Email to Cat      

Shrimp and Grits

Source of Recipe

From "One Hour Comfort" by America's Test Kitchen


Recipe Introduction

"Though countless adaptations exist nowadays, early versions of this hallowed Lowcountry dish called for little more than butter, shrimp, and grits. This comforting rendition is true to those foundational roots, tasting like shrimp and grits above all. It makes only small changes to the tried-and-true Southern formula: Toasting the grits in butter before adding the liquid coaxes out bigger corn flavor, while a little extra liquid, a covered saucepan, and a slightly longer cooking time turn the grits creamy and pillowy. Cooking the shrimp in two stages prevents them from releasing too much liquid and diluting the buttery sauce. Render chopped bacon in a skillet and parcook the shrimp in the fat until just pink. At the end, return the shrimp to the skillet and finish cooking."

List of Ingredients

Grits:
â—¦ 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
â—¦ 1 cup old-fashioned grits
â—¦ 2 ¼ cups whole milk
â—¦ 2 cups water
â—¦ ¾ teaspoon salt

Shrimp:
â—¦ 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
â—¦ 1 ½ pounds extra-large shrimp (21 to 25 per pound), peeled and deveined, shells reserved
â—¦ 1 tablespoon tomato paste
â—¦ 2 ¼ cups water, plus extra as needed
â—¦ 3 slices bacon, cut into ½-inch pieces
â—¦ 1 clove garlic, minced
â—¦ ½ teaspoon salt
â—¦ ½ teaspoon pepper
â—¦ 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
â—¦ 1 tablespoon lemon juice
â—¦ ½ teaspoon Tabasco sauce, plus extra for serving
â—¦ 4 scallions, sliced thin


Recipe

For the grits:
Melt 1 tablespoon butter in medium saucepan over medium heat. Add grits and cook, stirring often, until fragrant, about 3 minutes. Add milk, water, and salt. Increase heat to medium-high and bring to boil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer, whisking often, until thick and creamy, about 25 minutes. Off heat, stir in remaining 2 tablespoons butter and season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover and keep warm.

For the shrimp:
Meanwhile, melt 1 tablespoon butter in 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add shrimp shells and cook, stirring occasionally, until shells are spotty brown, about 7 minutes. Stir in tomato paste and cook for 30 seconds. Add water and bring to boil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 5 minutes. Strain shrimp stock through fine-mesh strainer set over bowl, pressing on solids to extract as much liquid as possible; discard solids. You should have about 1 ½ cups stock (add more water if necessary to equal 1 ½ cups). Wipe skillet clean with paper towels.

Cook bacon in now-empty skillet over medium-low heat until crispy, 7 to 9 minutes. Increase heat to medium-high and stir in shrimp, garlic, salt, and pepper. Cook until edges of shrimp are just beginning to turn pink but shrimp are still translucent in center and not cooked through, about 2 minutes. Transfer shrimp mixture to bowl.

Melt 1 tablespoon butter in now-empty skillet over medium-high heat. Whisk in flour and cook for 1 minute. Slowly whisk in shrimp stock until incorporated. Bring to boil, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer until slightly thickened, about 5 minutes. Stir in shrimp mixture, cover, and cook until shrimp are cooked through, about 3 minutes.

Off heat, stir in lemon juice, Tabasco, and remaining 1 tablespoon butter. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve shrimp over grits, sprinkled with scallions, passing extra Tabasco separately.

Serves 4