Vegan Baked Polenta Recipe with Tofu Ragout

Who says vegan food has to be boring? This delicious vegan baked polenta recipe is proof that plant-based dishes can be just as tasty as their meaty counterparts. Polenta is a corn-based dish that can be prepared in a variety of ways, but we love this particular recipe because it's simple, healthy, and satisfying. Best of all, it's perfect for any occasion - from casual weeknight dinners to elegant holiday feasts. Give this recipe a try today and see for yourself why vegan cuisine is becoming so popular!

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With the cooler temperatures arriving and the rainy season approaching, we are always up for a good piece of Vegan Baked Polenta. And we like it stuffed with a rich and healthy layer of Vegan Bolognese (Tofu Ragout).

During my meat-eating days back in Argentina, I learned how to make Polenta stuffed with Bolognese ragout, and I loved it.

So, I decided to aim for something similar, to replicate the flavors and textures of a Bolognese Ragout.

We use this protein-packed filling with tomato sauce depending on what we will use it for—using more liquid for a pasta sauce (Vegan Bolognese Spaghetti, also in this site), or making it thicker for stuffings like the one used for this recipe.

What is polenta

Living in Northern Italy, we came to know that is actually a simple dish from the Piedmont Region in Italy. And yes, when you go to the supermarkets you can find it in all kinds of presentations.

Polenta is nothing more than a dish made with cornmeal, boiled cornmeal.

Every Italian family member loves creamy polenta. It can be an effortless dish put together in minutes if you are making a stovetop version or a richer and more complex one like this version.

You can serve it as a hot porridge, or it may be allowed to cool and solidify into a loaf. It can also be baked, fried, or grilled. So, it is a very versatile meal.

Polenta is usually made of yellow maize, but often other cereal mixtures are used. Nowadays, polenta has become a staple of Northern Italy, the Balkans, and Switzerland, but this is something relatively “new”. Let’s not forget that corn was brought to Europe from the Americas.

Cornmeal is commonly used in the US and Latin America, to make Cornbread, although the Italian way of making polenta is widely adopted in Argentina, as per the strong influence from the Italian diaspore immigration that took place at the beginning of the last century.

Vegan polenta

To make a vegan polenta, we will make the following substitutions on this delicious dish.

Beef stock - we are using vegetable broth.

Parmesan cheese - we use vegan parmesan with a nutritional yeast base.

Mozzarella cheese - switching for vegan mozzarella.

Ragout - we are making a tofu polenta, making a rich tofu-based filling with vegetables and Italian seasoning.

In this recipe, we will be briefly boiling the polenta and then we will bake it along with a delicious vegan tofu ragout.

You are about to read one of the best vegan polenta recipes out there! You won't regret it!

Ingredients

This creamy vegan polenta recipe uses simple ingredients to make an explosion of flavors.

• Instant Polenta
• Vegetable stock
• Vegan Ragout Filling (see below)

Additionally, we use these highly recommended optional ingredients

• Vegan mozzarella cheese
• Pitted Green olives

Filling (Vegetable Bolognese)

• Firm tofu
• Walnuts
• Tomato puree
• Garlic
• Celery
• Carrot
• Yellow onion
• Basil
• Olive oil

Optional: red wine.

See quantities and full instructions in the recipe card.

Instructions

These vegan baked polenta cakes are made with the Lasagna layering idea. You need to make your vegan ragout and the polenta, separately.

Then you assemble the layers in the pan: one layer polenta, one layer ragout, and finish with one layer of Polenta.

Make the filling

• Prepare the veggies. Chop the garlic, onion, and celery into medium to small dice. Also, shred the carrot.

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• Blend. Coarsely blend the walnuts on a food processor or immersion blender.
• Crumble the tofu with your hands.

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• Stir-fry. In a large saucepan on medium heat, add the olive oil, and after 15 seconds add the garlic and onion.
• Stir until golden. As soon as the onion is translucent, add the celery, followed by the walnuts and the tofu.
• Optionally add wine. If you are using red wine, add it now and stir. It will bring up all the flavors that may be sticking to the bottom of the saucepan.
• Carrot and Basil. Add the shredded carrots and fresh basil.
• Stir in the tomato sauce into the sautéed veggies. Set the heat to medium-low stirring occasionally. Let it cook for 30 minutes.
• Final seasoning. Salt and black pepper to taste. You want your filling to have a rich flavor.

