In this recipe, crispy baked polenta slices are topped with salsa, spicy sautéed vegetables, and black beans—an easy meatless dinner idea!
Pantry Staples to the Rescue
Many years ago, I had a really bad takeout habit, which was not helped by the fact that we lived next to Chipotle and a local sandwich shop, and down the street from Panera. Whenever I was tired and didn’t feel like cooking, my husband would stop at one of those places on the way home and pick up dinner. Those impromptu takeout dinners really started to add up! Meal planning has helped us almost kick the habit, and having some key pantry staples on hand sealed the deal.
Sometimes even when you have a meal plan, dinner falls through—you cut into the peppers you’re planning on stuffing for dinner and half of them are moldy inside, or you planned for a dinner that requires a lot of prep and you’re just not feeling it. That’s when those pantry staples come in handy. This Mexican Polenta recipe uses two of my favorite pantry staples: a tube of polenta and a can of black beans.
What is Polenta?
You can usually find prepared polenta near the pasta or pasta sauce at the grocery store. It’s a log of pre-made polenta that you can slice and use in all kinds of easy meatless dinners. Polenta fries are one of my favorite ways to use them, but I regularly use them to make polenta bakes too—I cut the polenta into circles and layer them with marinara sauce, sautéed mushrooms, zucchini, or roasted broccoli, and shredded cheese. Polenta can be thrown on the grill, added to salads, pan-fried in a little oil, and it works in a variety of cuisines, not just Italian. And when even that feels like too much work, sometimes I’ll just sauté a bunch of vegetables and pile them on top of polenta slices.
Don’t Forget the Salsa Beans
Then there’s the black beans! Whenever my favorite brands of beans are on sale, I stock up on black beans and garbanzo beans because I use them so often and they make the perfect starting point for a variety of quick dinners. I topped the baked polenta in this recipe with black beans simmered in salsa—salsa beans! Salsa beans work on nachos, they work on baked sweet potatoes, and they even work as a taco, burrito, or quesadilla filling. Seriously, salsa beans will change your life. They’re nothing fancy, but they’re one of those ideas that will keep you from ordering takeout because salsa beans take way less time and effort than schlepping to Panera and waiting for your food to be ready.
Ingredients
- 1 24 oz tube polenta, cut into 16 slices (I used Sun-Dried Tomato)
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 medium yellow onion diced
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1/2 tsp chili powder
- 1/2 tsp oregano
- pinch of cayenne
- 1 medium zucchini diced
- 1 red bell pepper diced
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 15 oz can black beans, drained and rinsed
- 1/2 cup jarred salsa
- 4 oz queso fresco crumbled
- chopped cilantro lime wedges, and additional salsa for serving
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 450°F.
- Use an oil mister filled with a high smoke point cooking oil (like grapeseed or olive oil—light, not extra-virgin) to coat a large baking sheet. Place the polenta slices on the sheet and spray the tops with additional oil. Bake for about 30 minutes, flipping halfway through cooking time, until the polenta is crispy and golden brown on the edges.
- While the polenta is baking, start the sautéed veggies. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook until softened and starting to brown, about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic, cumin, chili powder, oregano, and cayenne; cook for about 30 seconds, until fragrant. Add the zucchini and red pepper to the skillet and cook, stirring often, about 3 minutes more, until slightly softened. Remove from heat and season with salt and pepper.
- Combine the beans and salsa in a small saucepan over medium heat and cook until warmed through, about 5 minutes.
- Divide the polenta slices onto 4 plates, then top each with salsa beans, veggies, and queso fresco. Serve with chopped cilantro, lime wedges, and additional salsa.
37 Comments
Emma
May 5, 2014 at 8:30 amI’ve been looking for polenta in a tube for years with no luck 🙁 It would be a useful thing to have on hand. I’ve taken to making my own polenta slices and freezing them so I can just pull a couple out and load them with toppings for a speedy meal like this one.
Exactly the kind of food I like! Happy Cinco de Mayo!
