Porridge

Italy

Polenta in fiur is a traditional porridge originating from the Valtellina area of Lombardy. This type of polenta is made with local dark buckwheat flour instead of cornmeal. Other ingredients include salt, Valtellina Casera cheese, and cream, which is used as a replacement for water. The cream is brought to a boil with a bit of salt, and dark buckwheat flour is then added a bit at a time while continuously stirring the porridge with a wooden spoon in order to prevent lumps from forming. When the mixture becomes thick and comes off easily from the sides of the pot, polenta in fiur is ready. Before it's removed from the heat, the cheese is stirred in, and the creamy dish is then ready to be served, typically on a basla, a traditional wooden serving dish.

Polenta in fiur

Polenta nera or black polenta is a variation on the traditional polenta, originating from the Valtellina area of Lombardy. The porridge is made entirely with local dark buckwheat flour with no added cornmeal. Other ingredients include potatoes, butter, cheese, and salt. Unlike polenta in fiur, this version is not cooked in cream, but in water, just as regular polenta. In order to prepare the dish, the potatoes are boiled in salted water, mashed, then mixed with the dark buckwheat flour and butter. The porridge is cooked for an hour while continuously stirring. Just before the end of cooking, when the mixture becomes thick, cubes of semi-fat cheese are added to the black polenta, and the dish is then ready to be served.

Polenta nera

Polenta taragna is an elaborate polenta spin-off made with a mix of yellow cornmeal and buckwheat flour, enriched with butter and cheese that are mixed in right before serving. The name comes from the word tarai or tarel, referring to the wooden tool traditionally used to stir the polenta that's cooked in a copper pot hung inside the fireplace. The main characteristics of polenta taragna are its dark grayish color, due to the use of buckwheat flour, and rich creaminess coming from the cheese. The cheeses used in the dish may vary, but they&rsquo;re commonly local, semi-fat, medium-ripened cow-milk cheeses such as Valtellina Casera, Bitto, Branzi, or Fontina. Polenta taragna can be enjoyed on its own, as the main course, or served alongside cold cuts and Italian pickles. Buckwheat production in Valtellina dates back to the 1600s, so it is no surprise that it is used in many traditional local dishes such as this one.

Polenta taragna

Polenta taragna della Valchiavenna is a variation on the traditional polenta, originating from the Valchiavenna area in northern Italy. The porridge is made with a combination of wheat flour, cornmeal, local dark buckwheat flour, butter, salt, and cheeses such as Bitto, Magnuca, and Parmigiano-Reggiano. All types of flour are added to boiling salted water and cooked in a copper pot for an hour while stirring. Near the end of cooking, when the porridge has thickened, the cheeses are added to the mix and melted completely. This type of polenta taragna is then served hot, typically on a basla, a traditional wooden serving dish.

Polenta taragna della Valchiavenna

Switzerland

The authentic Ticino polenta should be cooked on an outdoor fire (or in a fireplace), but sadly, the practice is not common anymore. However, there are a few restaurants in the region that offer this traditional dish, prepared in the most authentic way &ndash; slowly and over a crackling fire. In order to cook the dish, coarse polenta is slowly cooked in water and frequently stirred for approximately two hours until it develops a wonderful golden color. Butter is usually stirred into the polenta for extra creaminess. When served, the polenta is traditionally accompanied by a vast number of Ticino specialties such as cheeses, mortadella, or braised meat.

Polenta Ticinese

Cyprus

Resi is a traditional dish originating from Cyprus, and it's especially associated with the Paphos region. The preparation of resi is linked with village weddings, and it's a ritual where the lamb is slowly cooked over low heat, while friends and family of the bride and the groom gather to wash and grind wheat, which is then added into the pot with the lamb. Once cooked, the bones are removed, and the remaining combination of lamb and wheat is vigorously stirred until the porridge becomes smooth. Although it doesn't happen that often, the lamb can be substituted with pork or chicken.

Resi

Austria

Riebel is a traditional dish originating from Vorarlberg. The porridge is made with a combination of cornmeal, milk, butter, and salt. The combination is left to simmer on the stove for a long time until it swells significantly. It is then fried in clarified butter while poking and cutting the mass into smaller pieces, usually with a large wooden spoon. This dish is traditionally served with stewed fruit, local cheese, or applesauce. Interestingly, until the 1970s, Riebel was a filling breakfast staple of farmers and poor families, but today it's usually prepared for dinner or lunch. Although sweet dessert versions are more classic than the savory ones, Riebel can also be enriched with mushrooms and cheese, and it is then served as an accompaniment to meat.

Riebel

R&oslash;mmegr&oslash;t is a traditional porridge originating from Norway. Although there are several variations, it's usually made with a combination of sour cream, flour, full-fat milk, and salt. It's recommended to use homemade or high-fat sour cream, with no gelatin or stabilizers. The sour cream is shortly simmered and the flour is then sifted into the pot. The combination is simmered until the butterfat begins to separate, and the fat is skimmed off of the surface. The mixture is mixed with boiling milk and the porridge is whisked until smooth, simmered for a bit more and seasoned with salt. R&oslash;mmegr&oslash;t is typically served with sugar, cinnamon, and the remaining fat. In the past, this porridge was commonly enjoyed with dried meats on festive days.

Rømmegrøt

United States

What started as a simple fisherman's dish made with shrimp cooked in bacon grease, then served over creamy grits is today a cult Southern dish due to the fact that Craig Claiborne mentioned it in the New York Times in 1985, after he tried the dish at Crook's Corner, a restaurant in North Carolina. That version of shrimp and grits was made by a chef called Bill Neal, who also added mushrooms, bacon, and cheddar cheese into the dish. Today, there are numerous variations of the dish found throughout the South, with added hot spices, barbecue sauces, tomatoes, and fried eggs. The dish is so popular that each September, there is the annual Shrimp &amp; Grits Festival held on Jekyll Island in Georgia.

