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Creamy, cheesy, fried, baked, mild, spicy, and total comfort food. I’m talking about Instant Pot Polenta, and there are many ways to flavor it! You can make perfect polenta in your pressure cooker. It’s fast and easy!
Instant Pot Polenta
Polenta is what my mom called corn mush. She used to make it with butter and set a couple of over-easy eggs on top. She made us “grits” too (which are corn also, made from hominy and finer ground. Same thing, really!). having lived in the South, it was something she grew up with. So it was something I grew up with, too. Though I confess I was raised in about as North as you can get in the Continental US; Washington! But we still had the joy of good, home-cooked Southern meals!
Mom didn’t make us fried polenta, it was always served as mush, or porridge. Often with chili, or some kind of sauce, and of course, the eggs on it. So the first time I had it fried, in a restaurant, I was pleasantly surprised! That crispy crust gave it a whole new dimension!
Fried Polenta with Chorizo Tomato Sauce
I think polenta has become more in fashion these days, and it can be served in many different ways. Top it with anything from a tomato based sauce, to maple syrup! And it’s really easy to make. I wasn’t a fan of being in the kitchen when mom made it because our kitchen was tiny, and polenta pops and blurps when it cooks. I remember having to stir it and wishing for a longer handled spoon. That hot mush would pop and little specks burned my arm! Making polenta in the Instant Pot is so much easier, and it’s mostly hands-off! No more getting burned!
Instant Pot Polenta is also faster cooking than on the stove. So that’s a bonus. But frankly, I like the hands-off aspect best. I can make the sauce, or get the rest of the meal ready while the Instant Pot is doing its thing!
This recipe is a two-for-one (three if you count the basic polenta): The first version is a creamy, cheesy version of polenta that you can serve as a side dish. The second version is a Feta and Sun Dried Tomato Polenta.
Creamy, Cheesy Polenta
Feta and Sun Dried Tomato Polenta
If you just want to cook a basic polenta, you can ignore the other versions and serve it under your favorite sauce. Or, spread it out in a dish or on a pan and let it cool. It will firm up nicely. Then cut it into pieces and bake (425 degrees F, 20-25 minutes) or fry them in some olive oil. Then serve them with a sauce or whatever you are in the mood for!
Spread out the polenta and chill it, and slice into desired portions before baking or frying.
Instant Pot Polenta
Ingredients
For Basic Polenta
- 4 ¼ cups Water or Broth
- 4 Tbsp Butter
- ½ tsp Salt (or more to taste)
- 1 cup Polenta (aka, coarse corn meal, coarse corn grits)
For Creamy, Cheesy Polenta (Add to the Basic Polenta when it is done cooking)
- 1 cup Parmesan Cheese grated
- ¾ cup Milk (or half and half)
- ½ tsp Pepper
For Feta and Sun Dried Tomato Polenta (Add to the Basic Polenta when it is done cooking)
- 8 oz Feta Cheese crumbled
- ⅔ cup Milk
- ½ cup Sun Dried Tomatoes chopped
- 8 Large Basil Leaves chiffonade (sliced in ribbons)
- Salt to Taste
Instructions
To Cook the Basic Polenta
- Press the Sauté (normal, medium heat) button on the Instant Pot.
- Add the water, butter, and salt. Bring to a simmer.
- Whisk in the polenta, and put the lid on the pot. Set the steam release knob to the Sealing position.
- Cancel the Sauté function (usually by pressing the Keep Warm/Cancel button).
- Press the Manual (or Pressure Cook) button, and then the + or - button to select 7 minutes (4 minutes for the quick cooking variety). When cook cycle ends, turn off the pressure cooker and let the pot naturally release the pressure for 10 minutes. Then manually release the remaining pressure.
- When the pin in the lid drops, open the lid and stir the polenta well, scraping up any that may have stuck to the bottom of the pot (I have the ceramic coated Instant Pot liner that is non-stick. It is perfect for this).
- Serve with your favorite sauce or toppings.
For Creamy, Cheesy Polenta
- After you have opened up the pot when polenta is done cooking, stir it well and add the parmesan cheese. Stir to incorporate.
- Stir in the milk.
- Taste and adjust salt to if needed.
- Serve warm.
For Feta and Sun Dried Tomato Polenta
- After you have opened up the pot when polenta is done cooking, stir it well and add the feta cheese. Stir to incorporate.
- Stir in the milk, sun dried tomatoes, and the basil.
- Taste, and adjust salt if needed.
