Polenta, Grits & Cous Cous - do you love them or hate them?

rascal

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Pretty certain I saw polenta in our pantry the other day, lord knows where that came from, I won't cook it. Lol. Maybe my daughter bought it??

Russ
 
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It's the exact same reason I don't like couscous - I feel like it's a lot of work to chase it around my plate and eat it, and after I've eaten it, I don't feel like I've eaten anything. I don't like polenta for different reasons (texture and flavor, mainly; same reason I don't like grits).
 
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I'm not a huge fan of polenta but possibly for an opposite reason - I find it too substantial! I tend to prefer cous cous which is much lighter (or it is to me). But I did recently cook polenta with lots of flavouring (stock and cheese) and did rather enjoy the savoury creamy taste. But its not something I could eat lots of.
 
I do not like polenta or grits.
They taste of sand! They give me fits!
And couscous ain't much better,
Like eating bearings, only wetter!

😇😉😜
 
We love polenta, grits and cous cous. Cous cous is a palate for other ingredients. We make a side dish using leftover pork and veges with a vinaigrette dressing and have it at room temperature. After all it is a pasta. BTW it is generally served in a bowl!
 
Polenta is very substantial. One of Craig's favorite meals is Italian sausage in a rich tomato sauce with thick sliced mushrooms served over polenta. The polenta has Parm R and either mascarpone cheese if we have it or a bit of cream and cream cheese.

If polenta tastes like sand, it either wasn't cooked long enough or not enough liquid was used or both.

I'll agree sometimes couscous can feel/taste gritty, but that's easily fixed by adding fat or some type of dressing.
 
Just curious, do you like rice?

CD

Not really but daughter got me onto jasmine rice, I like that with soy and Japanese Mayo. Recently started making risotto as its wife's fave, I finally tried some and I love it now, chicken and pumpkin and pea risotto is good now.
When I make a curry I only have a small portion of rice, to soak up the sauce.

Russ
 
The only way I truly like rice is sweet rice pudding. After that, fried rice is ok, rice in a burrito is ok, rice in a soup is ok, and plain white rice on the side...let's just say, that's what my trash can was made for.

My wife loves plain white rice, though. She always orders extra when we get Chinese takeaway, and then I steal half of it to make a quick rice pudding for myself. :D
 
The white rice that comes with take out is perfect for making fried rice at home. Love rice and have many kinds at home. Cajun and Creole use a lot of rice in their cooking. Cuban style black beans and rice is made here quite often. Can't make sushi without the rice.
 
I love two out of the three.

Couscous for its speed; 99% of time I cook it, let cool and turn into a side salad by adding chopped green onion, dried cranberries (the one ingredient I add to the couscous when it is steeping in hot water), and toasted pecans (added at serving time). I dress with squirts of fresh lemon juice and olive oil and S&P.

Polenta for its versatility and ability to take on other flavors. I prefer a softer and creamier polenta and I detest the stuff sold in tubes. I cover the soft polenta with anything from hot Italian sausage and peppers in a red sauce, to creamy Cajun shrimp (the sort normally served over grits). I also make a firm polenta that I mold in a loaf pan, cut into slices after it's set and use as base for this polenta lasagna. Polenta Lasagna.

Grits I like, but don't love. I cannot get it here in Central Mexico so it's fallen out of my recipe parade. However, when I am in the US and a breakfast place has grits on the menu, I will always order them as a tribute to the 35 years I lived in Virginia.
 
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