Tapulon di Borgomanero con Polenta (Piedmontese Knife Chopped Braise with Polenta) Tapulon belongs to Borgomanero, a town in the province of Novara where a plate of finely chopped meat braised in red wine has been the local signature for eight centuries. It is not a ragù and it is not a stew. The meat is chopped with a knife and never ground, and the wine is not a splash for deglazing but the whole cooking liquid. What reaches the table beside the polenta is dark, concentrate

Petto di Pollo con Porcini e Polenta Croccante (Italian Porcini Chicken Breast with Crispy Polenta) Crispy polenta is not a garnish invented for restaurants. In the Piedmontese foothills it is what happens to yesterday's polenta: the pot sets overnight into a firm block, the block is cut into slabs, and the slabs go onto a griddle until the outside cracks and the inside stays soft. This dish builds a plate around that habit, with a chicken breast and a pan of porcini on top.

Slow-braised Italian beef in red wine served with creamy Parmigiano polenta, finished with a glossy reduced jus and professional braising technique.