Molise (interior mountain villages)
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.
Soft polenta layers melding with porky ragù and sharp Pecorino in a golden-crusted bake — comfort food of peasant ingenuity
The polenta must be cooled to a firm block before slicing — ideally overnight. Slice 5-7mm thick with a wire or taut thread (not a knife, which drags). The ragù must be thick (not soupy) before layering — thin ragù makes the polenta layers soggy and unstructured. The layers alternate: polenta, ragù, Pecorino, polenta, ragù, Pecorino — ending with a generous Pecorino layer on top. Bake covered for 20 minutes to heat through, then uncovered for 10 minutes for the crust.
For the best polenta for this dish: add a small amount of Pecorino to the polenta during cooking so the sheets themselves are flavoured. The slicing is easiest with an unwaxed thread passed beneath the polenta block — the same technique as slicing cheese with wire. This dish can be assembled a day ahead and refrigerated before the final baking, improving overnight.
Polenta not cooled enough — warm polenta crumbles instead of slicing cleanly. Thin, watery ragù makes the assembly collapse. Insufficient cheese between layers — the cheese is both flavour and binding. Over-baking dries the polenta layers to a hard, unpleasant texture.
La Cucina del Molise — Accademia Italiana della Cucina