Rachel
May 5, 2014 at 2:19 pmTrader Joes sell it
Kiersten Frase
May 6, 2014 at 8:56 pmMaybe it’s an American thing! Well, your solution of making it and freezing it works too. 🙂
diana hershey
October 7, 2019 at 3:24 pmIf you have a trader joes they carry an organic tubed pre-cooked polenta!
Isi
November 28, 2020 at 9:15 pmI’ve been able to find it at Walmart in the pasta isle.
JulieD
May 5, 2014 at 8:30 amI love polenta fries too…and this looks amazing…love the medley of flavors and perfect for today! I can’t wait to make this when I get back home!!
Kiersten Frase
May 6, 2014 at 8:53 pmI didn’t even realize I had it scheduled for Cinco de Mayo until Friday–ha!
Abby @ The Frosted Vegan
May 5, 2014 at 8:59 amI just picked up polenta in a tube for the first time (I know!) so I’m excited to try this!
Kiersten Frase
May 6, 2014 at 8:53 pmWoo hoo! Enjoy your be-tubed polenta. 😀
Allison @ Clean Wellness
May 5, 2014 at 9:14 amThis looks perfect for tonight’s dinner! I’ve been scratching my brain figuring out what to make. I need to look for polenta in a tube! It looks revelatory!
Kiersten Frase
May 6, 2014 at 8:52 pmUsually polenta in a tube is on the highest or lowest shelf in the pasta aisle. At least at the stores I shop at, it is. I guess it doesn’t get much love. 🙂
Julia Mueller
May 5, 2014 at 10:18 amIt has been far too long since I’ve make baked polenta! This meal looks so satisfying – sauteed veggies with salsa on top of grains is a meal I could eat every day of my life. I’ve been needing good ideas for zucchini and your veggie saute definitely fits the bill 😀
P.S. LOVE the meatless meal plan archive!! I shall never be hungry again 😉
Kiersten Frase
May 6, 2014 at 8:51 pmI’m SO excited about the archive! Probably more than any reasonable person would be. 🙂
Courtney @ The Fig Tree
May 5, 2014 at 10:39 amTook me years to try polenta and now it’s my fav. I love polenta fries as well. It’s funny – I always use polenta in Italian type dishes, but love what you did with adding Mexican flavours and black beans. Cannot wait to try this 🙂
Kiersten Frase
May 6, 2014 at 8:50 pmYeah, I think it took me a long time to try polenta too! It wasn’t a food I grew up eating, so I had no clue what it was. 🙂
dishing up the dirt
May 5, 2014 at 12:26 pmI buy a tube of pre-cooked polenta every time I’m at the store. We eat roasted polenta rounds almost every day for lunch. Topped with avocado, sun-dried tomatoes, and olives. Love this version!
Kiersten Frase
May 6, 2014 at 8:47 pmThat is such a good idea for a lunch! I totally get into ruts with my lunches, so maybe I’ll start doing that too. 🙂
Laura (Tutti Dolci)
May 5, 2014 at 7:00 pmI love polenta, what a great idea to top it with Mexican flavors!
Lily (A Rhubarb Rhapsody)
May 6, 2014 at 7:42 amYum! I could live off polenta, this looks like a very satisfying way to put it to good use!
Cassidy Stockton
May 6, 2014 at 12:27 pmLove it! This is one of our favorite ways to enjoy polenta at home- we call it Mexi Polenta. I love your version with the zucchini and red pepper! Thank you!
Kiersten Frase
May 6, 2014 at 8:43 pmI’m glad I’m not alone in my Mexican Polenta love! 🙂
Jennie @themessybakerblog
May 6, 2014 at 2:22 pmI love your new meatless meal plans! It makes life so much easier. Thanks for doing all of the work for us. This quick meal sounds amazing. Quick is the only way I cook during the week. Yum!
Kiersten Frase
May 6, 2014 at 8:42 pmYeah, usually the last thing I feel like doing at the end of the day is cooking a complicated dinner!
