Polenta Con Spuntature e Salsiccia

This polenta con spuntature e salsiccia is the ultimate Italian comfort dish. A traditional sausage and ribs ragu slow-cooked and used to top over creamy polenta. So delicious!

this recipe

This polenta dish holds a special place in Italy, often enjoyed as the quintessential Sunday family meal. It’s hearty, bursting with flavor, and a beloved recipe passed down through generations, known by every nonna and mamma from a young age.

This is my mother in law recipe and the one I’ve been making for years because it never fails. The sausage and ribs sugo sauce is so flavorful and goes perfect with the creamy polenta.

Ingredients

• Pork ribs: For this recipe, spareribs are the most common, they are known in Italian as spuntature di maiale.
• Salsicce: Known also as Italian sausage, you can use any type (sweet or spicy).
• Tomato sauce: Use tomato passata for a smooth sauce, or you can also use crushed canned tomatoes and blend them.
• Polenta: I am using Italian instant polenta which is more easy to find and quicker to make. It usually comes in small boxes that yield about 4-6 portions. You can usually find it in other countries as fine cornmeal.
• Soffritto: This is a mixture of carrot, onion, and celery. A basic preparation used in many Italian traditional recipes.
• Wine: This is an optional ingredient. You can use either dry white wine or red wine.
• Seasonings: Salt and pepper.
• Cheese: Use pecorino or parmigiano cheese for serving.

How to Make Polenta con Spuntature e Salsicce

Heat 3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil in a large pan. Add first the spareribs and cook for 5 minutes.

Add then the sausages and keep cooking everything flipping constantly until the ribs and sausages are slightly browned on all sides.

Mix in the Italian soffritto and stir for 3-4 minutes. Pour in the wine and cook for 1-2 minutes scrapping the bottom of the pan.

Pour the tomato passata. Season with salt and pepper and add enough water to slightly cover the ingredients.

Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low, place the lid covering loosely the pan, and cook for 2 hours mixing from time to time and adding more water if necessary.

At the end of the cooking, remove the lid and turn the heat to high, cooking until the stew is nicely thick.

Make the creamy polenta

Place a deep pan with water and add a good pinch of salt. Bring to a boil and then add the polenta cornmeal slowly while stirring with a whisk to prevent lumps.

Set the heat to medium-low and cook the polenta stirring for 8-10 minutes or as instructed in the package.

To make sure you end with a creamy polenta mixture, add more water if necessary. The amount of water will depend on the brand of your cornmeal so always read the instructions on the package!

Serve the polenta con spuntature

To serve, spoon the polenta into serving plates or, if you have one, use a spianatoia (a large wooden platter). Use the back of a serving spoon to make a small well in the middle.

Top with plenty of sausage and ribs sugo, usually a sausage per person and two spare ribs are enough per serving.

Generously sprinkle with of pecorino or parmigiano cheese and serve the polenta con spuntature immediately.

Tips & Notes

• Keep the creamy cornmeal polenta as simple as this recipe suggests, there’s no need for extra ingredients because the star of this dish is the sauce with sausage and ribs!
• The key for a flavorful stew (sugo) is to slow cook it for at least 2 hours, it will make the spareribs to be incredibly tender! If you want, you can also use a slow cooker to make the stew but remember that you will need less liquid.
• If you want to remove the casings from the sausages, you can then crumble it and cook it with the ribs.
• My mother-in-law always crumbles one or two sausages in the stew, to make it more flavorful. This is her little secret for her famous polenta con spuntature dish!
• I like to add a little bit of peperoncino piccante to the sugo sauce, this is optional but it adds a nice spicy kick.
• Polenta con spuntature is what we call in Italy a piatto unico, this means is a hearty meal that features both a main dish (the spuntature stew) with an accompaniment which is the creamy polenta.

How to Store

Assembled polenta con spuntature leftovers can be stored in the fridge for up to 3-4 days. Or you can store the stew separately in the freezer for up to 3 months.

For reheating, I prefer using the microwave if I have assembled polenta leftovers as it’s quick and more convenient. But if the polenta and the sugo stew are separated, you can easily reheat the stew in a pan on the stovetop.

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