Herbed Polenta
The Instant Pot makes perfect polenta without the laborious stirring stovetop polenta recipes require. The gentle heat of cooking on low pressure means you’ll get smooth, creamy polenta that won’t stick to the bottom of the pot. The blend of parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme gives this soft polenta a woodsy flavor that lends itself to being served alongside hearty meat dishes like pot roast and braised lamb.
Servings Prep Time
4-6servings 10minutes
Cook Time
25minutes
Servings Prep Time
4-6servings 10minutes
Cook Time
25minutes
Ingredients
  • 2tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 1large shallotfinely chopped
  • 2teaspoons fresh sage leaveschopped
  • 2teaspoons fresh rosemarychopped
  • 2teaspoons fresh thyme leaveschopped
  • 4cups chicken or vegetable brothhomemade or low-sodium store-bought
  • salt
  • 1cup polentanot quick-cooking
  • 1/2cup Parmesan cheesegrated
  • 1/4cup milk
  • 3tablespoons fresh Italian parsleychopped
  • 1/4teaspoon nutmegfreshly grated
  • pepper
Instructions
  1. Place the butter in the pot, select Sauté, and adjust to More/High heat. When the butter has melted, add the shallot, sage, rosemary, and thyme and cook, stirring frequently, until the shallot is tender, 4 minutes. Add the broth and 1/2 teaspoon salt. When the liquid comes to a simmer, gradually whisk in the polenta. Press Cancel.
  2. Lock on the lid, select the Manual or Pressure Cook function, and adjust to Low pressure for 8 minutes. Make sure the steam valve is in the “Sealing” position and that the “Keep Warm” button is off.
  3. When the cooking time is up, let the pressure come down naturally for 15 minutes and then quick-release the remaining pressure. Unlock the lid and remove the pot from the appliance. Stir in the cheese, milk, parsley, and nutmeg. Season with salt and pepper.
  4. Serve immediately as soft polenta, or transfer it to a container and refrigerate until solid. To reheat solid polenta, cut it into 1inch thick slabs and sauté them in olive oil in a nonstick pan over medium-high heat until crispy, 3 minutes per side.
Recipe Notes

Solid polenta can be refrigerated, tightly wrapped in plastic, for up to 5 days.

The following recipes are excerpted from INSTANT POT® ITALIAN © 2018 by Ivy Manning. Reproduced by permission of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. All rights reserved.