Mămăligă cu Brânză și Smântână
Mămăligă cu Brânză și Smântână·(muh-muh-LEE-guh koo BRIN-zuh shee smun-TUU-nuh)
Mămăligă: 30-Minute Daily Mainstays
If there is one smell that defines a Romanian childhood, it is the earthy, toasted aroma of cornmeal bubbling in a heavy pot. This isn't some truffled, fine-dining polenta; this is the bread of the ancestors, unforgivingly simple and profoundly comforting. Real mămăligă demands only water, salt, cornmeal, and the grandmother's trick: a preemptive pinch of dry meal into cold water to stave off lumps. You serve it piping hot on a wooden board, heavily blanketed with salty sheep's milk cheese and rich sour cream, exactly the way it's been eaten for generations.
Ingredients
- cold water4 cup
- kosher salt1 1/2 tsp
- medium-grind yellow cornmeal1 cup
- unsalted butter2 tbsp
- sheep's milk feta cheese8 oz
- full-fat sour cream1/2 cup
Method
- 01
Combine the cold water and salt in a heavy-bottomed Dutch oven over medium-high heat.
- 02
Immediately sprinkle exactly one pinch of cornmeal into the cold water.
This old-country trick stabilizes the starches as the water heats, serving as an absolute guarantee against a lumpy mămăligă.
- 03
Once the water reaches a rolling boil, reduce the heat slightly and pour the remaining cornmeal in a slow, steady stream while whisking continuously.
Do not dump it in all at once, or the starches will seize into hard bullets.
- 04
Switch to a wooden spoon, reduce the heat to low, and simmer for 20 to 25 minutes.
Stir well every few minutes, scraping the bottom to prevent scorching, until the cornmeal pulls away from the sides and loses its raw flavor.
- 05
Remove from the heat and vigorously beat the butter into the hot mămăligă until melted and glossy.
- 06
Turn the hot mass out onto a clean wooden cutting board.
The wood absorbs escaping steam, preventing the bottom from getting soggy like it would on a cold ceramic platter.
- 07
Portion immediately onto plates and generously blanket with the crumbled feta and a large dollop of sour cream.
Notes
Replicate regional pungency.
For a sharper flavor reminiscent of Transylvanian Brânză de Burduf, blend the feta with a half-cup of finely grated Pecorino Romano.
Save the leftovers.
Leftover mămăligă will harden into a solid block as it cools. Slice it into wedges the next morning and pan-fry in butter or bacon fat until crispy.
From Cook Romanian in America.