The following cereals are only occasionally
encountered in Europe and the United States,
though some are very important in the dry
tropics and subtropics.
Polenta Lore
Polenta, the Italian version of corn meal
mush (originally made with barley), has
become a popular dish in the United States,
and is the subject of much lore. Some
cooks make it quickly in the microwave
oven, while traditionalists insist on the
necessity of slow cooking and constant
stirring for an hour or more. Long cooking
at the stove does do one useful thing: it
develops the corn flavor by the constant
application of higher-than-boiling heat to
the pot bottom (hence the need to stir to
prevent burning) and the exposure to air
and drying that takes place at the surface.
Busy cooks can develop just as much
flavor with less labor by partly covering