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Street Fryer · Fried Polenta Squares

Sgagliozze

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It's essentially fried leftover polenta — cornmeal is left to set solid overnight, then cut and fried, turning yesterday's dinner into today's street snack.

Sgagliozze are small rectangles of cooled, firm polenta, deep-fried until the outside turns crisp and golden while the inside stays soft. Bari's old-town street stalls sell them hot in paper cones, sometimes with just a sprinkle of salt.

Why it's made this way: It's classic cucina povera: cornmeal was cheap and filling, and frying leftover polenta squares turned nothing into something sellable on the street.
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Part of World of Street Food — 690 dishes from 118 countries. Something wrong here? Tell us in the comments below. Photo credits.