Polenta with an egg makes a warm and wonderful quick dinner. I prefer a poached egg but an over-easy fried egg would be delicious as well, keep the yolk on the shy side of custardy for best results.
Use your preferred method of poaching eggs, I like using silicone poaching cups. If you go with the pot of water and vinegar technique, I’ve heard that it helps to stir the water in a whirlpool before cracking in the egg.
Polenta with Spinach and Egg
Ingredients
Polenta
- 4 cups water
- 1 cup polenta ground and dry, not in the tube!
- 1 teaspoon sea salt or Kosher salt
- 4 tablespoons olive oil or unsalted butter or use 50/50
- Parmesan cheese, grated optional
Spinach and the Eggs
- a couple handfuls baby spinach
- 4 eggs
- 4 little bits butter for the poaching cups
Extra Parmesan, shredded or shaved, over the top of everything
Instructions
Polenta and the Spinach
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Bring water to boil in large saucepan. Add the salt and while stirring, add the polenta. Bring back to boil, lower heat to maintain a simmer, cover and cook for about 15 minutes, stirring now and then, until soft textured. Remove from heat, stir in olive oil, butter, and cheese, cover and let sit while you cook the eggs.
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Wilt the spinach in a skillet or just add it on top of the cooked polenta, cover, and let it rest while you cook the eggs.
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Polenta will stay creamy in the cooking pot, covered and off heat, for about an hour. If you have leftovers, pour them into a mini sheet pan or other dish and refrigerate. Slice out pieces and warm in a frying pan or on a griddle.
Poached Eggs
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Put a dab of butter or oil in each cup, and float them in a pan of simmering water (big enough pot to hold 4 at once) until butter is melted. Remove from heat, crack one egg into each cup, and return them to the simmering water. I like my eggs custardy, which I've timed to 7 minutes with the lid on the pot. Start checking at 6 minutes so as not to overcook the yolks.
