Signature · about 2 hours on the day of service, plus molding the polenta and draining the ricotta the day before · Serves 4
White polenta bar with corn cream, charred corn, roasted bell peppers, ricotta and Parmesan crumble
The polenta with corn, bell pepper and cheese from northern Italian cooking and the Argentine table: corn in two states, sweetness, cream and a touch of acidity. The aim is a contemporary dish with a complete bite, in which the creamy, the toasted and the crunchy coexist.
The twist is to turn the polenta into a bar: cooked firm with milk, stock, butter and Parmesan, molded, cut and browned in a pan, with a crisp crust and a creamy center. The corn appears three times: the cobs become stock, the kernels are blended into a smooth cream and others are charred in iron until caramelized. The roasted, dressed bell peppers bring acidity; the cold ricotta, freshness; the Parmesan crumble, crunch and umami, and the green oil, an herbal touch.
Special equipment: high-power blender; cast-iron or heavy-bottomed pan; rectangular mold
Ingredients
Quick corn stock
- The cobs from the 5 ears of corn in the recipe
- 700–800 ml water
- A pinch of salt
Firm white polenta
- 150 g white polenta
- 600 ml whole milk
- 400 ml poultry, vegetable or corn stock
- 60 g butter
- 60 g finely grated Parmesan
- 8–10 g fine salt, approximately
- White pepper and a pinch of nutmeg
- Neutral oil and a knob of butter, for browning
Corn cream
- 3 ears of yellow corn, or about 450 g kernels
- 60 g shallot or white onion, finely chopped
- 30 g butter
- 200 ml corn or vegetable stock
- 250 ml heavy cream
- 1 sprig fresh thyme
- Salt, a few drops of lemon juice and, only if needed, a pinch of sugar
Charred corn kernels
- 2 ears of fresh corn
- 1 tablespoon mild or neutral olive oil
- 15 g butter
- Fine salt and a pinch of sugar, optional
Roasted bell peppers
- 2 medium red bell peppers
- 1½ tablespoons olive oil
- 1 teaspoon sherry or wine vinegar
- Fine or flaky salt
Dressed ricotta
- 120 g fresh ricotta
- Finely grated zest of ½ lemon
- Fine salt and freshly ground black pepper
- A few drops of mild olive oil, optional
Parmesan crumble
- 60 g grated Parmesan
- 60 g 00 flour
- 40 g panko
- 40 g cold butter, in cubes
- Freshly ground black pepper
Green oil
- 25–30 g basil leaves, or parsley, or parsley with chives
- 80 ml mild or neutral olive oil
- A pinch of salt
Finishing
- Small herbs: baby basil, chives, baby parsley, pea shoots or microgreens
- Finely grated lemon zest
- Freshly ground black pepper
Method
Quick corn stock
- Cooking. Cut the kernels off the ears and set the kernels aside. Cover the cobs with the water, add the salt, bring to a gentle boil and cook 25–30 minutes. Strain. The cobs bring a lot of flavor: this stock is used for the cream and, if made the same day, for the polenta.
Firm white polenta
- Cooking. Heat the milk with the stock, salt, white pepper and nutmeg until almost boiling. Pour in the polenta in a rain, whisking constantly to prevent lumps. Lower to the minimum and cook slowly, stirring often; with traditional polenta, about 20–30 minutes. It should be considerably thicker than a polenta to be served creamy. Off the heat, stir in the butter and Parmesan until homogeneous, and adjust the salt.
- Molding. Line a rectangular dish with plastic film or silicone paper, pour in the hot polenta immediately and spread it to a height of 2.5–3 cm, with a very smooth surface. Let it cool and refrigerate at least 2 hours. Once fully cold, cut 4 bars of about 12 × 4 × 2.5–3 cm and keep them in the refrigerator.
- Browning. Shortly before serving, heat a nonstick pan or griddle with a little oil and brown the bars 2–3 minutes per side, moving them carefully. With the crust formed, add the knob of butter and baste them with the foaming butter. The aim is a golden, slightly crisp exterior, a hot, creamy interior and sharply defined edges.
Corn cream
- Base. Melt the butter over medium-low heat and cook the shallot 3–4 minutes, without color. Add the kernels from the 3 ears, sauté them 2 minutes, add the stock and reduce by half. Add the cream and thyme and cook gently 8–10 minutes.