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Make the vegan polenta

• Dice the vegan mozzarella into medium to large pieces, as they will melt later, and we want to keep some noticeable pieces of cheese.

• In a medium saucepan, simmer the broth and add a teaspoon of salt if you made a fresh stock, strain before using it.
• Stir in. Start adding the polenta, little by a little while stirring. You should end with a thick but still manageable paste. Make sure you reduce heat to the minimum as the soft polenta can start sprinkling otherwise.
• Add "cheese." Add the diced vegan mozzarella until it slightly melts and turns off the heat.

Achieving a Vegan Creamy polenta: if you feel like it could be creamier, adjust with vegan butter, extra pieces of vegan mozzarella, and add any warm dairy-free milk like almond milk (you can find a homemade almond milk recipe on this site) or soy milk.

The secret to this creamy vegan polenta recipe is to pour corn meal slowly as you stir until the cooked polenta reaches the desired consistency. The corn grits should melt and be torn into soft polenta, as you pour it as a slow steady stream, to avoid it making any clusters.

Pick small corn grits polenta. We like Bob's red mill corn grits.

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If you want a cheesier flavor, you can add nutritional yeast to the mix while you continue whisking. This will entirely depend on the kind of mozzarella cheese you use, as the flavor profiles vary. Also depending on the nutritional yeast you use, it will be more or less cheesier, so adjust to your liking.

Then taste and add salt if needed.

Assemble

• Oil a pan. To facilitate the portioning, you can use a rectangle baking tray. Use some olive oil.
• Set the first polenta layer, about ½ inch thick (1.5 cm), spreading evenly with a spoon or spatula.

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• Add the vegan ragout as a second layer, followed by the optional pitted green olives.

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• Add the rest of the polenta as the third layer.
• Top with the remaining mozzarella dice and optionally add some vegan parmesan cheese before baking (find the vegan parm recipe also on this site). The vegan parmesan, made with a base of nutritional yeast, will create a nice golden crust on top.

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Bake

Now we are ready to bake the vegan polenta in a pre-heated oven for 15-25 minutes. Remember that all the components are already cooked, so we are only aiming to:

Melt the cheese.

The mix will come together as a whole.

You can optionally add some pieces of vegan butter or olive oil on top.

The cooking time can vary depending on the baking sheet you use. As soon as you see that the top looks golden, it is time.

Remember that all the ingredients on this vegan polenta have been cooked before baking it, so the oven simply helps assemble everything.

Top tip: although you can serve the polenta, as soon as you take it out of the oven, we like letting it cool down a bit. It will allow you to better cut and portion the squares. Of course, you can always just spoon it if you don't mind the looks!

Substitutions

This Vegan Baked Polenta can be adjusted easily to different food restrictions and choices.

Dairy

some people like using milk instead of vegetable stock, even adding butter while stirring the polenta. If you'd like to make a heavier and richer polenta, you can add vegan butter and unsweetened almond milk in replacement of half the vegetable stock.

Cheese

You can use any of your favorite vegan cheeses. We like using vegan parmesan and mozzarella to top the Polenta before baking it because it adds some delicious golden and melty spots.

Feel free to add some parmesan while stirring the Polenta with the vegetable stock, so it melts with the liquid. Heaven!

Veggie broth

You can use any leftover or misfit veggies and boil for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, to make natural veggie stock.

Also, you can simply boil some onion or garlic powder with your favorite herbs. We want to infuse flavor in the Polenta as we add the liquid instead of adding water.

We like using the remainders of the ragout veggies to make the stock: carrot peelings, unused celery leaves, and some onion pieces.

Remember, you can always use a store-bought organic vegetable stock cube, and simply dilute it in boiling water for 2-3 minutes.

Ragout

This recipe is a tofu polenta but if you want to make a tofu-less filling, you can simply add extra celery, onion, and carrots to the ragout and avoid the tofu.

Make sure to cut the veggies in medium-small sizes to contribute to the textures of the dish. Another great addition to make your ragout chunky are crushed pumpkin seeds.

Spicy - if you like your ragout spicy, feel free to add some red pepper flakes into the mix.

To make a super creamy vegan polenta, it is essential to have a soft and creamy tofu ragout in the middle layer.

