Archive for April 5, 2010

Grits, Better Than They Sound

I have been intentionally resistant to a few symptoms of living in the South.

I still don’t own a flat iron, use the word “kin”, or like pimento cheese. On the other hand… sandal season is longer, “y’all” slips out regularly, and I love a craw fish boil, even sucking the spicy juices out of the head. Yuuuum.

Being in a new world, it was inevitable the differences in culinary pleasures would eventually come to light as well. This means, I have had to come to terms with a Southern breakfast staple – grits.

I previously remember vaguely seeing or tasting grits. But as you can tell, those instances didn’t leave a very impressionable mark. Grits… even the sound of the word sounds rough, much like the texture. I wasn’t quite sure what to make of them. To get them to an edible state people add large amounts of butter, salt, and/or (mostly and) cheese.

My husband, a true Southerner, loves him some grits for breakfast. In fact, he chooses them over hash browns (strange!). And because I love people through food, I picked up a bag of grits at the store to try my hand at cooking them.

The photos above are evidence of my first grit cooking experience. Actually, it was much simpler than anticipated. It’s similar to cooking rice, which makes sense I suppose…you bring water or milk to a boil, add salt, stir in the grits, cover the pot and wait 15-20 minutes. In that time they fluff up and become creamy. And if you’re me, then you stir in a generous amount of cheddar cheese, because you can and it’s delicious.

If you want the best grits in Jackson, MS they can be found at Primos Cafe. They have the ability to convert any wary Yankee Northerner into a full blown grits fan.