Funche (Puerto Rican Cornmeal Porridge)
A soft, savory cornmeal porridge cooked low and slow with sofrito until thick and creamy, like a Puerto Rican cousin of polenta. Served warm with avocado and cheese, it's a breakfast that keeps you full all morning.
Servings
Ingredients
Nutrition
Per serving
Steps
Build the sofrito base
Heat the olive oil in a heavy pot over medium heat. Add the and tomato paste and cook, stirring often, until fragrant and slightly darker — this toasts the raw edge off the and deepens the flavor of the whole pot.
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 240 ml (1 cup)
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
✅ Done when: the sofrito smells deeply fragrant and no longer smells raw
Add the broth
Pour in the stock or water, then add the bay leaf and salt. Raise the heat and bring it to a hard, rolling boil.
- 1.2 litres chicken stock or water
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 tsp salt
✅ Done when: the liquid is boiling hard across the whole surface
Whisk in the cornmeal
Lower the heat to medium. Pour the cornmeal into the pot in a thin, steady stream while whisking constantly — this is the trick that keeps smooth instead of lumpy. Once it is fully combined, switch to a wooden spoon.
- 170 g (1 cup) cornmeal
✅ Done when: the mixture has thickened into a smooth, lump-free porridge
Simmer until creamy
Turn the heat down to low. Cook, stirring every minute or two and scraping the bottom of the pot so it does not catch and scorch, until the cornmeal is completely soft with no raw grit left. If it gets too thick before then, stir in a splash of hot water.
✅ Done when: the porridge is thick, glossy and smooth, and leaves a clear trail when you drag the spoon through it
Finish and season
Remove and discard the bay leaf. Stir in the butter and taste, adding more salt if needed.
- 2 tbsp butter
✅ Done when: the funche is rich, glossy and well seasoned
Serve warm
Spoon the onto plates right away and top with the sliced cheese and avocado. Serve immediately, since it firms up quickly as it cools, just like polenta.
- 100 g queso de papa or mild white cheese
- 1 avocado
Build the sofrito base
Heat the olive oil in a heavy pot over medium heat. Add the and tomato paste and cook, stirring often, until fragrant and slightly darker — this toasts the raw edge off the and deepens the flavor of the whole pot.
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 240 ml (1 cup)
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
✅ Done when: the sofrito smells deeply fragrant and no longer smells raw
Add the broth
Pour in the stock or water, then add the bay leaf and salt. Raise the heat and bring it to a hard, rolling boil.
- 1.2 litres chicken stock or water
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 tsp salt
✅ Done when: the liquid is boiling hard across the whole surface
Whisk in the cornmeal
Lower the heat to medium. Pour the cornmeal into the pot in a thin, steady stream while whisking constantly — this is the trick that keeps smooth instead of lumpy. Once it is fully combined, switch to a wooden spoon.
- 170 g (1 cup) cornmeal
✅ Done when: the mixture has thickened into a smooth, lump-free porridge
Simmer until creamy
Turn the heat down to low. Cook, stirring every minute or two and scraping the bottom of the pot so it does not catch and scorch, until the cornmeal is completely soft with no raw grit left. If it gets too thick before then, stir in a splash of hot water.
✅ Done when: the porridge is thick, glossy and smooth, and leaves a clear trail when you drag the spoon through it
Finish and season
Remove and discard the bay leaf. Stir in the butter and taste, adding more salt if needed.
- 2 tbsp butter
✅ Done when: the funche is rich, glossy and well seasoned
Serve warm
Spoon the onto plates right away and top with the sliced cheese and avocado. Serve immediately, since it firms up quickly as it cools, just like polenta.
- 100 g queso de papa or mild white cheese
- 1 avocado
The Story Behind the Dish
Funche traces back to the Taíno, who ground corn and cooked it into thick mushes long before the Spanish arrived. Over the centuries it absorbed Spanish olive oil and African cooking techniques brought by enslaved cooks, who added sofrito and turned a plain cornmeal mush into something layered and savory.
For generations it was humble, everyday food in the countryside (el campo) — cheap, filling, and endlessly adaptable, cooked over wood fires and eaten at breakfast or dinner with whatever was on hand, from avocado to salted fish.
⭐ Why It's Famous
It is the ultimate Puerto Rican comfort food: creamy, deeply savory from the sofrito, and satisfying in a way that few simple dishes manage.
💡 Fun Fact
Many food historians trace the name "funche" to West and Central African words for cornmeal mush, like "funje," a reminder of how deeply African traditions shaped Puerto Rican cooking.
Puerto Rico, island-wide, especially rural kitchens
18.22°N, -66.59°W
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