Bulz dacic, Romanian stuffed polenta

Name: Bulz dacic, Romanian stuffed polenta
Ingredients: 1000 ml water; 1 teaspoon salt; 250 g cornmeal; 5 slices boneless smoked pork belly; 3 eggs; 150 g sheep’s-milk cheese; 100 g sour cream

Appetizers - Bulz dacic, Romanian stuffed polenta by Flora N. - Recipia

Bulz dacic, a Romanian stuffed polenta dish, bakes for 15 minutes, with a sunny-side-up egg and cheese sprinkled over each portion. The browned polenta holds the smoked pork belly and sheep’s-milk cheese inside, and the filling stays soft and warm when you cut into it. I leave the polenta quite firm, so it sits well in my palm when I close it around the filling. Preparation: 20 minutes. Cooking: 62 minutes. Resting: 13 minutes. Total time: 95 minutes. Serves: 3. Approximately 720 kcal and 35 g protein per serving.

Ingredients

1000 ml water
1 teaspoon salt
250 g cornmeal
5 slices boneless smoked pork belly
3 eggs
150 g sheep’s-milk cheese
100 g sour cream

Preparation

1. Put 1000 ml water, 1 teaspoon salt and 15 g cornmeal in a large pot. Bring to a boil in about 8 minutes. 2. Slowly pour in the remaining 235 g cornmeal, whisking as you go. Cook for 20 minutes, until you have a firm polenta that is neither too soft nor too stiff. 3. Turn the polenta out onto a platter and leave it to cool for 10 minutes, until you can hold it in your hands. 4. Cut the 5 slices of smoked pork belly into strips and brown them in a nonstick pan, without oil, for about 5 minutes, until golden. 5. Fry the 3 eggs in the same pan, in the fat left from the pork belly. Cook for 4 minutes, until the whites are set. 6. Grate the sheep’s-milk cheese on the large holes of a grater. Divide the polenta into 3 pieces. Flatten each piece in your palm, put pork belly and 40 g cheese in the middle, then close it up and flatten it gently. 7. Heat the oven to 180°C, about 10 minutes. Place the bulz on a baking tray lined with baking paper, top each one with a sunny-side-up egg and sprinkle over the remaining 30 g cheese. 8. Bake for 15 minutes, until the cheese softens and the bulz are browned around the edges. Leave them to cool for 3 minutes and serve with 100 g sour cream.

Notes

You can replace the sheep’s-milk cheese with cow’s-milk telemea, but taste the polenta before salting it; bulz contains dairy and eggs. Choose a firm cheese that grates easily; a very soft one adds more moisture to the filling. Thin slices of pork belly brown faster than thick ones, and if the telemea is salty, use less salt in the polenta. Serve the bulz with sour cream and tomato salad. Store any leftovers in a sealed container in the fridge for up to 3 days.