Polenta Bolognese Abruzzo
Polenta is a hearty, classic Northern Italian style dish. This version, made using cornmeal only and topped with a hearty sausage ragu. It is bold and rich in flavor and was traditionally served spread onto the middle of the table so everyone could dig in and get their portion.
Ingredients
- 2 cups Tomato Sauce Passata
- Extra virgin olive oil
- 1/2 cup onion diced into small pieces
- 1/2 cup carrot diced into small pieces
- 1/2 cup celery diced into small pieces
- 4 pork and fennel sausages remove skin from half of them
- 2 pork ribs
- 1 lb. ground pork beef, veal or any combination of them
- 1 1/2 cups cornmeal or one packet of ready-made polenta mix
- 1 quart water
- Freshly Grated Parmesan Cheese
- Kosher or Sea Salt
Instructions
Sauce:
- For this Italian polenta recipe, add a generous amount of extra virgin olive oil to a small pot. Then add onion, carrot and celery and put it on the stove at a low-medium heat. Leave it to fry for a minute or so.
- Add whole pork sausage and pork ribs to the pot, along with 1/2 of ground meat.
- Mix the meat completely so that it starts to brown and add some more EVOO to help it cook. Stir everything through to make sure it is cooked and ready to be added to the cornmeal polenta.
- Then, add a pinch of salt, stir through and add the tomato sauce.
- To sweeten the taste of the sauce, add a touch of salt, and leave to simmer and cook through for at least an hour.
Sausage:
- Prepare the sausage you will add to the Italian cornmeal polenta (and it will also be used on top). Getting your medium size frypan, add some EVOO and place pealed Italian sausages inside, breaking them up using a fork, by squashing and pressing them forward. They are to be enjoyed in pieces, not whole.
- Cook this on a low-medium heat until well browned, adding the rest of the ground meat and a pinch of salt. Mix this through and ensure it is well browned by moving the meat around with a wooden spoon.
Polenta:
- Put a large pot on the stove, filling it with 4 quarts of water. Leave it to heat up – but don’t boil it!
- Add a pinch of salt to the water once it starts to heat and with the wooden spoon in one hand, get cornmeal in the other and slowly drop it into the water, while mixing it through with the spoon.
- Don’t put all of the cornmeal in the polenta at once! You will see it start to grow in the water and eventually thicken, but the key is mix, mix mix!
Polenta Note:
- If you are using instant polenta (from a packet), make sure you read the cooking instructions carefully, adding the right amount of water and leaving it to cook for the time specified.
Polenta Flavoring:
- Using a ladle, pour a portion of the sauce you prepared earlier, into the cornmeal polenta, and mix it through. At the same time add half of the sausage mince you also prepared and stir it in.
- Keep stirring the polenta until it is a thick consistency and it should start to bubble.
- Be careful not to undercook your polenta or it will be runny and not set!
Serving:
- Get a small amount of the sauce (sugo), and put it onto a flat plate, then add a sprinkle of parmesan cheese on top. Next, pour the polenta on top of the sauce, spreading it out and adding more delicious sauce on top with a light sprinkle of the ground meat mixture left from earlier! Sprinkle more parmesan cheese on top.. The ribs and the whole cooked sausages can be served to those who want them on the side or on the same plate.
Video
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