Shrimp and grits

Sishwala è un porridge tradizionale originario di Eswatini (in precedenza noto come Swaziland). È fatto con una combinazione di farina di mais, sale, acqua e fagioli secchi. I fagioli devono essere lasciati in ammollo durante la notte, quindi scolati, coperti con acqua e conditi con sale. La combinazione viene cotta finché non diventa tenera e il mais viene aggiunto verso la fine della cottura. Il tutto viene mescolato bene prima di servire. Questo porridge è solitamente servito con carne o verdure.

Sishwala

This traditional Montenegrin dish is a local take on kačamak&mdash;a thick maize porridge that is found in Turkish and Balkan cuisine. Smočani kačamak is prepared by cooking potatoes together with wheat or corn flour and then mashing the combination until it becomes thick and homogenous. Traditionally, the potatoes and flour are mashed with a large wooden stick (tučak). The dish is finished off with the addition of kajmak&mdash;a dairy product similar to clotted cream&mdash;and cheese, preferably local Montenegrin varieties such as pljevaljski or lisnati (bucani) cheese. All ingredients should be thoroughly mixed until the dish attains its desired soft and creamy consistency. Once considered a frugal meal that was only found in rural areas, smočani kačamak has become a hallmark dish and an integral part of Montenegrin cuisine. It is usually served with yogurt or sour milk on the side.

Smočani kačamak

Steirischer heidensterz is a traditional rural dish made with buckwheat flour. Believed to have originated in the 15th century in the Austrian state of Styria, it is made by quickly pouring the buckwheat flour into boiling water with a pinch of salt, which creates large flour lumps. The water is then drained, and the lumps are mashed and mixed in a pot of melted lard. The compound is lightly stirred and left to cook for another few minutes until it is firm. Traditionally, the dish is served with a local version of mushroom soup or dumpling soup, but it can also be accompanied by sour milk. Heidensterz started out as peasant food because of the accessibility of the ingredients and its nutritional value, but in the early 19th century, it was declared a national dish in Styria and a culinary delicacy for all citizens, not only peasants.

Steirischer Heidensterz

Sterz is a traditional peasant dish that consists of simple, everyday ingredients, typically a combination of flour, fat, water, and salt. It is mostly associated with the Austrian regions of Burgenland and Styria, although different varieties of this flour mash are also found in other parts of Austria, Slovenia, Bavaria, and Croatia. The dish can be made with various types of flour such as wheat flour, rye flour, buckwheat flour, spelt flour, or a combination of any of these flour kinds. To make sterz, the flour is typically lightly browned before it is cooked in boiling salted water and stir-fried with fat (traditionally with lard). Other common ingredients contained in this dish include eggs, milk, pork cracklings, bacon bits, beans, and onions. Depending on the addition to the basic flour mixture, there are numerous types of sterz, including eiersterz (egg sterz), mehlsterz (flour sterz), grammelsterz (with pork cracklings), kukuruzsterz (also called turkensterz, a cornmeal sterz), riebelsterz (potato sterz), and blutsterz (with pig blood). A popular variety of sterz in both Burgenland and Styria is heidensterz, a type of buckwheat flour-based sterz, which is considered a national dish in Styria. Traditionally, sterz dishes are enjoyed with soups or used as an einladen (filling) for soups, although they are also commonly eaten for breakfast with milk.

Sterz

Stip is a popular Dutch buckwheat porridge with a hole in the middle. The hole is traditionally filled with fried bits of bacon and syrup. The porridge is usually consumed by taking a piece of the porridge from the outside and dipping it into the syrup. Stip is especially popular among children, and it is very easy to prepare. The name of the dish is derived from the word stippen, meaning to dip into, referring to the traditional way of consuming the porridge.

Stip

Taci şi &icirc;nghite is an interesting variation on the traditional Romanian polenta dish, which is a staple throughout the country. This variation consists of soft mămăligă combined with a mixture of salty cheese and sour cream in alternating layers. Hearty and filling, the dish is usually topped with grated cheese and eggs, and then baked in the oven. Although the original, layered cheese polenta includes only polenta, cheese, butter, and eggs, it is often prepared with the addition of fried meat, such as bacon and sausages. The dish bears an unusual name, which literally translates as shut up and swallow in English. Thick slices of oven-baked layered polenta are usually served piping hot or slightly chilled, with sour cream, pickled vegetables, or fresh salads on the side. Layered cheese polenta makes for a delicious family dinner.

Taci şi înghite

Tarakjuk is a traditional porridge originating from South Korea and dating back to the royal courts of Joseon-era Korea. The porridge is usually made with a combination of milk, glutinous rice, salt, and sugar or honey, if desired. The glutinous rice is soaked, ground, sieved, and the remaining ground rice deposits called muri are boiled. While the muri is simmering, milk is slowly added and the porridge is gently simmered until done. Tarakjuk is seasoned with salt to taste, while sugar or honey can be added as sweeteners. In the past, since milk was expensive, this porridge was usually enjoyed by the people in the royal palace and among the upper classes. Tarakjuk is especially good for babies, patients, and anyone who lacks energy and appetite. It's also known as the only traditional Korean dish that has milk.

Tarakjuk

Portugal

It is believed that this traditional Portuguese dish &ndash; a specialty of Algarve - has medieval origins. Xar&eacute;m is a maize porridge that's prepared in numerous versions throughout the region. The most common recipes call for a combination of cornflour, white wine, clams, smoked bacon, ham, pork sausages, and seasonings. The meats are chopped and fried over low flames, then mixed with boiled clams and heavily-stirred cornflour mixture. The dish is traditionally served hot.