Louisiana Pride Grist Mill
Stone Ground Polenta
Formerly a peasant food, polenta has recently become quite upscale, with polenta dishes in restaurants and prepared polenta found in supermarkets commanding high prices. Many new recipes have given new life to an item which is, in essence, a fairly bland and common food, invigorating it with various cheeses or tomato sauces.
Polenta is made with either coarsely, medium, or finely ground dried yellow or white cornmeal (ground maize), depending on the region and the texture desired. It is similar to corn grits, in that polenta and grits are made from coarsely ground corn, hull and all. There are many different types of polenta, such as basic or soft polenta.
Polenta is often cooked in a copper pot called a paiola in Italian, but can be cooked in any type pot that meets your needs. There are many different ways to cook polenta. Various cheeses and butter, vegetable and meat stock (broth) and even seafood are used.
In the south it is common to use onions, bell peppers, eggplant, zucchini and shrimp to make a great tasting dish.
