No-Stir Polenta

By Sheela Prakash

Published April 16, 2025

No-Stir Polenta
Armando Rafael for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Cyd Raftus McDowell.
Total Time
55 minutes
Prep Time
5 minutes
Cook Time
50 minutes
Rating
5(336)
Comments
Read comments

Though polenta is traditionally made on the stovetop, simmered in water to become creamy and porridge-like, its results often skew inconsistent. Not to mention that standing over a pot stirring for upwards of an hour is simply a bit of a drag. Enter oven-baked polenta, a no-stir, set-it-and-forget approach to Italian cornmeal that’s infallible. Simply whisk coarse polenta with water and salt, slip it into the oven and let it do its thing while you do yours. Return and you have a creamy bed to rest everything from a saucy ragú or chickpeas all’arrabbiata to sausage and peppers or shrimp scampi.

  • or to save this recipe.

  • Subscriber benefit: Give recipes to anyone

    As a subscriber, you have 10 gift recipes to give each month. Anyone can view them - even nonsubscribers. Learn more.

    Subscribe

  • Share this recipe

  • Print this recipe

Advertisement

Ingredients

Yield:4 servings (about 4 cups)
  • 1tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1cup coarse-ground polenta (not instant or quick-cooking)
  • Salt
  • 2tablespoons unsalted butter, cubed
  • ½cup grated Parmesan cheese (optional)
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)

299 calories; 14 grams fat; 7 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 6 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 32 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams dietary fiber; 1 gram sugars; 10 grams protein; 223 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

Powered by

Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Heat oven to 350 degrees. Drizzle the olive oil into a 10- to 12-inch cast-iron skillet or 8-inch square baking dish and use your hands to evenly coat the bottom and sides.

  2. Step 2

    Combine the polenta, 1 teaspoon salt and 4 cups of water in the pan. Bake, uncovered, for 40 minutes.

  3. Step 3

    Whisk in the butter and cheese, if using, and continue to bake for 5 minutes more. Whisk again, then taste and season with additional salt as needed. Serve immediately.

Private Notes

Leave a Private Comment on this recipe and see it here.

Ratings

5 out of 5
336 user ratings
Your rating

or to rate this recipe.

Have you cooked this?

or to mark this recipe as cooked.

Comments

-e-

I've been baking polenta for years- it's an absolute breakthrough! One crucial thing this recipe leaves out is that you need to salt the water the polenta cooks in, not just at the end! Polenta cooked in plain water is oddly flavorless a way that salting afterwards does to fix. I stir in 1/2 to 3/4 tsp of salt at the very start, whisk the polenta at the 20 minute mark, and then whisk again, adding butter and parm, when done...

MK

I’ve been cooking polenta in the oven for years. One handy tip is to have an oiled sheet pan ready when it comes out of the oven. I always make extra, and after serving, I spread the extra about 1” thick on the sheet pan. It sets up firm while we eat dinner, and can be cut into squares for easy reheating for another meal. Just sauté or grill.

Barbara Marmor

We also having been baking polenta for years, adding salt to cooking liquid, and stirring midway to help things along. But our added trick is half water and half milk. Makes an incredibly creamy polenta!

Julie, Sonoma

I made this for one person: quarter cup water, cup cornmeal, generous salt into a well oiled 6 inch cast iron frying pan. 50 minutes, stirred it a bit and added a bit of cheese and black pepper. Had it with a luscious and spicy tomato sauce so it needed no butter or cream. Perfect, and no sticking in the pan. This is such a simple way to make polenta.

Brenda

I made this per the recipe. Because my timer was in use, I used the timer my apple watch and somewhere along the way to paused, so I had to play it by ear. In all, I think it took 55 minutes, including stirring in the butter and baking for a few more minutes. It was creamy and delicious. Baked in. 9-inch square pyrex pan. Clean up was a soak and wash up. Easy.

Brenda

PS I used Bob's Red Mill coarse ground.

Private comments are only visible to you.

Recipe Tags

or to save this recipe.