- Serve warm.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Resources to make Instant Pot Polenta Recipe and More
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Hi, we have an Instapot Lux Mini. After about a min. of reaching pressure, the display said “Burn”. Any thoughts? Guessing the mini reacts different. ..
The amount may be the issue in the smaller Mini. I will need to test it. The most important think is to get the water boiling really good, then stir the polenta in and close the lid.
just buy the goat cheese in any good supermarket. Don’t need to pay a ton of money for it.when i grew up in eastern Pennsylvania My italian family just made their own from their own goats. Now i just buy the Kroger brand from my local Kroger supermarket. The high priced supermarket is getting it from the same goat farm!
After you bake the polenta top it with everything you use on Pizza.
send me a recipe for southern greens, if you have one. Thanks
Update: the fail I ran into seemed to be with water-grain ratio. Also, I used olive oil instead of butter which added a bit more liquid. After adding more grain and stirring more it thickened up perfectly. Used goat cheese instead of cow milk to thicken and it was fab!
Thank you for the update, Stacy! I appreciate it! So glad you figured it out. BTW, I must try the goat cheese!
Huge fail. Followed cooking instructions here and when I opened the lid the polenta was still swimming in water.
I’m sorry that happened. Which version did you make? Maybe I can troubleshoot.
Delicious! Made the basic polenta with some modifications:. Doubled the recipe by using 6 cups of bean and bone broth, 1 tsp. truffle salt, 2 cups polenta. Was a little too salty but otherwise creamy and tasty! Thank you Sandy!
I would like to make half a recipe. Can it be done pot-in-pot, bringing the water, salt and butter to a simmer on the stove top? I’d probably reduce pressure time by 1 minute but love to know if anyone has tried this.
Hi Lynne, that sounds like it might work, and I’d like to know your results if you do make it this way!
Is there anything special that you serve your polenta with? Looking for ideas for my leftovers lol
I like to do the trick where I flatten it, chill it, and cut it into squares/triangles. Then fry it in some olive oil and pour sauce on it. Marinara, with some cheese is great!
I was wondering if i could fry it without it falling flat lol… But refrigerate it! Good idea! There’s a restaurant in town that serves an appetizer of polenta squares with a Gorgonzola sauce. Oh my! I want to figure that one out.
Oh yum, gorgonzola! I may need to come up with a good sauce using it!
I want to make polenta in quantity (about 15 cups). Any idea if this recipe can be calculated up to 4 cups cornmeal and 16 cups water (about 15 servings) safely in my 8qt? Thanks!
Hi Maureen. The 8 quart can handle a larger volume, so that is good. The pot will be half full with 4 quarts of water, then 4 cups of cornmeal. It will be close. If you do this, let it naturally release longer so it doesn’t spew out with the steam when you release pressure. I have never made this much in the IP, only stove top. Let me know if you are successful, and I can make a note on the recipe card.
Hi Sandy…I did it! And it worked. It turned out yummy and lovely. I took a picture if you’d like me to send it to you.
Yay! I’d LOVE to see it! sandy@simplyhappyfoodie.com is my email address. I’m so glad it worked! Did you do anything differently?
Nothing with the cooking… except that I added that chicken bullion paste instead of using stock.
I lost 1/2 the feta on the floor…lol. So I’d say that was only about 8 ounces. And I didn’t buy enough of the sun-dried tomatoes, so they just got sprinkled on the top. And last, I didn’t add the milk at they end because it seemed wet enough as was. But it did firm up a little more than I would have liked after it cooled slightly. Maybe the milk would have helped that? Either way, it was yummy! Thanks for the recipe. Is it ok if I post it on the Instant Pot Community group, of course with acknowledgements, with the picture?
Hi Maureen, I do think the milk helps keep it at a thinner consistency. Sorry about the feta on the floor! Yes, please share to the group, they love recipes! If you would post the link (please don’t type out the recipe), and a photo, as people like to see how a “real person” did it! That would be really nice! Thank you!
Love this Polenta recipe! My husband and daughter are vegan, so vegan butter and Parmesan (couldn’t find vegan feta) added the basil and sun dried tomatoes. Serving this for brunch, with small roasted multi colored potatoes, sweet onions and roasted red and yellow peppers and sautéed mushrooms. All separate, as my daughter is kinda picky but such pretty colors
Yummy! I’m glad you can make this fit within your diet! Thank you for your comment!
I loved this polenta recipe! I made the creamy/cheesy version. I’m Italian, and it passed my test! Ciao!
Eccezionale! Grazie!