I can no longer differentiate between the tiny white scars on my forearms: Which are from Chicken Pox and which are the ones I got while constantly stirring polenta? If you’ve made polenta, you know that you must stand at the stove and constantly stir, stir, stir the bubbling cornmeal. It can be a painful task, indeed, as inevitably the polenta will burst and spit molten lava-hot specks on you. So imagine my surprise - and sheer joy - when my friend told me last night about no-stir polenta. What!? No more burns? Yippee!
The secret is adding a pinch of baking soda which reduces the cooking time and makes for a creamier texture. A course-ground, degerminated cornmeal such as yellow cornmeal works best. Do not use instant or quick-cooking. As the polenta cooks you should see little puffs of steam. If it bubbles or spurts, your heat is too high.
No-Stir Creamy Parmesan Polenta
From America’s Test Kitchen
Serves 4
Note: We added wild mushrooms to our version shown above.
7 1/2 cups water
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
Pinch baking soda
1 1/2 cups coarse-ground cornmeal
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
4 ounces Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, grated (about 2 cups), plus extra for serving
Ground black pepper, to taste
Bring water to boil in heavy-bottomed 4-quart saucepan over medium-high heat. Stir in salt and baking soda. Slowly pour cornmeal into water in steady stream, while stirring back and forth with wooden spoon or rubber spatula. Bring mixture to boil, stirring constantly, about 1 minute. Reduce heat to lowest possible setting and cover.
After 5 minutes, whisk polenta to smooth out any lumps that may have formed, about 15 seconds. (Make sure to scrape down sides and bottom of pan.) Cover and continue to cook, without stirring, until grains of polenta are tender but slightly al dente, about 25 minutes longer. (Polenta should be loose and barely hold its shape but will continue to thicken as it cools.)
Remove from heat, stir in butter and Parmesan, and season to taste with black pepper. Let stand, covered, 5 minutes.