- Blending. Remove the thyme and blend at maximum power to a very fine cream. Pass through a fine sieve: it is what gives a smooth, stable texture. Return it to a small saucepan and adjust with salt, a few drops of lemon and, if the corn has little sweetness, a minimal pinch of sugar. It should be nappé, fluid but able to coat a spoon. Keep hot without letting it boil hard.
Charred corn kernels
- Charring. If the corn is fresh and tender, do not boil it first: it would absorb moisture and not caramelize well. Dry the kernels of the 2 raw ears with paper towels. Heat a wide cast-iron, steel or heavy-bottomed pan very hot, add a film of oil and the kernels in a single layer, and leave them still 45–60 seconds. When they begin to take color, sauté them 3–5 minutes more: you want golden kernels, others more caramelized and a few with dark spots.
- Finishing. Lower the heat slightly, add the butter and salt, sauté 20–30 seconds more and remove at once. For a more worked finish, char 20% of the kernels a bit more intensely in a separate pan and mix them back in with the rest.
Roasted bell peppers
- Roasting. Roast the whole bell peppers in the oven at 220 °C (430 °F), 25–30 minutes, turning them occasionally, until the skin is blistered and quite dark. Move them right away to a covered container and leave 10 minutes.
- Dressing. Peel them carefully, remove seeds and ribs and cut the flesh into 8–10 mm cubes. Dress with the oil, vinegar and salt, and refrigerate. Take them out of the refrigerator ahead of time: they are served at room temperature or just warm.
Dressed ricotta
- Draining and dressing. Drain the ricotta in a fine sieve, in the refrigerator, 2–3 hours, to remove excess whey. Before serving, season it with salt, pepper, the lemon zest and, if you like, a few drops of oil. Do not turn it into a cream: it should break into irregular pieces. Keep it fresh, but not icy.
Parmesan crumble
- Sanding. Preheat the oven to 170 °C (340 °F). Mix the flour, panko, Parmesan and pepper, and quickly work in the cold butter with your fingertips to a sandy, irregular texture, without forming a dough.
- Baking. Spread on a tray and bake 10–12 minutes, stirring halfway, until golden. Let cool completely and break with your fingers into irregular crumbs. It should be dry and crunchy.
Green oil
- Blanching and blending. Blanch the leaves 10–15 seconds in plenty of boiling water, move them to ice water, drain and dry them very well. Blend with the oil and salt 1 minute, strain through a fine sieve or filter and keep cold.
Finishing
- At serving. Pick the small herbs and have the lemon zest and pepper at hand. They are added at the last moment.
The dish
Use dark ceramic plates —black, charcoal gray or stone—. Put 2 generous spoonfuls of corn cream in the center and spread it slightly, irregularly. Set the golden bar on top, slightly off center, and add a little more cream on one side, without covering it: part of the crust should show. Distribute around and over the polenta the charred corn kernels, bell pepper cubes and irregular pieces of cold ricotta. Add the Parmesan crumble in two areas, without covering the whole plate, and 3 to 5 small herb leaves. Finish with 5–6 drops of green oil, a minimal amount of lemon zest and a very light turn of pepper. Before serving, check that all the contrasts are there: sweetness of the corn, creaminess of the polenta and the cream, acidity of the pepper and lemon, freshness of the ricotta and herbs, umami of the Parmesan, crunch of the crumble and toastiness of the corn and the crust. Final look: a golden bar with clean edges on the yellow cream, red, white and green dots around, and golden crumbs of crumble.
Key points
- Roast the bell peppers until the skin is blistered and quite dark, or they do not peel well and give no roasted flavor.
- Pour in the polenta as a rain, whisking constantly, to avoid lumps.
- Cook the polenta considerably thicker than a creamy polenta: if it is soft, the bar does not cut or brown.
- Do not boil the kernels to be charred, and take them to a very hot pan in a single layer.
- Watch the final acidity: the dish should not feel too sweet or too dairy.
Pairing
A Chenin Blanc with good acidity or a fresh Chardonnay with very moderate oak: the acidity balances the butter, ricotta and Parmesan, and its ripe notes go with the sweetness of the corn. Without alcohol, cold white tea with lemon and fresh herbs, or a dry, fruity kombucha.
Notes
- If there is no basil for the green oil, parsley, chives or a mix of both can be used. For this dish, a parsley green oil and fresh chives as a finishing herb work especially well.
- The source suggested, as an option, dots of black olive powder at plating, but does not explain how to make it; it was left out of this version.