Balmos: Romanian polenta with feta and bacon

Method

1. 1

   Boiling the water

   Bring the water to the boil in a large, heavy-based pan and season it with salt until well flavoured.

   5 min
2. 2

   Cooking the maize flour

   Sprinkle the maize flour into the boiling water steadily, whisking constantly with one hand to prevent lumps. Cook over a medium heat, stirring occasionally, until thick.

   20 min
3. 3

   Stirring in the butter

   Beat the butter into the cooked polenta until smooth and glossy.

   1 min
4. 4

   Frying the bacon

   Fry the diced bacon in a dry frying pan until crisp, then set aside the rendered fat.

   8 min
5. 5

   Preparing the feta

   Crumble or mash the feta with a fork so that it is easy to scatter over the polenta.

6. 6

   Serving

   Spoon the polenta into bowls, then top with crumbled feta, crispy bacon and a spoonful of sour cream. Drizzle with the bacon fat and serve warm.