Spicy Shrimp and Grits

There is a restaurant in Williamsburg called Food For Thought that has really tasty shrimp and grits. I have never actually ordered them before because they also have other tasty dishes, but my husband orders them consistently. As a Yankee, I had never heard of grits with shrimp. Grits are a breakfast food, I thought. Kind of like Cream of Wheat, right? Shrimp just doesn't belong there.

Now that I am being trained and sculpted into a quasi-Southern Belle by my husband and colleagues alike, I get the whole shrimp and grits thing. I have learned the error of my ways. Why don't they make these up North? Seriously. The Greek diner owners need to get on this. They have everything else under the sun already. Why not a touch of southern classics? Now with all of my pondering and finger pointing at the Greeks, I came to a realization. I have never made grits before. Ever. 

How can I be a southern man's wife properly without ever having made grits before?

Tonight I faced the challenge. I had pinned a recipe from Martha Stewart on how to make shrimp grits from her style. Then, I checked other recipes and thought of what to add to it or alter. I made up my own concoction from fusing a multitude of recipes together. I liked this recipe because all of the different flavors of the bacon, shrimp, tomatoes, and paper melded together into a spoonful of heaven! It was also a touch spicy, but not overly spicy, so that we could taste the flavors of the ingredients, and not just spice. 

 Here is what we did!

Not Martha's Shrimp and Grits

Serves 3 (would be 4 if none of men at the feast were State Troopers)

Ingredients

Salt and Pepper to taste

1 cup to-cook grits (not quick cooking)

2 Tbsp butter

3 slices of thick bacon, cut crosswise into 1-inch pieces

1 medium onion, halved and thinly sliced

1 large jalapeno with seeds, halved and thinly sliced

2 tsp minced garlic

1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes in juice (we used Redpack. We always use Redpack.)

1 pound large peeled and deveined frozen shrimp, thawed

2 Tbsp Sriracha (or just hot sauce to taste)

***We think the next time we make this, we would add a red or a yellow bell pepper. Something to think about...

Directions

1. In a medium saucepan, bring 4 1/2 c water to boil. Whisk in grits and season with salt and pepper. Reduce heat to low. Cover and cook, whisking occasionally, until grits are creamy for about 30 minutes. 

2. About ten minutes into the grits cooking, cook bacon in a large skillet until the pieces are browned. Transfer the pieces to a plate with a paper towel to absorb the oil using a slotted spoon.

3. Add the onion to the bacon fat in the skillet and cook until the onion is soft and browned. Add the jalapenos and the garlic and cook for another 2-3  minutes.

4. Add tomatoes with the juice and 1/4 cup of water to the skillet mixture. Bring to a boil and then add the shrimp. Cook the shrimp until cooked throughout, about 2-4 minutes. Stir in the hot sauce. Taste. Then add more sauce if desired. We did. :)

5. Serve the shrimp mixture over the grits and sprinkle the bacon on top.

Enjoy!