The LDSCN Weekly Recipe Archive Grits - Not Just for Breakfast and How to Cook Grits

Grits are bascially crunchy cornmeal mush. From a site called Southern Cusine

Hominy grits, or just plain grits, are an institution here in the South, though they can be hard to find in northern states. Hominy is made from flint or dent corn, varieties with hard kernels that are dried on the cob then removed and soaked in a solution of baking soda, lime, or wood ash. This process causes the hulls to soften and swell. The kernels are then hulled and degermed using friction, then dried. Grits, coarse whitish grains, are ground from hominy, as is masa harina, the flour used to make corn tortillas. If you really want to start from scratch, Mountain Laurel has instructions for the whole process, including making the lye solution with wood ashes.

It's interesting that the alkaline soaking process also unbinds necessary niacin in the corn, and has an effect on the protein balance. Though the overall available protein is decreased, the relative availability of the lysine and tryptophan are increased. The alkaline process has been used for centuries where corn was a native food, but in areas where corn was introduced as a new staple, the process was not. Pellagra, a niacin and tryptophan deficiency, became a common disease in areas where corn was the main source of food, as in the early South. One has to wonder how ancient civilizations discovered the process which made corn a more balanced source of nutrition.

The word 'grits' comes from the Old English "grytt", for "bran", but the Old English "greot" also meant something ground. Some cookbooks refer to grits as hominy because of regional preference for the name. Americans have been using the term "grits" since at least the end of the 18th century.

Grits and Cheese Casserole
Best of the Best From Georgia

	4 cups milk
	1 cup grits
	1/2 cup butter or margarine
	2 eggs, well beaten
	1/2 teaspoon baking powder
	1/4 teaspoon salt
	1 cup grated Cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 375°. Bring 3 1/2 cups milk to boiling point. Gradually stir in grits; cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until thick, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat. Add butter; stir until melted. Stir in eggs, baking powder, salt, and remaining milk. Pour into 2-quart casserole. Bake, uncovered 30 minutes, then sprinkle grated cheese over top. Bake 15 minutes longer.
Serves 6 to 8.

This one uses the crockpot and would be good with a Mexican dinner.
Green Chile Grits
Southern U.S. Cuisine - Diana Rattray

	2 cups regular grits
	6 cups water
	1/2 teaspoon paprika (optional)
	1/2 to 1 teaspoon salt
	4 to 6 ounces chopped mild green chile (New Mexican if you have it)
	1 or more jalapeno chiles, seeded and finely chopped
	dash cayenne

Combine all ingredients in the crock pot and cook on low for 6 to 9 hours or on high 2 to 3 hours, stirring occasionally. If cooking on high, add 1/4 to 1/2 cup more water if too thick. Similar to polenta, you can serve it right away or you can refrigerate the mixture in a buttered loaf pan for a few hours or overnight, unmold, slice (1/2-inch) and fry in butter until browned. Serves about 8

Grits Italiano Categories: Meats, Italian Yield: 8 servings

	1 lb Hot bulk pork sausage
	1/8 ts Salt
	1 1/2 lb Lean ground beef
	cheese
	1/8 ts Pepper
	3/4 c Regular grits
	1/4 ts Garlic powder
	14 oz Jar pizza sauce
	10 oz Shredded Cheddar
	1 Med. onion, chopped
	1 lg Green pepper, chopped

Brown sausage and ground beef in a large skillet, stirring until it crumbles; drain well. Cook grits according to package directions; spoon into a lightly greased 13 x 9 x 2 inch baking dish. Combine pizza sauce, salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Layer half each of pizza sauce, meat, green pepper, onion, and cheese over grits. Repeat layers, omitting remaining cheese. Cover and bake at 325 degrees for 25 minutes. Add remaing cheese and bake uncovered, an additional 5 minutes. 8 servings. This recipe was the first place winner in the 4-H division of the Annual Greater Grits Cook-off.

Vidalia Onion Casserole (with Grits) From gulftel.com/"scubadoc"

	3 large onions, sliced Butter
	1 1/2 c. uncooked white grits
	1 c. shredded cheese
	Salt to taste with seasoned salt
	3 tbsp. canned milk

Slice onion and pull apart. Saute in butter until soft, but not brown. Place pre-cooked grits in skillet with melted butter. Layer grits, onions, and grated cheese in a casserole, ending with a layer of grits on top. Sprinkle canned milk over the top and bake at 350 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes.

Other Uses

If you run out of sand while plastering a sandy finish---just add uncooked grits!

Roll balls of congealed cooked grits in ground up fish parts--good bait for just about any fish!!

 

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