Creamy and cheesy Southern-style grits plus bacon and shrimp equals comfort food to the max. I mean, whaaaaaaaat? This is the food my body was meant to eat. It’s truly unfortunate that I can’t eat like this all the time. But there are days, oh yes, there are days where a nice serving of this Bacon and Shrimp Cheesy Grits is necessary. Really, very necessary.
We are coming up on the comfort food months and it’s time to gear up our kitchens to cook more than just salads and grilled meats. It’s time for cheese, it’s time for bacon, it’s time to treat yo-self. My kind of meal is best served in a bowl. Hot, creamy, and delicious dinners in a bowl. Like three hours after the Thanksgiving meal and you sneak into the kitchen and warm up the garlic mashed potatoes and the stuffing with some turkey and cranberry sauce…. in one bowl. Yes, this is the food of my people.
I made this the other night for a good weekday meal when my cousin Alexandria came over to hang. We ate, we watched Friends, we laughed over Facebook videos, and then we cuddled up and watched M. Night Shyamalan’s The Village and ate salted caramel sundaes. That’s the kind of weekday magic this food brings you.
The great part about this dish is it truly is very, very simple. Because grits (a Southern-style polenta made out of cornmeal) are very easy to make, and really very hard to mess them up. And we all know how to sauté bacon in a pan with some onions. Then comes the most delicious smell in the WORLD. There is some kind of chemical that gets released in my body when bacon and onions are sautéing together. It’s like, what I imagine heaven to smell like.
Really, the only hard part is deveining and shelling the shrimp. Which is completely unnecessary if you buy your shrimp all ready to go. I should have done that. Hindsight, you know? But, I wanted the largest shrimp that the fishmonger could find. So, I ended up with these steak-like shrimps that were really very good. So I guess in the end, the extra work was worth it. But this recipe can literally accommodate whatever size of shrimp you want. It’s magic like that.
Try this recipe out for yourself. It’s honestly very simple and can transform your weekday dinner routine from West coast to Bible belt real quick. I may or may not have started talking like Paula Deen when I was making this.
Bacon & Shrimp Cheesy Grits
Welcome to comfort food at its max. This Southern-inspired recipe is really simple to whip up and is an awesome treat when you want decadent and dreamy.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
Ingredients
3 1/2 cups chicken stock
1 cup corn meal grits or Southern-style polenta
1 1/2 cups milk (1% or higher)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon fresh pepper
1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
4 slices of thick-cut bacon
1/2 cup chopped, red onion
1 1/2 lbs jumbo shrimp, peeled and deveined
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup fresh chives
Corn kernels for topping
Instructions
In a large saucepan, bring the chicken stock to a boil and slowly drizzle in the grits while whisking so they don’t stick together. Add the milk, salt and pepper, and bring to a boil. Continue to whisk and reduce heat to a simmer. Cook to the package directions since it depends on which grits you buy. Mine took about 20 minutes to get saucy and creamy. Add the cheese and mix once the liquid is just about all absorbed and remove from the heat. Add water or milk to keep it from becoming stiff.
While the grits are simmering, cut up the bacon into small pieces and cook over medium/high heat in a skillet until they are nice and crispy. Add the chopped onion and cook for about 3 minutes before adding the shrimp, paprikas and a pinch of salt. Cook until the shrimp are done, about 8-10 minutes. They should all turn pink and be firm but tender. Add the butter until it’s fully melted. Top with chopped chives.
Serve with corn kernels, fresh ground pepper and drizzle with extra buttery, shrimp sauce.
Keywords: bacon, cheese grits, jumbo shrimp, shrimp, shrimp and grits, southern food
