Crispy Air Fryer Polenta Cake with Chilli Garlic Oil

If you have only ever eaten polenta soft, this crispy air fryer polenta cake is going to change your mind completely. Five minutes in the microwave, a few hours in the fridge, then crumbed and air fried until the outside is properly CRUNCHY and the middle is still soft and cheesy. Served with a fried egg, some broccoli and a quick chilli garlic oil, it is a full dinner from a bag of polenta that cost almost nothing. Let's cook!

Why This Crispy Polenta Works

Crispy air fryer polenta cake takes five minutes of actual work, a few hours of setting time in the fridge, and about 15 minutes to finish. The technique that makes it work is setting the polenta hard first and then crumbing it in more dry polenta instead of breadcrumbs, which gives you a slightly granular, sandy crunch that holds up better than a standard crumb. Most people meet polenta as a soft, wet, beige thing and never try it again, which is a shame because it is one of the most versatile cheap ingredients going. My mum used to make me semolina for breakfast when I was little, heated in the microwave with milk and a square of butter melting on top, so I have always had a soft spot for this family of grains. This is the grown up, crunchy version of that.

Recipe Details

• Prep Time: 10 minutes, plus setting time
• Cook Time: 15 minutes
• Total Time: 25 minutes, plus at least 3 hours setting
• Serves: 2
• Difficulty: Easy
• Special Equipment: Air fryer and a shallow tray for setting the polenta

The setting stage is the only thing here that is not negotiable. Polenta needs to be genuinely solid before you crumb it, because if it is still soft it will not hold together, the coating will not stick, and the whole thing turns into a mess in the air fryer. Make it in the morning before work, or the night before, and it will be ready when you are. Cooking it in stock rather than water is the other thing that matters, because polenta on its own tastes of very little and stock seasons it all the way through. After 20 years of cooking professionally the thing I would say about polenta is that it takes on whatever you give it, so be generous. Cheese, herbs, pesto, chilli, all of it works.

Ingredients

For the Polenta:

• 1/2 cup polenta
• 500ml chicken or vegetable stock
• 30g cheese, grated (parmesan, cheddar, or a mix)
• Salt and black pepper

For the Crumb:

• 3 tbsp plain flour
• 1 egg, beaten
• 3 tbsp dry polenta
• Spray oil

For the Chilli Garlic Oil:

• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 2 garlic cloves, finely sliced
• 1 tsp chilli flakes

To Serve:

• 2 eggs, for frying
• 1 head of broccoli, cut into florets

How to Make Crispy Air Fryer Polenta

1. Cook the polenta in the microwave: Put the polenta and stock into a large microwave safe bowl and whisk together. Microwave on high for 5 minutes, then whisk hard. If it still looks loose, give it another minute and whisk again. It should be thick enough to hold its shape on the whisk.
2. Add the cheese and set it: Stir the grated cheese through while it is still hot, season well with salt and black pepper, then pour it into a shallow tray and spread it flat. Get it into the fridge for at least 3 hours, or overnight, until it is completely solid.
3. Cut and crumb: Turn the set polenta out and cut it into two large cakes, or four smaller ones. Dip each piece in the flour, then the beaten egg, then the dry polenta, pressing it on so the whole surface is covered.
4. Air fry until crisp: Spritz both sides with oil, sit the pieces on a bit of greaseproof paper in the air fryer basket and cook at 200C (180C fan / 400F / Gas Mark 6) for 12 to 15 minutes, turning halfway, until deep golden and properly crunchy all over.
5. Make the chilli garlic oil: While that is going, warm the olive oil in a small pan over a low heat. Add the chilli flakes and let them infuse for 1 minute, then add the finely sliced garlic and turn the heat off straight away. Leave it to sit in the residual warmth until you are ready to plate.
6. Blanch the broccoli and fry the eggs: Drop the broccoli florets into boiling salted water for 2 to 3 minutes until just tender, then drain. Fry your eggs in a hot pan until the whites are set and the edges are crisp.
7. Plate it up: Put the crispy polenta down first, add the broccoli and the fried egg on top, then spoon the warm chilli garlic oil over everything. Season and eat straight away while the crust is at its best.

Why You'll Love This Recipe

• The crust is unbelievable: Crumbing in dry polenta rather than breadcrumbs gives you a granular, almost sandy crunch that stays crisp much longer.
• It costs next to nothing: Half a cup of polenta, a bit of cheese, an egg and some broccoli. This is one of the cheapest dinners on the whole site.
• Do the hard bit in advance: The polenta base takes five minutes and can be made before work. Dinner is then 15 minutes when you get home.
• Endlessly adaptable: Fold pesto, chopped rosemary, feta or mozzarella into the polenta before it sets and you have a completely different dish.
• Breakfast, lunch or dinner: With a fried egg on top this works at any time of day, which is not something you can say about many things.

