Truffle polenta chips – Ottolenghi & Scully

24/07/20214passionfood

Prep time: 20 minutes

Cook time: 35 minutes

Serves: Serve 4 - 6

These truffle polenta chips are incredibly delicious, rich, impressive and very addictive. They are crispy and crunchy from the outside and soft inside. It’s definitely a nice alternative to the traditional French fries potatoes.

These polenta chips are the perfect side dish to serve with meat or fish. They can also make a great appetizer with the aioli or tomato chutney to dip.

This is from NOPI ottolenghi and scully’s cookbook.

How to make it ?

As you know polenta itself has very little flavour. In this recipe we’ll cook it in boiled water before stirring in butter to make it richer. Then we’ll add the grated parmesan and some truffle oil that adds a luxurious touch. Which suits me personally, I have always been a big fan of truffle. But if you don’t like the truffle, feel free to substitute and play around with different seasoning, specially herbs like rosemary, sage, thyme…

The polenta is then spread out evenly in 30cm/20cm tray to let it cool for at least 2 hours or overnight.

The next day, cut into sticks 10cm/2cm. Dust them with some polenta and fry when you’re ready to eat, as they’re best served fresh with some aioli or tomato chutney.

What if you don’t want to fry them ?

According to Yotam Ottolenghi and Ramael Scully, if you don’t fancy frying you can bake them in a hot oven instead, in which case you don’t need to dust them with polenta. Just brush them lightly with olive oil and then roast on a parchment- lined baking tray at 240C/ 220C fan for about 25 minutes.

I actually didn’t try this alternative, so let me know if you do.

If you want to make an amazing side dish, check this recipe : « Sweet potato mash with herbs & lime salsa »

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Truffle polenta chips - Ottolenghi & Scully

24/07/2021 4passionfood

Prep time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 35 minutes
Total time: 55 minutes

Serves: Serve 4 - 6

Ingredients :

Polenta chips :

250 g instant polenta, plus 60g for dusting
1 Litre of water
100 g unsalted butter, fridge cold and cut into 1cm dice
75 g parmesan, finely grated
3/4 tsp truffle oil, maybe should add little bit more
1 Litre sunflower oil for frying, I didn’t use all of it
300 g shop-bought tomato chutney, to serve (optional)
coarse sea salt

Aioli (optional) : I used the half of these quantities

10 garlic cloves, peeled
250 ml sunflower oil
2 thyme sprigs
1 bay leaf
2 black peppercorns
2 egg yolks
2 Tbsp Dijon mustard
2 Tbsp white wine vinegar

Method

Aioli :

1)
For the aioli :

Preheat the oven to 180C, 160C Fan.

Place the garlic cloves, sunflower oil, thyme, bay leaf and peppercorns in a small ovenproof saucepan. Cover with the foil and roast in the oven for 20-25 minutes, until the garlic is tender. Set to cool, then strain the garlic, preserving the oil but discarding the thyme, the bay leaf and the peppercorns.

Place the egg yolks, mustard, vinegar and roasted garlic cloves in the small bowl of a food processor, with 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Blend to form a smooth paste and,while the machines is still running, slowly add the garlic – infused oil to form a thick mayonnaise. Store in the fridge until ready to use.

Polenta chips :

1)
Fill a medium saucepan with the water and place on a medium heat. Bring to the boil, then slowly pour in the polenta, whisking constantly to avoid lumps. Reduce the heat to low and cook for 3 minutes, stirring very frequently, until the polenta is smooth and thick.
2)
Turn off the heat, add the butter a few cubes at a time, stirring until each batch is incorporated before adding the next, followed by the parmesan and 1 tablespoon of salt ( I advice you to reduce this quantity). Mix through and cook for another 5 minutes, stirring continuously, so that it no longer sticks to the sides of the pan ( it will have a choux dough consistency).
3)
Remove from the heat, stir through the truffle oil ( I whish if I added more like 1 teaspoon instead of 3/4). Then transfer to a medium parchment – lined baking tray, measuring 30cm/ 20cm. Use a wet spatula to spread the polenta out evenly, so that it is 2cm thick. Lay another sheet of baking paper on top and press down lightly. Set aside to cool before transferring to the fridge to set for 2 hours or overnight ( that’s what I did).
4)
Flip the polenta out of the tray on to a chopping board and cut into about 30 chips, each measuring 10cm / 2cm. Spread the remaining polenta out on a plate and roll the chips through, one by one, so that ther are dusted on all sides.
5)
Heat the sunflower oil in a medium sauté pan and place on a high heat. When hot, carefully add a quarter of the chips and fry for 3- 4 minutes, until golden brown. Remove with a slotted spoon, transfer to a kitchen paper lined plate, sprinkle lightly with salt and set aside while you continue with the remaining chips.

Serve at once, with either the aioli or tomato chutney alongside.

Enjoy !!