Fried Polenta

[ElsieD]

I am new to the world of polenta in general and fried polenta in particular. The first time I fried them I cooked them in a non-stick skillet in a bit of oil. That was not a success as they stuck mightily to the pan. This morning I tried again, using a different non-stick pan and using a bit more oil, perhaps 3 tablespoons or so. They stuck also. I would really like to get this right as I have found out that I love the stuff. What am I doing wrong? Does my polenta need to be firmer? Is my oil not hot enough? Do I need to use a lot of oil? Is it like searing meat in that you don't touch it until it has seared in the pan for a while? Should I be coating the pieces in cornmeal or flour before frying? Any suggestions appreciated.

[heidih]

There is good advices in this topic http://forums.egullet.org/topic/52834-polenta-predicament/

[Bojana]

Cook it, cool in fridge to set. Should be firm and slightly jiggly. Cut, deepfry, enjoy.

[Jaymes]

Fried polenta, or "mush" (as the sort of folk that live in the rural south and shop at WalMart, like me, call it), has been a staple at US Southern tables for generations. It's my daddy's personal very favorite breakfast.

Here's a good recipe/method to follow:

http://www.grouprecipes.com/85787/fried-mush-or-polenta.html

Edited July 14, 2013 by Jaymes (log)

[Ttogull]

Funny, this week I made polenta for the very first time. Then I turned the leftovers into polenta "fries" and served them with roasted beet greens and white beans. I thought they were awesome, and apparently so did my family - more kudos than anything I've made this year. Absolutely incredible!

I inadvertently followed the recipe Jaymes posted. Almost to the letter even though I did not know about it.

The only suggestion I have is that the nonstick pan might be interfering. I used stainless steel. No sticking at all. Nothing even close. I also did not use much oil - I am trying to cut down - perhaps 3 Tbsp, but perhaps less. Enough to coat the bottom of the pan after shaking.

I guess I am offering this as encouragement. It might have been an accident, but I am proof it can be done.

[Franci]

Definitely not jiggly for me. In the North of Italy there are different preferences on how firm polenta should be. In my mother's hometown, Bergamo, they are known for a particular coarse and firm polenta and grilled or roasted polenta is common. The firmer the polenta, solid, holding the shape like a piece of bread, the better it is for me. I generally leave it in the fridge one night, and then fry in butter or put on a cast iron grill lightly oiled. Don't touch until you have nice solid marks, like you wouldn't turn pototoes on a cast iron before they form a nice crust.

[Katie Meadow]

I call it fried grits, but it's about the same thing; what varies the most if you are using (relatively) freshly milled corn meal is probably the grind, which is really a matter of taste. If I cook up about 1 cup grits or polenta and serve the two of us we usually have enough leftover to fill an 8 x 8 baking dish. This is done easily if you don't wait until the mush is cooled to put it in the mold pan. Smooth it out right away. I typically get a "cake" that is about 1/2 inch or a bit more in thickness. Cover in plastic and store overnight or til you want it. I cut it into pieces and saute it in a modest amount of butter or oil like Franci does above. I like it for breakfast with syrup and it is also yummy with a tomato sauce and a little melted cheese. And once you have it in a manageable frying shape you don't have to limit yourself to a saute pan; you can grill it outdoors or you can bake overlapping slices with cheese or sauces in the oven. When sauteing I have found it gets a good golden crispy crust in a non-stick pan as well as in a cast iron pan over a moderate heat, and the interior gets nice and melty.

[JoNorvelleWalker]

I was taught how to make fried cornmeal mush as part of the home economics curriculum in grade school, going on sixty years ago. That being said, I have an unopened package of Bob's Red Mill corn grits sitting in my kitchen, waiting till I can afford a working pressure cooker, so I can try the Modernist technique for polenta.

Also, cutting chilled polenta into rounds with a biscuit cutter and broiling them with butter and cheese is pretty tasty.

[JagsChef]

Elsie, The question is how are you going about doing it? There are simple fixes to whatever may be causing the problem, but we need to know in order to make it work for your application.

[andiesenji]

Here's a "tutorial" I did a while back on "fried grits" (aka polenta).

You need a griddle that can get to high heat - non-stick pans just do not produce the best results.

I have fried them on my Cuisinart griddler with good results but they do best on a well-seasoned cast iron griddle - or a good heavy aluminum griddle.

I use a combination of butter and oil - grapeseed oil preferred because of its higher smoke point, it actually keeps the butter from burning. However, I have also used Crisco with very good results. Do not use olive oil.

