Charleston Shrimp 'n' Grits

Country Inn Meals to Remember, p. 22

GRITS:

4 cups water

2 tablespoons butter

1 cup stone-ground grits

2 to 3 cups heavy cream or half-and-half

GRAVY:

8 slices lean bacon

3 tablespoons finely chopped onion

2 tablespoons finely chopped red bell pepper

2 tablespoons finely chopped green bell pepper

2 cups raw small to medium-sized shrimp, peeled

2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

2 teaspoons ketchup

2 to 3 drops Tabasco sauce

Salt and pepper to taste

1 ½ cups water

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

Chopped parsley for garnish

Not a ton of veggies, but enough to tell yourself you made an effort.

Begin by cooking the grits. In a heavy 2-quart saucepan, bring the water to a boil. Add the butter and then stir in the grits. Reduce the heat and allow the grits to simmer, stirring occasionally, until most of the water is absorbed, about 10 minutes. Add the cream, ½ cup at a time, as the grits continue to cook. The total cooking time should be about 1 hour. The grits should be just slightly soupy but full-bodied.

While the grits cook, fry the bacon until crisp. 

Sizzlin.'

Remove the bacon from the pan and drain. Fry the onion and the peppers in the bacon grease until soft. Add the shrimp and cook until pink, just a few minutes. Add the Worcestershire sauce, ketchup, Tabasco, and salt and pepper to taste. Add 1 cup of the water. Mix the flour with the remaining ½ cup water until smooth and pour into the sauce to thicken. 

This is a pretty kick-ass gravy when it's done.

Chop the bacon and add half of it to the shrimp gravy. Serve over the grits and garnish with the remaining chopped bacon and parsley.

Oops! Forgot the parsley.

My Rating: 4/5 "Lots of great stuff going on in here flavor-wise, and the grits are a great base to unify everything. I might have liked it better if the grits were cheesy instead of creamy, or if they had some spice to them other than the shrimp gravy. But the overall effect is still delicious."