Wäinzoossiss Polenta with Parsley Gremolata

This recipe pairs our Luxembourgish Wäinzoossiss sausages with creamy polenta. Wäinzoossiss is a typical Luxembourg pork and beef sausage that’s traditionally served in a creamy mustard and wine sauce, ladled over a good portion of potato purée. For this  dish, I’ve deconstructed the sausages into little meatballs and am serving them with buttery and cheesy polenta. The whole dish gets a kick of freshness by sprinkling a bit of garlic and lemon gremolata over – it really works wonders!

The idea for this recipe came when I was asked by Esch 2022 to create a recipe that celebrates the Minett – the former industrial South of Luxembourg. This region is to this date still heavily marked by the steel industry, and many Italian immigrants settled here in the early 20th century. So to celebrate Esch 2022, I created this fusion dish: using our classic Luxembourgish Wäinzoossiss and sauce, and serving it with Italian polenta and gremolata.

Ingredients

For the Wäinzoossiss sauce:
8 Wäinzoossiss sausages
20g butter
6 tbsp wholegrain mustard
200ml white wine
400ml cream
4 tsp cornstarch
salt and pepper

For the polenta:
840ml boiling water*
240g quick-cook polenta
2 tsp salt
60g parmesan, grated
60g butter

For the gremolata:

15g parlsey, chopped
1 small garlic clove, crushed
zest of 1 lemon

Method

Serves 4 – Prep: 30 minutes

Start with the Wäinzoossiss sauce: Slice open the sausages, remove and discard the casing. Break off walnut-sized pieces of sausagemeat and roll into meatballs between your hands.

Heat the butter in a frying pan. Fry the meatballs for 5 minutes, turning regularly, until evenly browned. Put onto a plate and set aside.

Add the mustard and the wine to the pan and cook for 2 minutes. Add the cream, season with salt and pepper and simmer the sauce. Dilute the cornstarch in 2 tablespoons of water and add to the sauce, stirring until thickened. Add the meatballs to the sauce and toss. Take off the heat and keep warm while preparing the polenta.

For the polenta: bring 840ml of water to boil in a saucepan. Mix the polenta with the salt, then add to the boiling water while stirring. Stir through the parmesan and butter, and bring back to a boil and cook for a couple of minutes until the polenta is no longer gritty.*

Make the gremolata by mixing the chopped parsley with the garlic and lemon zest.

Distribute the polenta between 4 plates. Top with meatballs and sauce, and sprinkle with gremolata before serving.

*Check on the polenta packaging exactly what water to polenta ratio you need, and also how long to cook the polenta – it differs from brand to brand.

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