Tomato sauce

You can use fresh tomatoes, finely chopped or blended instead of the tomato puree. Just make sure to add a teaspoon of sugar and allow for extra 10 minutes of cooking. That way you ensure to balance tomatoes' natural acidity.

Variations

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We love adding pitted green olives to the plant-based ragout.

Use our 5-minutes vegan parmesan, both while you stir the polenta and on top, before baking it.

You can skip the ragout altogether to make a slimmer and quicker version. Following all the recommendations in the above section, ensure the ingredients are mixed well to make the best creamy vegan polenta, using some extra vegan butter and vegan parmesan and mozzarella, to make up for the lack of ragout.

Mushrooms - you can make this vegan polenta with mushrooms, sautéing the mushrooms vegan butter or olive oil, adding onion and garlic in a non-stick skillet, and then adding your chopped vegetables of choice such as celery.

You can choose to add dried mushrooms to the vegetable stock to infuse extra mushroom flavor into the corn grits and achieve equally great flavor.

When we make vegan polenta with mushrooms we usually make it with a vegan bechamel sauce, instead of ragout, but both options are delicious. We tend to associate mushrooms with creamy, white sauces. So that's what comes naturally.

Soon we will post a White Vegan Polenta with Mushrooms to satisfy all those mushrooms craving palates, we too are crazy about mushrooms.

Fresh herbs

You can replace fresh basil with thyme, oregano fresh rosemary, fresh parsley, or a mix of them. I often use different herbs to give the dish a slightly different flavor.

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Adjusting for food allergies

Nut allergy

Double the amount of tofu in replacement of the nuts. You can also use pumpkin seeds as a replacement.

Gluten allergy

Tofu is naturally gluten-free but it may become cross-contaminated during processing. If you have a gluten allergy, find tofu that is certified gluten-free without containing any glutenous ingredients.

If you like cornmeal, and gluten-free recipes, you will love our plant-based Buttermilk Gluten-Free Cornbread.

How to serve vegan polenta

This dish serves as a main dish, with no need for extras as it has lots of protein, complex carbs, and vegetables.

You can also slice smaller portions and serve this creamy vegan polenta as a side dish.

Allow for the pan to cool down for 10-15 minutes before serving. This helps to consolidate the flavors and will make it easier to serve. The Polenta will stick together better instead of melting while plating.

Cut like serving a lasagna.

Add some extra vegan parmesan or olive oil on top.

Serve with a green salad with a 5-minutes homemade vinaigrette.

Storing

You can store leftover polenta in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.

I like to hydrate leftover polenta, with 1-3 tablespoons of water, drizzled on top of it, before turning it into the oven or microwave.

This way will make it soft again, as the polenta grits may have hardened in the fridge.

Whether you’re looking for a hearty main dish or a delicious side dish, vegan polenta is always a winning choice. Ready in just 55 minutes, this meal is perfect for any night of the week. So why not give it a try tonight? You and your guests are sure to love it and for sure it will become one of your favorite recipes!

Other recipes

Plant-based Buttermilk Cornbread - also using corn grits

Vegan Mushroom risotto - pure Italian comfort food

Rosemary focaccia bread - with a cheery tomato version of this Italian classic as well

Italian Eggplant Stew - made with only 4 ingredients

Easy bread loaf - Artisan Italian bread with only 4 ingredients

Another delicious recipe where tofu makes a great stuffing in combination with mushrooms is these stuffed onions that are always present during our celebrations, everyone loves them.

If you are experimenting with tofu, we have a guide to preparing tofu, that will give you plenty of ideas and reasons to include more of this healthy food in your diet!

Finally, if you are the lasagna kind of person, you are sure to like the veganized Italian all-times favorite eggplant parmesan. Definitely, one of our favorite recipes when it comes to comfort food.

If you try this recipe, let us know! Leave a comment, rate it, and don't forget to tag a photo #ourplantbasedworld on Instagram. Cheers!

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Food safety

We sometimes take for granted that we have years (or decades) of cooking experience that the average visitor may not. Add to, or remove from, the list below with health and safety tips.

• Cook to a minimum temperature of 165 °F (74 °C)
• Do not use the same utensils on cooked food that previously touched raw meat
• Wash hands after touching raw meat
• Don't leave food sitting out at room temperature for extended periods
• Never leave cooking food unattended
• Use oils with high smoking points to avoid harmful compounds
• Always have good ventilation when using a gas stove

See more guidelines at USDA.gov.