My Brilliant Italian Friend

The casual elegance of quick cooking polenta + Gingery Shrimp, White Beans, and Spinach with Parmesan Polenta

Everyone needs an Italian. An Italian restaurant. An Italian market. A go-to Italian cookbook (or several). And if you can find one, by all means get an Italian friend.

Every time I am with my Italian friend, Valeria, I’m reminded of the effortlessness of good hospitality. In America we are so extra, with our cheese boards packed with all manner of nuts and dried fruit and spreads that no one will touch but are put on for no other reason I can determine than aesthetic abundance. In Valeria’s home, a modest apartment looking out onto the rather immodest blue expanse of the South China Sea on the westside of Hong Kong, her aperitivo board is minimalist but no less impressive. She might include a round of soft rind cheese made from buffalo milk, thick slices of salami flecked with fennel brought back to Hong Kong from Tuscany in a suitcase, a discreet stack of crackers, and something sparkling to drink. Rather than impress with quantity, Valeria’s style is for each item to be thoughtfully selected, the story and the quality lingering long after the last guest has ambled into a taxi with a full belly.

The last time I had the pleasure of being a guest in their home, Valeria planned a main course of classic pesto pasta. Explaining that it was only a simple dinner, she added an extra item to her usual appetizer platter: crackling, jagged squares of crispy, pan-fried polenta. “It is only polenta,” she said, humble as ever, as her guests went back for seconds and thirds. Yet it was so much more. Once again my friend had demonstrated how a single, quality ingredient, a pantry staple for many, could be elevated to a level far more memorable than its humble origins.

In Hong Kong, our Italian pantry staples came courtesy of Mercato Gourmet, a market operated by the owners of some of the best Italian restaurants in the city. It was as reliable for their homemade Arrabiata sauce and panettone as it was for the best dried pastas and Parmigiano Reggiano. In San Diego, whenever I have an airport drop off, I’ll swing by third generation family-owned Mona Lisa Italian Foods in Little Italy. There I stock up on jarred Calabrian chilies, toasted fregola, the latest imported gluten free pasta, and the best instant polenta I have found. At less than $5 a pound, enough for 12 servings, it is also one of the best values in the store.

Instant polenta could not be simpler. Essentially it is finely ground cornmeal that has been pre-cooked for the harried home chef. Faster cooking with only a bit more stirring than boiling pasta, it is a wonderful base for all manner of sauces. Thick and porridge like straight from the pot, it is the kind of neutral base that soaks up woodsy juices from stewed mushrooms as well as long stewed tomato sauces. Cooled down and cut into squares, polenta is a fine side dish grilled or pan fried, the outside turning crisp while the inside stays creamy. Though you do not need to add anything more than salt and water to the polenta, maybe it’s the American in me that prefers to make it a little extra stirring in butter and parmesan at the end. And because the holidays are at hand, you may consider a dollop of crème fraiche or splash of cream for that restaurant level decadence.

On the opposite end of extra, and because the busy season is upon us, I also like polenta for the simplicity of a weeknight dinner. This past week, a simmered pot of white beans, shrimp and garlic in a gingery, tomato broth, came together in about 20 minutes, start to finish, using frozen defrosted shrimp, canned white beans, and baby spinach, all staples in my kitchen. While the shrimp was simmering at the end, I stirred the polenta with boiling salted water for the three minutes it took to thicken and pull away from the sides of the pan. A little butter and parmesan later, the polenta was ready to soak up every bit of that gingery pan sauce.

Last week, I caught up with Valeria in Hong Kong for tea. It was Saturday and she was dressed impeccably in a navy blazer and crisp jeans, having come straight from a doctor’s appointment. She ordered a chocolate chip cookie. It was 10am. I thought for a moment of my California life of green juices and athleisure and how good it was to be with my dear friend, dressed casually elegant on a weekend and not afraid order a cookie in the morning when the occasion called for it. My brilliant Italian friend, like the best Italian ingredients, never fails to remind me that sophistication and memorable moments are often found in life’s simple pleasures.

For other Italian-inspired recipe ideas and wine …

Low-intervention Chianti from “Let’s Talk About Sulfites”

Risotto with Bacon, Onions and Peas from “Climbing Mount Risotto”

Fregola with Sausage, Tomatoes and Saffron from “Expert Eaters”

Gingery Shrimp with White Beans, Spinach and Parmesan Polenta

Note: Not not shrimp and grits but also its something else altogether. Great use for pantry and refrigerator staples like frozen shrimp, canned beans and baby spinach.

Serves: 4

• 4 T. olive oil

• 1 medium onion, chopped

• 2 garlic cloves, minced

• 1 inch piece ginger, peeled and finely minced

• 2 bay leaves

• 2 T. tomato paste

• ¾ tsp. smoked paprika

• ½ tsp salt

• ¼ tsp black pepper

• 2 cups shrimp or chicken broth

• 1 – 15 oz can white beans, rinsed and drained

• 1 lb. peeled and deveined shrimp, preferably Gulf 40 – 60 size

• 4 oz. baby spinach or ½ a bunch of large, full leaf spinach, stems trimmed and discarded

Polenta

• 4 cups water

• 1 tsp. salt

• 1 cup quick cooking polenta

• 2 T. butter

• ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese

Heat olive oil in a large, lidded pan over medium heat. Add onion and sweat for 5 minutes until softened. Add garlic and ginger and cook for another two minutes. Add bay leaves, tomato paste, paprika, salt and pepper, stirring to evenly coat onions with tomato. Add broth and beans and raise heat to high until boiling the reduce to a simmer. Cover with a lid and let simmer for 10 minutes.

While beans are simmering, in a separate medium sauce pan make the polenta. Bring water and 1 tsp. salt to a boil. When boiling, reduce heat to medium and slowly whisk in polenta. Whisk continuously for 3 minutes until the polenta thickens and begins to pull away from the sides of the pan. Turn off heat and stir in butter and Parmesan. Let sit for 5 minutes before serving.

While polenta is resting, stir shrimp into the pot with the beans and broth. Cover and simmer for 2 minutes. Uncover and place spinach on top of the mixture. Cover again and let steam for 2 more minutes. Uncover and stir steamed spinach into the beans and shrimp. Taste and adjust if necessary with additional salt and pepper. To serve, spoon polenta into shallow bowls and top with shrimp, beans, and broth.

To Drink…

Stay tuned for a mid-week, paid-subscriber Holiday Wine Guide to stock up for Thanksgiving and beyond.