Andouille and Dijon Polenta
Amanda uses her favorite microplane grater to zest a lemon "her way."
The tarragon was especially beautiful -- buds and all.
Since we couldn't find raw andouille, we chopped up some that was already cooked.
Amanda gazes lovingly at the polenta. It IS quite attractive.
One of our favorite kitchen maneuvers involves scraping ingredients from the counter directly into a hot pan. Sometimes risky...never dull.
Amanda takes a breather to make sure we're on the right track.
Adding chicken stock to the browned andouille and onion, in preparation for the polenta.
The Dijon cream sauce, along with lemon zest and tarragon, awaits its big moment.
Whisking the polenta into the pan gradually helps to avoid lumps.
Amanda and Merrill smile as the Dijon cream sauce goes into the pan -- so unlike them!
The spinach is gently folded in just before serving so that it retains its vibrant green color.
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Author Notes: I've combined two of my favorite dishes into this Andouille and Dijon Polenta. I've borrowed the andouille sausage from dirty (or Cajun) rice, a go-to comfort food of mine, while also borrowing a dijon lemon cream sauce that I like to use in scallop risotto. The polenta comes out so smooth and creamy thanks to the sauce, and the mixture of fennel in the andouille, dijon, lemon zest, and tarragon make for a rich yet bright flavor at the same time. - The Internet Cooking Princess
Food52 Review: A one-dish meal that calls for nothing more than an accompanying green salad, The Internet Princess's polenta is as creamy and rich as it gets, but it's far from a one-note wonder. There's a subtle tang from the Dijon, and it's studded with bits of spicy andouille and flecked with fresh spinach and tarragon -- the latter managing to keep things just short of excessive. We'd never made polenta this way before (you build a base with the sausage and onions, then add chicken stock and polenta, cooking the ingredients all together), but we definitely will in the future. If you can't find raw andouille, you can just brown chopped pre-cooked andouille in a bit of olive oil, like we did. - A&M - A&M
Serves 4 as a side dish, or two as a main
- 1 Cup polenta
- 3 Cup chicken stock
- 3/4 Lb Andouille sauage, ground or casings removed
- 1 White onion, finely chopped
- 1/2 Cup spinach, chopped
- 1/2 Cup heavy whipping cream
- 1/4 Cup white wine
- 1 Tablespoon dijon mustard
- 1 Teaspoon garlic paste
- 1 Teaspoon lemon zest
- Kosher salt and pepper to taste
- 1 Tablespoon of butter, broken into quarters (optional)
- 1 Teaspoon tarragon, chopped
- Kosher salt and pepper to taste
- In a large saute pan on medium high heat, break up the andouille sausage and cook all the way through - about five minutes.
- Once the andouille is browned, add the diced onion and cook in the fat from the sausage for about three to five minutes or until the onions are translucent.
- Add the chicken stock to the pan, and bring to a boil on high heat. Once the stock is boiling, slowly whisk in the polenta.
- Reduce the heat of the pan and periodically stir the polenta to prevent clumping for about ten minutes or until the stock seems to have been absorbed by the polenta.
- Meanwhile, make the Dijon sauce by adding the white wine and heavy whipping cream to a smaller sauté pan on low heat. Whisk for about a minute, then add the Dijon, garlic paste, tarragon, and lemon zest. Continue to whisk for another few minutes so that all the ingredients are properly incorporated.
- Stir the dijon sauce and chopped spinach into the polenta, ensuring that all the ingredients are evenly distributed. Top with a few pats of butter and season with some hefty pinches of salt and pepper. Serve as a side or make it your main course with a simple salad.
- Your Best Polenta Recipe Contest Winner!
Tags: Andouille Sausage, cajun, Dijon mustard, One-Pot Wonders, polenta
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about 1 month ago cookinalong
I'd like to try this but I'm a little puzzled about the short cooking time. I usually cook polenta for at least 45 minutes. This seems to call for 20 minutes or so. Do the other ingredients influence the cooking time?
about 1 month ago tinaathena
super tasty! I just made this w/ thyme in lieu of tarragon and I think it's great! I will make this recipe lots. Probably will skip heating up the sauce, but just prepare it well before I start browning the sausages.
3 months ago hilary fritsch
can you make this a day ahead?
5 months ago Jennifer Low
Just made it for dinner - the whole family loved it!
5 months ago Erin.Quinn
Would it change the recipe drastically to use mild italian sausage? I don't like things too hot.
about 1 year ago koc
Delicious!
about 2 years ago ralimage
Can you substitute half/half for the whipping cream?
over 2 years ago HandRocksLadle
What a great recipe! I added one serrano chili, roughly chopped, to add a little kick -- you'll need an extra glass of water, but it's delicious!
over 2 years ago lajuliaficationdumonde
Yum! Thank you for convincing me to try polenta again... I am trying to re-integrate it into my diet... even with all of my self-induced cooking snafus it was delicious. http://lajuliaficationdumonde...
over 2 years ago captainjoe
plan to try this as a special on our menu.
about 3 years ago lbn
I liked this a lot-- a bit different, nice and tangy. I didn't want to it to be too sausage-heavy, so I fiddled with the proportions and used half the sausage (6 oz.) and 2/3 of all of the rest of the ingredients. That worked well for me and made two hearty meals.
about 3 years ago Neophyte
Lovely meal, thank you. I made this as a main dish for my (picky/finicky) octogenarian parents and the dinner was a complete success-they each ate second servings. Given that my mother's meds prevent her from ingesting alcohol, I substituted the white wine with chicken stock. This dish was so yummy that I'm making it (again as a main) for dinner with friends next Saturday. Tomorrow I'm off to the Dupont Circle Farmer's Market to hunt for some fresh anduille sausage.
over 3 years ago jifferb
this was delicious! i added an extra 1/2-1 tablespoond of dijon - but i could not get andouille and used a thuringer bratwurst instead. not as spicey - i used more mustard to compensate.. loved!
over 3 years ago The Internet Cooking Princess
So glad you liked it!!
over 3 years ago Maria Teresa Jorge
Well done and CONGRATULATIONS! The recipe is very interesting, all looks delicious. Thank you for sharing it.
over 3 years ago Oui, Chef
Congrats on your win! So glad this one made the book.
over 3 years ago The Internet Cooking Princess
Thank you!!
over 3 years ago dymnyno
CONGRATULATIONS! Your recipe sounds sooo yummy...I thought I was done with polenta for a while until I read yours.
over 3 years ago The Internet Cooking Princess
Thanks! I was frustrated with polenta too. Thank goodness for this contest - it made me innovate a little bit!
over 3 years ago WinnieAb
Such an original and seemingly very delicious polenta recipe...congrats on winning and looking forward to making this over the holidays!
over 3 years ago The Internet Cooking Princess
Thank you! You'll have to let me know how it goes!
over 3 years ago arielleclementine
congratulations :)
over 3 years ago The Internet Cooking Princess
Thank you! Your recipe looked very tasty too - I can't wait to see more of your postings!
over 3 years ago bscoggins
Excellent!
over 3 years ago Zach
This does sounds delicious! Can't wait to try it!