Polenta salsiccia e formaggio

To prepare a real Italian Polenta with sausage and cheese, you’ve to take care of the Ragù first!

Remove the sausage casing, then crumble the meat with a knife. Heat a couple of spoons of olive oil in a pan, place the sausage inside, add pepper and leave it there for 3-4 minutes until it’s browned.  Pour the red wine and let the alcohol evaporate, then add the tomato sauce and concentrate. Stir the mixture with a spoon and cover the pan with its lid. Cook for 15 minutes or the time necessary to thicken the sauce.  Once ready let it aside and keep it warm.

It’s now time to prepare the Polenta:

Cut both the Fontina and the Toma cheeses into small cubes. Put a thick-bottomed steel pot on the fire, pour in water and, when it starts boiling, add salt and the corn- flour.

Keep cooking at high temperature by stirring it quickly. You can add olive oil in order to avoid the lumps. The Polenta has to cook at low heat for 50 minutes. Do not forget to mix it constantly, don’t let it stick to the bottom of the pot.

5 minutes before the end of the preparation, add salt and part of the cheese cubes. Keep 4 spoons of cheese aside as final dressing. Stir till they melts completely.

The Polenta is now almost ready!

To finish your preparation we do suggest you to use a terracotta bowl suitable for backing. The terracotta small bowls allows you to prepare single portions but you can also use a large bowl, if you want to prepare a large serving dish to be shared. Pour a generous ladle of polenta and season with a couple of spoons of Ragù. Cover it with the cheeses cubes you kept aside and the some spoons of Zanetti grated Grana Padano.

Cook it au-gratin for 3 minutes in the oven at the highest temperature, until the top makes a golden crust. If necessary, you can heat the Ragù before adding it to the Polenta and then go on with the gratin.

The Polenta with sausage and cheese is now ready to be served.