All Natural Katie
May 6, 2014 at 7:37 pmMade this recipe tonight! Delicious! I used turnips and snow peas because that is what I had on hand. I like that this recipe is versatile and can be adapted to what I have on hand.
Kiersten Frase
May 6, 2014 at 8:38 pmI’m glad you enjoyed it! 🙂
Katie (The Muffin Myth)
May 8, 2014 at 1:07 amAhhh, I miss those polenta tubes! You can find all kinds of food in tubes here (rice pudding, soup, jam, cream cheese, caviar… the Swedes love their innovative packaging) but I’ve not seen polenta. I also like to make a big batch and freeze the extras (for polenta fries!). I’ll have to give this a go soon. I love the quick and easy idea of it!
Kiersten Frase
May 9, 2014 at 1:43 pmPUDDING IN TUBES! Oh wow. I would never leave the house.
Joanne
May 9, 2014 at 7:24 amYou know, I used to use those polenta tubes all the time, but haven’t bought one in AGES. I think it’s time for a revival, especially now that salsa beans have entered my life. Game-changers.
Kiersten Frase
May 9, 2014 at 1:39 pmThey are a game-changer! I kind of wish I had discovered them when I was in grad school. I would have eaten a lot less Rice-A-Roni.
Michelle
June 9, 2014 at 6:41 amI’ve never had polenta, but always think it looks so good when I see recipes like this! I am living over in Asia right now, so those little tubes of polenta are not available to me 🙂 Any idea how to make polenta from cornmeal? I imagine it’s not much more than cornmeal and water? Or is it already cooked when it’s in one of those little rolls??
Kiersten Frase
June 9, 2014 at 3:56 pmWe’re actually posting a tutorial next week on how to make those polenta logs yourself! 🙂 You do have to cook the cornmeal with the water to get it nice and thick.
Debbie T.
July 15, 2014 at 11:41 amI made this for dinner last night. It was delicious. I really haven’t done much with polenta before and now I don’t know why. I made my own polenta, it didn’t take very long and I had extra to save for later. My carnivorous husband loved this as well. Thanks for the great dinner idea. I am always looking for new things to try.
Kiersten Frase
July 21, 2014 at 4:12 pmThanks for your comment – I’m glad you enjoyed the recipe!
Jen
May 15, 2015 at 8:48 pmI’m making this right now. Yes, polenta in a tube is at Trader Joe’s or as I discovered after a fair amount of searching, hiding on the bottom shelf in the natural foods section of Kroger. I love the salsa beans too. I made your black bean and sweet potato tacos the other week and made the salsa beans for those and they were awesome. I will comment again after eating this but I’m sure it’ll be great. Love this blog.
Jessica
November 11, 2015 at 10:16 pmMade this tonight! it was a hit even with the carnivore boyfriend. I used celery, zucc, and spinach as the veggies tho because it was all I had on hand. Still amazing!! Oh and toped it with feta, avocado and fresh tomato with a spash of lime juice. Yum! Hearty, healthy, and delicious.
Mary Ann
December 29, 2016 at 9:27 pmOur stores stock the pre-made polenta (also sold as corn meal mush, depending on brand) in the same refrigerated section as they keep the eggs and cheeses, or in the same section as the fresh vegetables and pre-cut, pre-packaged salads. So, if you can’t find it in the pasta aisle, look EVERYWHERE, because different stores stock them in different places.
I love polenta, and just recently found a really good recipe/directions for making my own, so I can finally control how much salt it has in it – some of the store polenta has way too much salt for me! I can also choose which shapes to mold it in that way, too, so it works better for different recipes. I’m about to try it as a pizza crust this week, in fact, and am planning to try to make taco salad bowls with it, too. It’s just such a versatile food, and can even be a sweet dessert, if cinnamon sugar is added to it, or honey, or … well, just use your imagination!
Andy Brough
December 15, 2019 at 1:10 pmJust made this for my wife and sister in law with huge success.
Wife: I don’t want this to sound rude… did you actually cook this?
I used canned fire skinned tomatoes with garlic instead of salsa.