Non-VegetarianMarchigiana cuisine Main Course

Polenta alla Carbonara Marchigiana

Name: Polenta alla Carbonara Marchigiana
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 55 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Marchigiana
Ingredients: 300 g coarse yellow cornmeal; 1.2 l Water; 10 g Fine sea salt; 200 g cured pancetta or guanciale; 120 g pecorino dei monti sibillini; 10 g Black peppercorns; 15 ml lard or extra virgin olive oil

Polenta layered with crisp cured pork, aged sheep's cheese and cracked black pepper, known in the Piceno as polenta alla carbonara.

🇮🇹Italy· Marche

Prep: 10 min
Cook: 45 min
Total: 55 min
Servings: 4
Difficulty: Easy
Calories: 540 kcal

Ingredients

0 of 7 gathered

Servings

300 g coarse yellow cornmeal — farina di mais bramata
1¼ l Water — fresh cold water
10 g Fine sea salt — for seasoning the polenta water
200 g cured pancetta or guanciale — cut into thick strips
120 g pecorino dei monti sibillini — aged Marchigiano sheep's milk cheese, finely grated
10 g Black peppercorns — whole, freshly crushed
15 ml lard or extra virgin olive oil — for starting the pork rendering if needed

Equipment

•Heavy-bottomed pot or copper paiolo
•Wooden spoon
•Frying pan
•Mortar and pestle
•Wooden polenta board or serving dish

Nutrition

Per serving, approximate

Calories: 540 kcal
fat: 26 g
carbs: 58 g
fibre: 5 g
protein: 18 g
calories: 540 kcal

Instructions

1
Bring the water to a boil in a heavy-bottomed pot and stir in the salt.
2
Pour the cornmeal in a slow, steady stream while whisking continuously to avoid any lumps forming.
3
Switch to a sturdy wooden spoon and simmer the polenta over low heat for forty minutes, stirring frequently until thick and smooth.
4
Heat a dry frying pan over medium heat and add the sliced pancetta.
5
Fry the pancetta gently until the fat renders completely and the meat becomes golden and crisp.
6
Remove the pan from the heat, keeping both the crisp pork and its hot rendered fat.
7
Crush the black peppercorns coarsely using a mortar and pestle.
8
Spoon half of the steaming hot polenta onto a warm wooden board or deep serving platter.
9
Scatter half of the grated pecorino, half of the crisp pancetta, a spoonful of hot pork fat, and crushed pepper over the surface.
10
Cover with the remaining hot polenta and finish immediately with the rest of the cheese, crisp pancetta, remaining fat, and a generous layer of crushed pepper.

Chef's tips

Pour the cornmeal into the water very slowly like rain to prevent clumping. Do not discard the rendered pork fat, as it carries essential flavour and melts the pecorino between the hot layers of polenta.

Ingredient substitutions

Pecorino dei Monti Sibillini → an aged Pecorino Romano or Pecorino Toscano stagionato
cured pancetta → guanciale or cured pork cheek cut into lardons

Storage

Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to three days.

Reheating

Slice the cold, set polenta into thick slabs and pan-fry in a little lard or olive oil until heated through and crusty.

Common mistakes to avoid

•Rushing the polenta cooking time, which leaves the cornmeal gritty and raw tasting.
•Burning the pancetta over high heat instead of rendering the fat gently.
•Using pre-ground powdered black pepper instead of coarsely cracked whole peppercorns.