Shrimp and Grits: First Attempt
This is going to be a series, as I am attempting to learn how to make this delicious and deceptively simple dish. This is my first attempt, based on doing the grits in the instantPot for speed and ease, and a creamy sauce for the shrimp which is all wrong while being oh, so right. The sauce wasn't a gravy, it was thinner than I prefer, but it tasted wonderful and I'll likely do it again. Still, there is much room for improvement and I'll post again when I have had a chance to talk with Jim Curtis about how he does his family Tasso gravy (it's closer to a red-eye gravy).
First, though, the grits.
Cooking anything that is very thick, or in this case, will thicken, in the InstantPot means you're far more likely to get a 'burn' warning. If that happens, release pressure, stir, and start it again.
3 c water
1 c grits (do not use instant or 5 min grits for this)
1 tsp salt
Stir together, and put under pressure for 10 minutes, then do a 15 minute release.
After cooking, stir in:
2-3 tbsp butter
1/2 c cream
1/2 shredded cheddar (a sharp cheese is best here)
Grits, done right, should be a velvety consistency, with a creamy mouth-feel. They should not actually feel gritty, something that happens when they are not cooked long enough, or with enough water. I've seen cook times in old books of up to an hour, and that's probably not wrong. The pressure cooker method makes it much faster, and eliminates the need to stand and stir a pot for that long.
The sauce. I hesitate to call this a tasso gravy, as it has ham, but that's not tasso ham, and it's not a gravy, it's a cream sauce. Cook this long and slow to get out the moisture of the vegetables and wines, and add the shrimp at the last few minutes to keep it from toughening up.
1/2 diced ham (I just used some leftover ham here)
1/2 onion, diced small
3-4 small sweet peppers, diced small (or you could use 1/2 a bell pepper, but I don't like the flavor of Bell peppers)
Sauté until the vegetables are sweated out and the onions are translucent. Add in:
1/2 c white wine
Cook down until wine is reduced. Add in:
1 c heavy cream
Cook at a simmer until cream thickens, then add:
1 c small shrimp (raw) or about 20 larger shrimp
Once the shrimp are cooked through, serve over grits, and sprinkle with:
2-3 finely sliced green onions (for garnish)
The final result is a rich, creamy, lovely dish. The grits came out beautifully here, without the sandy texture you get sometimes. I will be doing grits like this from now on, so much easier! The sauce is thinner than I was expecting, because of the wine, but it harmonizes very well with the ham and shrimp, onions and sweet pepper.
Serves 4 people