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Italy · Lake Como / Lombardia

Missoltini con polenta

Missoltini con polenta is a Lake Como classic of salted, dried agoni revived on the grill and served with crisp slices of grilled polenta, often with a light dressing of olive oil and vinegar.

Traditional Italian recipeFish / main course
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Missoltini con polenta: wide hero view of the finished traditional dish
Prep15 minutes
Cook35 minutes
Total1 h 50 min
Yield4 servings
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The dish

About Missoltini con polenta

Lake Como and InLombardia identify missoltini (misultitt) as agoni traditionally salted, sun-dried and pressed for preservation, then grilled and paired with polenta.

Because the fish is already preserved and intensely flavoured, the cooking is brief. The aim is to warm and lightly crisp it, not dry it further.

Firm, cooled polenta is sliced and grilled so it develops a crust sturdy enough to accompany the fish.

A little olive oil and vinegar can freshen the strong preserved-fish flavour; additional salt is normally unnecessary until tasted.

Technique

Three things that matter

  • Buy prepared missoltini. Traditional drying and pressing is a preservation process best left to an experienced producer.
  • Grill briefly. Overcooking makes the preserved fish hard and overly salty.
  • Cool polenta before slicing. Firm cold polenta griddles cleanly and develops crisp edges.
Cook the dish

Ingredients

Everything needed to prepare the dish, arranged for fast scanning before cooking.

Polenta

  • 250 gyellow polenta flour
  • 1 Lwater
  • 1 tspfine sea salt

Fish and dressing

  • 8prepared missoltinicommercially preserved dried agoni
  • 3 tbspextra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 tbspwine vinegar
  • 1 tbspflat-leaf parsleyfinely chopped; optional
Step by step

Method

Cook and set the polenta

  1. Boil the water. Bring the water to a boil and salt it lightly.

    The water should be fully boiling before flour is whisked in.

  2. Cook the polenta. Whisk in polenta gradually and cook according to its grind, stirring until thick and fully hydrated.

    The mixture should pull cleanly from the pot and taste cooked, not gritty.

  3. Cool until firm. Spread 2 cm thick in a tray, cool, then refrigerate about 1 hour before cutting into rectangles.

    Slices should lift without bending or breaking.

Prepare the missoltini

  1. Clean if needed. Brush or wipe excess surface salt from the prepared fish according to the producer’s directions.

    The fish should remain intact and dry on the surface.

  2. Heat the grill. Preheat a grill or ridged pan to medium-high and brush it lightly with oil.

    The grates should be hot enough to mark the fish quickly.

  3. Grill briefly. Cook the missoltini only until hot and lightly crisped, roughly 1–2 minutes per side depending on size.

    They should smell intensely savoury without turning brittle.

Grill the polenta and serve

  1. Griddle the slices. Brush polenta lightly with oil and grill until browned and crisp on both faces.

    Distinct grill marks and a firm crust should form.

  2. Make the dressing. Whisk olive oil with vinegar and optional parsley.

    The dressing should be bright but not sharply acidic.

  3. Serve together. Arrange hot missoltini with grilled polenta and spoon over only a little dressing.

    Taste before adding any extra salt; the preserved fish should season the plate.
Practical guidance

Practical guidance

Fish identity

Missoltini are preserved agoni of the Lake Como tradition; they are not simply ordinary canned sardines.

Bones

Commercial preparation varies. Follow the producer’s instructions for removing the head, backbone or skin before eating.

Polenta

Leftover firm polenta is ideal because it grills more cleanly than freshly cooked soft polenta.

Troubleshooting

Troubleshooting

  • The fish is hard. It stayed on the grill too long. Heat only until warmed and lightly crisp.
  • The polenta falls apart. It was sliced while warm or too soft. Chill until fully firm before grilling.
  • The dish is overwhelmingly salty. The fish was not prepared according to the producer’s desalting/cleaning directions or extra salt was added.
Nutrition per serving

Nutrition per serving

  • Serving size: 2 fish with polenta
  • Calories: approximately 480 kcal
  • Carbohydrates: 52 g
  • Protein: 31 g
  • Fat: 17 g
  • Fibre: 4 g
  • Sodium: high; preserved fish dependent

Missoltini sodium varies greatly by producer and preparation.

Allergens and food safety

Allergens and food safety

Use commercially produced preserved missoltini from a reputable source.

Follow the producer’s storage, rinsing and bone-removal directions.

Refrigerate cooked leftovers promptly; preserved fish still requires safe handling after cooking.

FAQ

FAQ

What are missoltini?

They are agoni from the Lake Como tradition that are salted, dried and historically pressed for preservation.

Why serve them with polenta?

Local tourism sources repeatedly identify grilled missoltini and polenta as the classic pairing.

Should the fish be cooked a long time?

No. It is already preserved and should generally be grilled only long enough to heat and lightly crisp it.

Final note

What matters most

  • Result: Intensely savoury grilled lake fish balanced by crisp, mild polenta and a restrained oil-vinegar finish.
  • Key: Start with prepared missoltini, grill them briefly and give the polenta time to set firm before browning.
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