Eastern European · Breakfast · Lunch · Dinner
Romanian Polenta with Sheep's Cheese and Yogurt
Mămăligă cu brânză
Creamy, golden cornmeal polenta topped with salty crumbled sheep's cheese and a cool spoonful of tangy yogurt. It is a comforting Romanian classic made lighter with less butter and Greek yogurt in place of full-fat sour cream.
- Prep
- 5 min
- Cook
- 35 min
- Total
- 40 min
- Serves
- 4
Calories come from: Carbs 53% · Fat 31% · Protein 16%
Track it in BerryFit and see how it fits your own daily target. Get the app ›
Ingredients
For 4 servings- 4 1/4 cups (1 litre)1,000 gWater
- 1/2 tspSalt
- 1 2/3 cups250 gYellow cornmeal (medium grind)
- 2 tsp10 gUnsalted butter
- 1 cup crumbled150 gSheep's cheese (telemea or feta), crumbled
- 3/4 cup200 gPlain low-fat Greek yogurt
- 1/2 tspBlack pepper, freshly ground
- 2 tbsp5 gFresh dill, chopped (optional)
Steps
- 1
Bring the water and salt to a boil in a heavy-bottomed pot.
- 2
Pour the cornmeal into the boiling water in a slow, steady stream, whisking constantly to prevent lumps.
- 3
Lower the heat to a gentle simmer and switch to a wooden spoon.
- 4
Cook for 30 minutes, stirring every few minutes and scraping the bottom, until thick and pulling away from the sides of the pot.
- 5
Stir in the butter until melted.
- 6
Spoon the polenta into four bowls or plates.
- 7
Scatter the crumbled sheep's cheese over the hot polenta.
- 8
Top each portion with a spoonful of Greek yogurt.
- 9
Finish with black pepper and chopped dill, if using, and serve hot.
Swaps, storage and make-ahead
Swaps
- Use crumbled firm tofu seasoned with salt and a little lemon juice instead of sheep's cheese, and a plain unsweetened plant-based yogurt instead of Greek yogurt, for a vegan version.
- Swap the butter for olive oil to make the polenta itself dairy-free.
- Use regular feta or Bulgarian sirene if telemea is hard to find; both give a similar salty, tangy bite.
- Choose instant or quick-cook polenta to cut the cooking time to about 5 minutes, following the package directions.
Storage
Refrigerate leftover polenta within 2 hours in a covered container for 3 to 4 days, keeping the cheese and yogurt toppings separate, and reheat with a splash of water until steaming hot. Freezing is not recommended, as the texture turns grainy.
Make ahead
Cook the polenta up to a day ahead, spread it in an oiled dish to firm up, then slice and pan-fry or reheat until steaming hot before adding the cheese and yogurt. The dill can be chopped and the cheese crumbled a day ahead and chilled.
Nutrition values are for the recipe as written.
Track this in BerryFit
Log Romanian Polenta with Sheep's Cheese and Yogurt in one tap and see how it fits your remaining calories for today.
Or ask Coach Berry to change it
Allergens and nutrition
Contains: Milk
Check the labels of packaged ingredients for allergens and suitability for your diet.
Full nutrition
| Per serving (404 g) | Per 100 g | |
|---|---|---|
| Calories | 381 kcal | 94 kcal |
| Protein | 15.4 g | 3.8 g |
| Carbohydrates | 51.6 g | 12.8 g |
| of which sugars | 2.2 g | 0.5 g |
| Fiber | 4.6 g | 1.1 g |
| Fat | 13.3 g | 3.3 g |
| of which saturated | 7.2 g | 1.8 g |
| Sodium | 768 mg | 190 mg |
Nutrition is calculated from USDA FoodData Central data and may differ from what you cook.
