. Remove from the heat, stir in the cheese and fresh herbs and season with salt and pepper. Pour the polenta into a greased 23cm/9in x 23cm/9in or similar size baking tray, spreading so that it is 1.5cm thick. Cover and let stand at room temperature until set, about 30 minutes.
3..Meanwhile, to make the ragu, heat the oil in a heavy large frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the mushrooms and onion. Season with salt and pepper and sauté until the juices evaporate, about 8 minutes.
4. Add the garlic and sauté until the mushrooms are golden brown, about 2 minutes longer. Decrease the heat to medium-low. Add the wine and stock. Simmer until the liquid has reduced by about half, about 5 minutes.
5. Stir the flour and 30g of butter in a small bowl to form a paste, then stir the paste into the mushroom mixture. Simmer until the sauce thickens slightly, about 2 minutes. Remove from the heat. Taste and adjust seasoning.
6. Preheat the oven to 200C/180Fan. Slice the now set polenta into 9 squares and then each square into a triangle and place on a greased baking tray. Heat in the oven for 10-15 minutes. Alternatively, the polenta can be pan fried in a frying pan with oil.
7. Place the heated polenta on a serving plate and top with the mushroom ragu. Sprinkle with fresh herbs.
VEGAN VERSION
Substitute the butter with vegan margarine and the cheese with nutritional yeast.