Polenta with a good chunky ragù, as we make it here in Calabria, flavorful and tender, prepared with small pieces of beef cooked for at least two hours or until the very tender meat melts in your mouth. For the polenta, we can use the classic long-cooking type, as we have plenty of time while the ragù cooks, or if we’re in a hurry, maybe we already cooked the ragù the night before, and at lunchtime, we’re rushed, we can use instant polenta. In a few minutes, our nice plate of polenta will be ready, and to quickly make polenta without lumps, I’ll reveal my little trick. So let’s see how to prepare polenta with chunky ragù.
- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Medium
- Preparation time: 20 Minutes
- Portions: 2
- Cooking methods: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: All seasons
Ingredients for polenta with chunky ragù
- 1 1/2 cups precooked polenta flour
- to taste salt
- to taste black pepper
- to taste butter
- 3 1/4 cups water
- 14 oz beef chunks for ragù
- 17 1/2 oz tomato purée
- 1 onion
- 1/4 cup red wine
- to taste extra virgin olive oil
- to taste salt
- to taste chili pepper
Tools to prepare polenta with chunky ragù
- 2 Pots
- 1 Knife
- 1 Cutting board
- 1 Cooking spatula
Steps to prepare polenta with chunky ragù
Let’s start by preparing the ragù in advance. Finely chop the onion and start to sauté it over low heat in a pot with high sides with a little extra virgin olive oil. If you like, you can also add celery and carrot.
Cut the meat into not too large pieces and add it to the pot, let it brown, then deglaze with wine and finally add the tomato purée and a good glass of water, add salt and chili pepper to taste, and cook over low heat for at least a couple of hours.
Prepare the polenta, I prefer to use instant polenta because it’s faster. To avoid lumps, I put the flour directly into the pot with the heat off, then gradually add the water, to obtain a lump-free cream. Then add salt, pepper, and a bit of butter, and cook while stirring, the time varies depending on the polenta used. In 10 minutes max, the polenta will be ready.
Distribute the creamy and steaming polenta on serving plates, and accompany with a couple of ladles of chunky ragù, and enjoy all its goodness. Instead of chili pepper, you can use smoked paprika, which goes very well. If you like, you can add grated Parmesan cheese.
