Polenta/Corn grits recipes?
Posted by weelittlebuddy on Dec 06, 2006 · Member since Oct 2006 · 304 posts
Does anyone have any good recipes for polenta/corn grits? I have this bag of Bobs Red Mill polenta/corn grits and don't know what to do with it. . .
Thanks! :)
I'll be watching this thread. I love polenta, but am not very imaginative with it.
I pour the cooked polenta into a lightly greased pan & let it set. Before it sets it is very soft -- sort of custardy like. After it sets it is very firm.
To eat, I mash it with a fork, zap in the micro & serve with Earth Balance & pepper. Sometimes I top with sauted veggies instead of EB. And a few times I've mashed it very well & poured a little Silk & maple syrup on it.
Oh, & if you have a pressure cooker, it is a snap to make! Pour 4 cups water & 1 Tablespoon salt (optional) into the cooker. Bring to boil & slowly add 1 cup polenta & 1 tablespoon olive oil to the water. Stir well. Put on cooker lid & cook at high pressure for 5 minutes. Take off heat & let cool for 10 minutes with the lid on. Release rest of pressure & remove lid. Stir the polenta well & pour into a lightly greased pan.
Part 1:
Cook according to the package (I think it's 1c polenta/3c water, little salt). Add a little pepper and nutritional yeast. Enjoy a bowl (especially satisfying hangover breakfast).
Part 2:
You'll have a ton left over (particularly if you were hungover).
Take the left overs and pour warm or press luke-warm into the bottom of an oiled pie plate or casserole dish or muffin pan. Refrigerate up to three days.
You can either:
-Cut squares or fingers and fry in a little oil or bake till crispy on the edges. Good with soups and salads.
-Bake the large dish for 20 minutes on 375 and make a quiche/casserole with your polenta "crust"
-Bake the polenta muffins a little longer, flip out on a plate and top with hot salsa and pumpkin seeds.
The basic polenta recipe on the back of Bob's packet is really good-- just omit any parmesan and use Earth Balance instead of butter.
I love polenta cooked that way (soft) and topped with a spicy tomato sauce (just as for pasta!) or sloppy-joe type stir-fried veggies and beans in tangy sauce. It's also very nice topped with an onion and mushroom gravy, veg*n sausages, etc. The combo is texturally something like mashed potatoes (with more grit from the polenta) and gravy.
If you do pour it into a pan and let it cool or chill, cut it into chunks or french-fry size sticks and pan-fry it, or better yet, toast it under your broiler (or in a toaster oven) on a lightly oiled pan. I use a fairly hot temperature to toast the outside without drying the interior; just watch it so it doesn't burn. You can top it with a sauce of choice or dip it! Savory sauces, as above, work; also, creamy dips are good, or maple syrup! Or you can top it with tidbits like an open-faced sandwich.
My grandmother used to pan-fry slabs of this like pancakes for special weekend breakfast and serve it with fruit and syrup. She called it "mush" and made it with regular old cornmeal, but it was almost identical to the Bob's version.
I will definitely be trying nutdragon's quiche crust! Yummm!
One of the few things that can make me homesick is the mention of GRITS....waaaah! Fried, boiled, baked...lemme attem...who was it said patriotism is just memories of what you ate as a child??
We can get corn meal here but it is fine-ground, nothing like proper grits. However we did find dried hominy, which I reconstituted and boiled and then fried with onion and lots of black pepper...tears of happiness running down my face at the table! DH didn't get it...nothing new there... ;D
Aww yabbitgirl! Aren't southern grits dried hominy anyway? Were they very different from the ones you were dreaming of? (Sounds delicious!)
I just made some-- this thread got me pining for them. We ate some with soymilk and maple syrup (too much of both, unfortunately-- I don't like them heavily sweetened) and I spread the rest into my pie plate for later. It worked out to be a pretty thick crust-- I'm thinking of topping it with taco-ey things for a late lunch, or with pizza-ey things! We'll see what looks good and cheap at the market.
I forgot to mention: don't cook polenta naked. Wear an apron and/or long-sleeved, heavy clothes you don't mind getting spattered, in a pan "too big" for them and with a very long handled spoon. They hurt if they get on your skin.
I never thought to bake or fry it. Or to make it into a crust.
I forgot to mention: don't cook polenta naked. Wear an apron and/or long-sleeved, heavy clothes you don't mind getting spattered, in a pan "too big" for them and with a very long handled spoon. They hurt if they get on your skin.
Great point, Duckalucky. I've been popped a hundred times, But since I like to cook naked :D; I figured out a way around it. I have found that it splatters because the heat is too high; even if you have it very very low. Even if you don't believe it can be turned down lower. As soon as I add the polenta to the boiling water, I turn it way down, stir once more and put a lid on it. I check it after a couple of minutes (electric burners=no immediate gratification) to make sure it is at nothing but a slow simmer. Stir again and if you have electric, you can turn it off and let it sit with the lid on it for 10 minutes or so. Might need to cook it a few minutes longer with gas.
I spread the rest into my pie plate for later. It worked out to be a pretty thick crust-- I'm thinking of topping it with taco-ey things for a late lunch, or with pizza-ey things! We'll see what looks good and cheap at the market.
so how'd it go?
Oh my goodness.
I simmered a batch of lentils with just enough water to make them tender, throwing in a few cloves of garlic (minced), some cilantro, some cumin seeds, and a packet of spicy taco seasoning (I know, I know-- I had one around). They ended up nice and spicy. After the thick polenta crust had baked into toasty goodness, I spread the lentils over the top (I had leftover lentils the next day) and piled the top high with shredded cabbage, sweet onion, and salsa. It was unbelievably good!
Now I want to do the polenta crust trick with an oversized muffin pan and make low-fat vegan sopes. So good!
Thank you, nutdragon! I'll be making that often!
Duckalucky, you must have said what a friend of mine's daughter calls "a jolly good prayer" for me...I wandered into our Asian grocery and found--grits!! In a small bag, granted, about a pound, and they're the slow-cooking kind, but there they were! It was actually a Spanish brand but I know better than to buy it in our healthfood store because I know they would charge at least double there. It's been so long since I made any grits, I had to Google to find out the proportion of water to grits! 4 parts water to 1 part grits, in case anyone ends up buying them in bulk or, like me, with no instructions on the package.
Yummmeeee! I know what I'm having for supper tonight! Anna's in a happy place! :D
G.R.I.T.S. = Girls Raised in the South
Oh, how wonderful! Enjoy!
Cute acronym-- I'd never seen it before! I was raised in California but my family comes from the south, and maintains Southern styles of cooking-- lucky me!
I don't think I'd make it very long in a world without grits. These are my #1 comfort food.
I like the mexi-cali take on the casserole; thanks! I pulled out some lentils for tonight, great idea.
I use polenta as a base in many of my casseroles - cook the polenta with EB, veg broth, shallots, and rosemary; top with roasted veg and smoked tofu; sprinkle with vegan cheese or nutritional yeast, if inclined, and bake for about 30 mins at 375*. I have about 101 variations of this recipe because it is a completely balanced meal in and of itself - great for those days when showings run late!!!
Have you tried using leftover polenta as croutons for soup? Dice up some cooked (and cooled) polenta, toss it on a non-stick baking sheet, sprinkle with sea salt and spices, then spritz with cooking spray and bake. (Usually about 15 mins for me) Especially tasty on butternut squash or tomato soup.
MDVegan, you must be one of the best cooks on this site!
I would love if you & Lady Dragonfly would open a restaurant! I would be in heaven. Fat heaven, but heaven, never the less!