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1
Bring the salted water to a rapid boil in a copper paiolo or the heaviest-bottomed pot available. Keep heat at medium-high. The water must be boiling vigorously before any flour is added — cold water produces irreversible lumps.
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2
Combine the corn flour and buckwheat flour in a bowl and mix briefly to distribute evenly. Pour the blended flours into the boiling water in a thin, constant stream, whisking continuously with the other hand. The stream must never stop or clump; continue whisking until the mixture is fully incorporated and no dry pockets remain — the surface will begin to heave and bubble.
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3
Switch from the whisk to the tarel — or a long-handled wooden paddle — and reduce heat to medium. Stir continuously for 40–50 minutes, scraping the full bottom and sides of the pot with each stroke. This is where the dish lives or dies: unattended polenta scorches on the bottom, and those bitter particles then break throughout the mass. The polenta will progressively thicken, darken, and resist the paddle.
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4
In the final 10 minutes of cooking, add the butter and stir to incorporate fully. Then add the Taleggio (and Formai de Mut if using) in pieces, stirring each addition until it disappears into the polenta. Cheese added earlier than this point separates into greasy fat pools rather than binding smoothly.
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5
The polenta is ready when it pulls cleanly away from the sides of the pot and a wooden spoon drawn across the surface leaves a clean, self-sustaining furrow. Taste for salt.
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6
For the traditional Alpine presentation, pour the finished polenta directly onto a large wooden board in one motion. Allow it to settle and firm briefly before bringing to the table for slicing. Accompany with sausage or braised game.