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The working recipe — the Market List, the Method, and where it lives or dies
I
Origin
Molise (interior mountain villages)
II
Description
Molise's layered polenta preparation: poured polenta cooled to solid on a large board, sliced into sheets, then layered in a baking dish with a slow-cooked ragù of pork sausage, tomato, and Pecorino di Capracotta — resembling lasagne in structure but using polenta sheets instead of pasta. Baked until the polenta layers absorb the ragù and the cheese forms a golden, bubbling crust. A winter Sunday dish in the Molise interior that elegantly bridges the pasta and polenta traditions of the region.
III
The Thread
—Same architectural concept: alternating layers of starch sheet, meat sauce, and cheese baked to a golden crust — Bolognese uses fresh pasta with Bolognese ragù and béchamel, Molisano uses cooled polenta sheets with pork ragù and Pecorino, demonstrating the universal layered bake formula applied to two different Italian starch traditions Northern · Italian · (General)
—Identical preparation in Romania's strong polenta tradition — Romanian uses mămăligă (cornmeal) layers with sour cream and sheep's cheese, Molisano uses polenta layers with pork ragù and Pecorino, both representing the tradition of treating cooled polenta as a pasta substitute for layered baking Romanian
IV
Flavour Context
Soft polenta layers melding with porky ragù and sharp Pecorino in a golden-crusted bake — comfort food of peasant ingenuity
Pillars V — VII
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