Chef's Tips for Crispy Polenta

Make sure it is properly set: I cannot stress this enough. If the polenta is even slightly soft in the middle it will not crumb cleanly and it will fall apart in the basket. Three hours minimum, overnight is better. Push a finger into the surface and it should barely give.

Check your bowl is actually microwave safe: I learned this the hard way filming this recipe. Mine was not, so I had to tip half cooked polenta into another container partway through. Check before you start rather than halfway through.

Use stock, not water: Polenta is quite bland on its own and needs seasoning from the inside. Chicken or vegetable stock does that job far better than salting it at the end ever will.

Fold cheese in while it is hot, in chunks: Grated parmesan disappears into the mix and seasons it, but if you tear in chunks of mozzarella or feta just before it goes into the tray, you get pockets that go ooey and gooey when the cakes heat through.

Turn the heat off before the garlic goes in: Chilli can take a minute of direct heat, garlic cannot. Infuse the chilli first, then add the sliced garlic and kill the heat immediately. It carries on softening in the residual warmth while everything else comes together, and you get all the perfume without the bitterness that burnt garlic gives you.

Substitutions & Variations

• No air fryer? Shallow fry the crumbed cakes in a pan with a little more oil, 3 to 4 minutes a side, until golden.
• No spare polenta for the crumb? Standard breadcrumbs or panko work perfectly well, you just get a lighter crunch rather than a granular one.
• Want more flavour in the base? Fold through a spoonful of red pesto, chopped rosemary, or a bit of chopped chilli before it sets.
• Make it a bigger meal: Thicken the polenta slightly, cut larger cakes, and serve with two fried eggs and more greens.
• No broccoli? Any green works. Blanched green beans, wilted spinach or a handful of peas are all good here.

Storage

Best eaten fresh: The crust is at its absolute best in the first few minutes out of the air fryer, while the outside is crunchy and the inside is still soft.

Fridge: Uncooked set polenta keeps in the fridge, covered, for up to 4 days, which makes this brilliant for cooking in batches. Cooked cakes keep for 2 days and are best revived in the air fryer for 4 to 5 minutes rather than the microwave.

Freezer: Freeze the crumbed but uncooked cakes flat on a tray, then bag them up for up to 2 months. Cook from frozen, adding 4 to 5 minutes to the air fryer time.

Avoid: Do not reheat cooked polenta cakes in the microwave. The crust goes soft and slightly chewy and you lose the only thing that makes this dish special.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is polenta and is it the same as cornmeal? Polenta is coarsely ground cornmeal, and the name refers both to the grain and to the dish made from it. Fine ground cornmeal will work here but gives you a smoother, less interesting crumb.

Can you make polenta in the microwave? Yes, and it is much easier than standing over a pan stirring. Whisk it with stock in a large microwave safe bowl and cook on high for 5 minutes, whisking hard partway through and again at the end.

How long does polenta need to set before you can fry it? At least 3 hours in the fridge, and overnight is better. It needs to be genuinely solid. If it still gives when you press it, leave it longer.

Why did my polenta cakes fall apart in the air fryer? Nearly always because the polenta was not set hard enough, or because the coating did not cover the whole surface. Both are easy fixes. Set it longer and press the dry polenta on firmly so there are no bare patches.

Can you use breadcrumbs instead of polenta for the crumb? You can and it works fine. Breadcrumbs give a lighter, more traditional crunch. Dry polenta gives a more granular, sandy texture that I prefer and that holds up better on the plate.

What do you serve with crispy polenta cakes? A fried egg and some blanched greens turn it into a full meal. It is also very good under a tomato sauce, alongside a roast chicken, or with a sharp salad to cut through the richness.

Can you make polenta cakes ahead of time? Yes, and this is the best way to cook them. Make and set the polenta up to 4 days ahead, or crumb them and freeze them raw, then air fry when you want dinner on the table fast.

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Deep and Rich Tomato Sauce - Spoon this underneath the polenta cakes for a completely different dinner.

Polenta has a reputation problem and it is entirely undeserved. Made properly, set hard and given a proper crunchy coating, it turns into something that genuinely converts people who were sure they did not like it. The base costs pennies, the work is five minutes, and the result looks and tastes like something you would happily pay for. Give it a go and tell me in the comments whether it changed your mind.

Enjoy!

Del x

Crispy air fryer polenta cakes with a cheesy soft middle, a fried egg, blanched broccoli and a quick chilli garlic oil poured over the top.