Grits, white and yellow, freshly ground, stirred into boiling water.

at 20 minutes they have absorbed a lot of water:

at 40 minutes they are done:

Poured into a loaf pan to cool overnight:

This morning, sliced, lightly dredged with flour and into browned butter on the griddle: If you use rice flour the outside will be crispier.

nearly done:

Finished, ready to plate and eat with eggs, bacon and/or sausage and maple syrup or ??


Very tasty!

[Margaret Pilgrim]

Elsie, I think you answered your own question. When things stick, it is usually because they have not formed enough bottom crust. A minute longer might give you releasable slices.

I often take these fried slices, place them in a buttered baking dish, shingle fashion and sauce them: a drizzle of marinara sauce followed by a drizzle of bechemel. Shower with parmesan and back until hot and bubbly.

[ElsieD]

Elsie, The question is how are you going about doing it? There are simple fixes to whatever may be causing the problem, but we need to know in order to make it work for your application.

I put the cooked polenta into a pan to cool and refrigerated it overnight. I then preheated a non-stick pan and tried to fry it. My polenta was firm but perhaps could be firmer.

So, I am going to try another batch. I will follow the recipe Jaymes posted, and after it has cooled, cut them into fingers. As per Andie, I will dust them with some rice flour and use a combination of oil and butter to fry them in. I will forget about the non stick pan and use my cast iron pan and will also try my stainless steel. Both will be preheated to hot before I start to cook them. I will also leave them alone before I try moving them. I can see that I made a few mistakes so following your suggestions should go a long way to correcting my mistakes.

Thank you all for your suggestions. As you can see, I am taking them to heart. I will post the results.

Edited July 16, 2013 by ElsieD (log)

[andiesenji]

I use a steel spatula that has a sharp edge - not to be used on non-stick pans but it works great on the cast iron griddle and on the electric griddler.

Mine do not stick and the only bits that stay on the griddle fall off the corners.

I chilled these grits in a loaf pan and sliced them. However, if I want to get them cold and firm sooner, I spread them 1/2 inch deep on a sheet pan and set it in the freezer for 30-40 minutes and then into the fridge for an additional hour.

I turn the slab of grits out on a floured sheet of parchment, dust the top with more flour and then cut into squares or strips with a pizza cutter.

Edited July 16, 2013 by andiesenji (log)

[ElsieD]

I fried some of the polenta "fingers" today and am very happy with the results. I made them as per the recipe Jaymes posted, and after cooking put them in a loaf pan and cooled them overnight in the fridge. I cut four fingers and dusted two of them with flour. I then fried them in peanut oil in a hot cast iron pan and left them undisturbed until the bottoms were nice and brown and crisp before frying the other side. The two of us had one each of plain and flour dipped and we could not detect any difference. Will try again using rice flour just to see what that is like. We ate them with a bit of maple syrup on the side for dipping. Yummy. I will serve the next ones up with some marinara sauce.

In future, if I want polenta for dinner as a side dish I will use the recipe provided by Kerry Beal and cook it in the Thermomix. If I want to fry it, I will make the recipe linked by Jaymes and not cook it in the Thermomix (too thick) but in a pan so I can get it into a loaf pan quicker before it starts to set up.

Thank you all for taking the time to respond. You have been very helpful.

[heidih]

I mentioned making polenta for the first time yesterday http://forums.egullet.org/topic/136548-what-new-ingredients-are-you-trying-out/page-5#entry1943362

Today I cut off a section into three fingers and cooked them low and slow as mentioned above in my tiny number 3 cast iron skillet with olive oil. It got a nice just barely crisp crust with creamy insides. I think I could have let it go longer for more crust. There is still most of the plate to play with. Dipped in Sriracha - a riff on fries and ketchup? (I was starving and did not stop for pics)

[Special K]

This gives me an idea ...

When we want grits of a Saturday morning I use de la Estancia (organic) polenta and (go ahead and call me a traitor to my Italian/Southern roots) I just whisk it with water (1/4 cup polenta meal per each cup of water) in a glass batter bowl and microwave it for a few minutes, then take it out, whisk in butter, S & P and sometimes cheese, and zap it a few minutes more. Comes out perfect every time. (I would never dream of sweetening it!).

Now the idea: What if I heated up my lighly oiled cast iron cornstick pan in the oven, spooned some warm grits in the little impressions, and stuck it back in the oven? I don't know; I might end up chiseling out the sticks, but somehow I don't think so.

I will report back when I get a chance to try it.