Grits/Polenta
If I have a bag of corn meal, can I make both grits AND polenta? Also, does anyone remember that recipe one of the chef's on Top Chef did that included shrimp, bacon and polenta? I'd like to give that a whirl.
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15 Comments:
Hmm. To my knowledge, grits are coarser than corn meal. Don't use corn meal for grits; they won't turn out the same.
GumbeauxGal at 11:50PM on 03/15/08
I believe that on Top Chef one of the contestants made cheesy grits and topped them with bacon-wrapped shrimp. To the best of my knowledge, Tre made that dish. Hope it helps!
lwalther at 12:37AM on 03/16/08
Grits are ground hominy not corn meal
Kbear919 at 12:59AM on 03/16/08
I recently bought a bag of stoneground grits, but I can't seem to get them to be smooth. Any secrets for this Northern gal? Will cooking them longer make them smooth, or will they always have a gritty consistency?
TBsMOM222 at 7:13AM on 03/16/08
@PumpkinBear, here's the recipe: Bacon-Wrapped Shrimp with Grilled Corn & White Cheddar Cheese Grits
It does look tasty.
chisai at 7:47AM on 03/16/08
Grits and polenta are the same thing-- ground corn. They are NOT what we think of as "corn meal," the soft flour-like kind used to make cornbread, etc.
Often polenta is a finer grind than grits, but you can use them interchangeably (see the Good Eats episode on grits). Hominy grits are specifically those made from nixtamalized corn, that is, corn that has been treated with lye. These are less common than regular grits.
The secret to really creamy grits is to use high quality stone ground grits (Bob's Red Mill is a nationally available brand that is quite satisfactory), a ration of four parts liquid to one part grits, and low and slow heat. Real grits can sometimes take up to 45 minutes to cook completely.
I use 2 cups of water, two cups of whole milk (you can use 2% but don't bother with skim), and one cup of grits. Combine the water and milk in a medium saucepan and bring just to a boil over medium-high heat. Stir in the grits and boil for about three minutes, stirring constantly. Reduce heat to as low as your stove will go, cover the pan, and cook the grits, stirring every three minutes or so, until the liquid is absorbed and the grits have a soft, creamy consistency. As mentioned, this might take up to 45 minutes.
Penelope at 8:03AM on 03/16/08
I am not trying to throw another stick on the Paula Deen fire, but this recipe for shrimp with cheesy grits (and bacon) is very, very good, and quit simple (not with shortcuts, but by its nature):
http://www.leitesculinaria.com/recipes/cookbook/shrimp_grits.html
I use a little less cheese, but otherwise it's good as is, and I've made it a few times.
renzata at 11:56AM on 03/16/08
Grits are completely different from either polenta or corn meal. Grits are ground hominy, and in fact, they are more accurately called hominy grits. Hominy is corn that has been soaked in lye or lime. The polenta-version of grits is masa, the finer hominy flour that is used to make corn tortillas and tamales. Hominy has a very distinctive flavor that is nothing like ground untreated corn. If you've never had grits or hominy, think of corn tortillas, and you'll have a sense of the flavor.
Corn meal and polenta are both ground corn. The only real difference is in the coarseness of the meal. In the USA, corn meal is typically much coarser -- thus called meal -- than traditional polenta, which is often referred to as a flour because it is usually so fine.
If you are going to substitute corn meal or grits for polenta, I'd stick with regular with corn meal. It will have a different consistency/texture than a traditional cooked polenta, but the flavor will be essentially the same. Note that corn meal will usually require longer cooking, and probably more liquid than polenta.
If you try to use grits use in place of polenta, the texture may be similar, but the flavor will be ENTIRELY different, and you may be unhappy with the final result.
If you have a recipe that calls for grits, you can often substitute corn meal mush, as long as the unique hominy flavor is not critical to the final dish.
Incidentally, all the corn we are discussing here is grain corn, which is not the same as the summer corn or sweet corn we eat fresh.
LoCo at 12:13PM on 03/16/08
As to the hominy grits vs. corn grits debate, and the grits vs. polenta debate, may I refer you to the transcript of the "True Grits" episode of Good Eats, located here:
http://www.goodeatsfanpage.com/Season8/grits/true_grit_trans.htm
Penelope at 4:09PM on 03/16/08
Thanks for all of your help, guys. I'll let you know how it goes. I guess I'm making cheesy corn meal with bacon wrapped shrimp? I hope it works out. Either way, nothing too bad can come of a single dish which includes bacon, cheese and shrimp.
PumpkinBear at 6:35PM on 03/16/08
Thanks for the help with my grits question. I guess I was in too much of a hurry and that's why they weren't smooth.
PS, Penelope, I do have Red Mill Stoneground grits.
Marianne
TBsMOM222 at 6:27AM on 03/17/08
Hominy grits are different than regular grits. The only difference between polenta and grits is that *usually* southern grits are made with white corn meal and Italian polenta is made with yellow corn meal. I have used medium ground and coarse ground corn meal of both the yellow and white varieties to make both grits and polenta. The medium ground obviously cook much faster, but even the coarse ground corn meal turns smooth when cooked with enough liquid and given enough time.
Not that it is authoritative, but here is the wikipedia article about grits.
Dominic
the zen kitchen
dvchurch at 10:30AM on 03/17/08
You might try cooking your grits or polenta in the crockpot on high for an hour and a half. You only have to stir a few times during cooking rather than standing over the stove as your polenta/grits bubble away. As these dishes cook and become starchy, they naturally thicken and to me always look like bubbling lava on the stovetop. You need a good long handled wooden spoon to keep your hand away from the spurts. For crockpot polenta use three times the volume of liquid for the corn meal/polenta, i.e., for one cup of dried cornmeal, use three cups of water/stock/milk. I'm not sure about the ratio of grits to liquid but I'll check my source tonight.
Otabenga at 4:38PM on 03/17/08
I looked up the slow cooker grits recipe and it says to use a 4:1 ratio of liquid to grits and to cook on low for 3 hours. Not quite as fast as cooking polenta in the slow cooker, but still doable for a brunch on the weekend.
Incidentally, my source for both these recipes is the Gourmet Slow Cooker Volumes I and II by Lynne Alley.
Otabenga at 5:31PM on 03/18/08
While searching for a good Shrimp&Grits recipe, I ran across this site:
http://gritsandmore.blogspot.com
Lot's of grit info and recipes. Try out the Shrimp&Grits with Tasso Gravy! Shrimp & Grits are a traditional low country dish and I feel is probably the inspiration for that Top Chef dish.
wookie at 5:44PM on 03/18/08