Kiss My Grits

     Among the many gracious and welcoming people I met during my stay in North Carolina, Jason Cole was one of the friendliest.  He is the General Manager at Larkin's Carolina Grill in Columbus.  I met him there Friday evening as I enjoyed dinner at his restaurant.  We had the opportunity to get to know each other and in our conversation he asked what I thought of Carolina cuisine.  My response was favorable but I confessed that I was having a difficult time warming up to a traditional low country favorite, shrimp and grits.  That's when he offered me a serving that he would dish up for me when he staffed his restaurant's booth at the BBQ Festival the following day.

     So after dinner that night I did some research to find out exactly just what grits really are.  Here is what I discovered...

     First prepared by Native Americans their maize porridge was made from small broken grains of corn ground by hand and boiled in water or milk.  The recipe calls for 6 parts of boiling liquid combined with 1 part coarse corn meal and stirred while cooking for about a half hour.  The common term we come to know as grits is derived from an Old English term grytt meaning a coarse meal of any type.



     Grits are a Southern staple, usually served for breakfast, but can be consumed any time of day.  Three quarters of all the grits purchased in the United States are bought in the South in the "Grits Belt" that extends from Texas to Virginia.  Traditionally seasoned with salt, pepper and butter they can also be combined with grated cheese, sausage, bacon, or a fried egg and often accompany fried catfish, salmon croquettes, country ham and of course, shrimp.  Left over grits are chilled, then sliced (and can be breaded) and fried.  They are not unlike corn meal mush or polenta.



     I met up with Jason on Saturday at the festival and he honored his pledge and ladled me a generous helping of grits topped with shrimp.  I thanked him for the introduction to true Southern cooking and sat down to give it a try.  I guess it's an acquired taste.  But then again, so is scrapple.