A dish of boiled cornmeal that can be served creamy or allowed to set and then fried or grilled. A traditional Italian food made from coarsely ground corn.
From Italian 'polenta', from Latin 'polenta' meaning crushed pearl barley. Originally made from various grains including barley, spelt, and millet. Corn was introduced after Columbus brought it from the Americas, transforming polenta into the corn-based dish we know today.
Polenta represents one of history's great culinary transformations - what was once considered peasant food made from whatever grain was available became a gourmet staple. The introduction of corn from the New World completely changed Italian cuisine, though it took centuries for tomatoes and corn to be fully accepted.
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