Polenta baked in the Oven

By John, 17 October, 2025
Region
Italy
Description

"Baked Polenta"Polenta is often served soft and hot like mashed potatoes, but it's also really good baked. You cook it on the stiff side, and then spread it in a buttered pan and bake it to get it hot and puffy and a little crispy on the edges.

It is common to layer Fontina, Grana Padano, or other thin-sliced or grated cheese into the polenta, especially if it will be served as an appetizer. If it will be served with fish or with mushrooms, then the flavor of the cheese may clash; while common, it's not necessary.

Yield
4 Servings
Cooking time
1 hour
Ingredients
3 c Boiling Water
1⁄2 t Salt
1 c Polenta
2 T Butter
Instructions
  1. Cook the polenta in the boiling salted water. You can use instant polenta, which cooks much faster, but if you don't mind stirring the pot for half an hour then the plain polenta is nice.
  2. While cooking, preheat the oven to 375 F and grease a baking pan or a cake pan with the butter.
  3. Spread the cooked polenta in the buttered pan and bake for 30 minutes.
  4. Remove from the pan, let cool a while, and then slice into serving pieces.
Notes

You can finish it on a grill, too, to get those lovely grill marks.

Source

Traditional