Polenta and Shrimp, a Marriage of Land and Sea

[elleng]

'I have written effusively and often about polenta, the delectable Northern Italian porridge made from cornmeal. Fan that I am, polenta for dinner is always a winner in my book.

We may know it first and foremost as a side dish: a modest spoonful placed next to a piece of braised chicken, or a crisp, grilled wedge accompanying herby lamb chops. But I usually want polenta to be the main event, and to have the meaty part of the meal play the lesser role, much as it was served long ago.

Polenta’s humble origins lay in basic, savory gruel for the poorer classes. Good fortune in hunting or foraging could supply ingredients for a juicy, substantial ragù to ladle on top. But even today, there’s nothing better than a bowl of plain polenta with a dab of good butter or olive oil, salt and pepper, and a handful of grated Parmesan.

Modern Italian cooks follow suit, topping polenta with sausages simmered in tomato sauce, a mushroom stew or braised rabbit. And the custom still exists, for those remembering or imagining village life, of pouring a pot of steaming polenta on a large board, spooning a saucy concoction over it, and placing it on the table for communal consumption and distributing spoons instead of plates. It’s a wonderful way to serve a casual festive meal.

The other night, with polenta on the brain and with a pound of fresh wild Gulf shrimp from the fishmonger, I made an impromptu dinner. I channeled, sort of, the Southern American favorite, shrimp and grits, and set my polenta to boil.

A word of warning, though: For the best results, polenta needs a good 45 minutes to an hour on the stove. Recipes that counsel any less do cooks a disservice. The cornmeal needs time to swell, absorb liquid and develop the corn’s sweetness. Undercooked polenta tastes bitter.'>>>

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/02/dining/polenta-shrimp-recipe.html?

Shrimp With Hot Fennel Sausage and Polenta
https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1019205-shrimp-with-hot-fennel-sausage-and-polenta

[Firestorm49]

1. What?

What is doing on this site?

[elleng]

3. This is the Cooking and Baking Group, Firestorm49.

[Hortensis]

10. :) If you don't like this one, Firestorm, maybe

check out the vegetarian, vegan and animal rights forum, the motorcycle and scooter forum, or the ancient wisdom and pagan spirituality forum.

To my disappointment, turned out the Pastafarian forum was not a gathering place for those who worship pasta.

[Major Nikon]

2. In the South we call them grits and don't charge as much

[IADEMO2004]

4. I don't care what you call it as long as you call me when you cook it.

downloading thank you

[elleng]

5. You're welcome.

Enjoy it.

[TwistOneUp]

6. Sounds great!

I've had this dish in Paris and it was fantastic. So thanks for this!

Can't you use a pressure cooker for the polenta to save some time?

[elleng]

7. I don't know about pressure cooker;

not my recipe, and I've never made polenta! Good luck!

[Demsrule86]

8. Sounds delicious. May I also recommend the humble grit?

I made House of Blues Shrimp with grit cakes...they post the recipe online...and it was wonderful...my husband actually said OMG! I do not fry the grit cakes as house of blues does but bake them

[elleng]

9. Certainly!

[Hortensis]

11. Looks like a good recipe.

We have some strong opinions in our little family about shrimp and grits, so I've done a compromise that works well, even if it may not put all complaints about the world going to hell to bed. The shrimp and grits are prepared the old way -- simple, without fuss, showcasing their delicate flavors. Then the modern version of veggies in a highly flavored sauce (and in this case with sausage) is offered as a side dish that people can serve over or alongside.

[trof]

12. Is polenta a finer grind than grits or regular cornmeal?

[elleng]

13. 'Polenta is basically cornmeal mush, and it can be made with any kind of cornmeal,

ground coarse, medium or fine. ... The trick is cooking the polenta for a sufficient amount of time. You must allow the cornmeal to swell and become fully cooked.'

https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1014527-basic-polenta

[trof]

14. Thanks