Creamy Polenta with Parmesan Cheese (2024)

April 3, 2024April 9, 2020 by Erin

This Creamy Polenta with Parmesan is a delicious side dish. Irresistibly yummy with parmesan cheese, but simple to make with just 5-ingredients: polenta, parmesan, milk, chicken broth or bone broth and butter. Yum!

Creamy polenta is one of the most simple side dishes that you can make. It makes a perfect side dish to compliment hearty, saucy dishes like these red wine braised short ribs, smoked beef short ribs, or this sausage ragout, because it soaks up all that delicious sauce.

Also, this easy polenta recipe is super versatile.

Don’t have parmesan cheese on hand? You can use any other cheese that you may have, or simply leave it out. No milk, just use extra chicken stock. Want to make vegetarian polenta? Swap out the stock for vegetable broth. No milk? Just use extra broth/stock.

What type of cornmeal to use for polenta?

• Cornmeal labeled as “Polenta”. This will typically be a medium ground yellow cornmeal.
• Stone-ground. This type of cornmeal retains some of the hull and germ of the kernels. It will produce polenta with wonderful, creamy texture and delicious corn flavor.
• Medium. This will produce a more creamy polenta.
• Coarse. Similar to stone-ground cornmeal, coarse cornmeal will produce a creamy polenta with a bit of texture to it.

As for what cornmeal not to use for polenta, avoid fine ground and instant polenta. Their texture will be a bit more mushy and the corn flavor not as noticeable.

Polenta vs. Grits

• Though they look somewhat similar, grits and polenta are not the same. Grits are ground finer than polenta and are typically made with white corn hominy rather than yellow corn.

What is parmesan polenta made of?

• Bone Broth or Chicken Broth (or use vegetable stock or parmesan broth)
• Whole Milk
• Polenta
• Butter
• Parmesan
• Salt and black pepper

How to make it

• Bring broth and milk to a gentle simmer and season with salt & pepper.
• Stir in polenta and simmer until thickened, about 20 minutes.
• Add butter & parmesan and stir to combine.
• Season to taste and enjoy!

Recipe FAQs

How to make ahead and store

• You can make polenta up to three days ahead of time. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge. The soft polenta will firm up as it cools. See below for how to reheat and serve cheesy polenta.

How to reheat leftover polenta

• Add your desired amount of polenta to a saucepan, adding in 3 Tablespoons of liquid (milk, broth or water) for each cup of polenta.
• Heat over low heat, stirring to combine.

Or, make polenta cakes.

How to make polenta cakes

• Spread hot polenta into a baking tray.
• Refrigerate until firm.
• Slice the firm polenta into portions and fry, grill, or bake until crispy and delicious.
• You can also make polenta fries using the same method but slicing the polenta into fry-like sticks.

What to serve with it

Serve this traditional side dish with one of these yummy recipes:

• Red Wine Braised Short Ribs
• Smoked Short Ribs
• Mushroom Chicken
• Sausage Ragout with Fennel
• Slow Cooker Osso Buco
• Sunday Gravy
• More → 25+ great options for what to serve with polenta

More side dish recipes

• Israeli Couscous with Tomatoes
• Mashed Cauliflower {5 Ways}
• Sunchokes
• Instant Pot Mashed Potatoes with Sour Cream
• The BEST Instant Pot Farro
• Crispy Smashed Potatoes with Mojo Sauce

Did you try this polenta with parmesan recipe?

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This polenta with chicken stock post was originally published in 2020. It was updated in 2023 to add new information. The creamy polenta recipe remains the same. Enjoy!