TL;DR (Quick-Answer Box)
- What it is: A classic Southern dish featuring creamy stone-ground Cheddar grits topped with succulent sautéed shrimp, crispy bacon, garlic, and fresh green onions.
- Why you’ll love it: Ready in just 30 minutes, this rich Lowcountry comfort food delivers big flavor with tender shrimp and smoky bacon over ah-MAZ-ing cheesy grits.
- How to make it: Simmer grits and stir in Cheddar and butter. Fry bacon, cook shrimp in bacon grease with garlic and lemon, then layer together.
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This southern shrimp and grits recipe is a classic low-country dish adored by just about everyone on the planet—and if someone says they don’t love it, they’re lying. You can certainly count The One and me among its fans.
We first had a plateful of this divineness at a lovely little restaurant in Charleston. We then got a tutorial from Beth Price, the then Director of Recipe Testing for LC and dyed-in-the-wool Charlestonian.
Taking everything we learned from Beth, I settled on this recipe by Paula Deen. It seems simple enough, accessible enough, and damn, isn’t it tasty?!
Chow,
Featured Review
Wow, this recipe came out perfect!! I will definitely make it again!! This is perfect for a family of 3 or 4. Note: You won’t have enough for seconds, so I suggest doubling the recipe if you are hungrier or have more people.
Your shrimp and grits questions, answered
Grits are basically ground corn, usually made from starchy, less sweet varieties. The corn is processed in an alkali solution in order to remove the tough outer hull. The corn is washed and dried, giving us hominy. The hominy is then stone-ground and the result is grits.
Well, yes and no. While grits are from the American South and polenta is from Italy, both are made from ground corn. One difference is the type of corn used to make each: Grits are usually made from white corn (hominy)—but not always, which adds to the confusion–while polenta is made from yellow corn.
The biggest difference, though, is texture. Polenta is usually ground coarsely, and that lends a pleasant chewy texture prized in Italy. Grits, on the other hand, are typically ground finer, making it smoother.
Being mildly flavored, grits are marvelously versatile. They can be eaten for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks. And they can be simple (just a few pats of butter and salt and pepper) or elaborate (smothered in cheese). Even better, they can be topped with all sorts of things, such as maple syrup, jam, herbs, shrimp, pulled pork, poached eggs, bacon, sausage–you name it. And you can even blanket grits with any sauce you’d top pasta with, although you might get strange looks from true Southerners.
What should I serve with shrimp and grits?
Let’s face it: this shrimp and grits recipe, with its cheese and bacon, is a rich dish. And there’s nothing wrong with that! Still, you might want to round out the meal with a salad with a lip-puckering dressing to cut through the richness. Something like this apple, Parmesan, and mixed green salad with mustard dressing does the trick nicely. A jar of quick pickled red onions does much the same, with its vinegar snap slicing right through all that cheesy richness.
Keeping with the Southern vibe, okra cornmeal cakes are also wicked good. Jones for veggies? A tangle of charred greens with garlic will do mighty well. And if you want to send the gaggle of guests home happy (read: satiated and smiling), a slice of Kentucky bourbon cake is the closer. For sure!
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If you make Paula Deen’s shrimp and grits recipe, or any seafood dish on LC, consider leaving a review, a star rating, and your best photo in the comments below. I love hearing from you.–David
Featured Review
Oh my! I’ve only had grits a time or two in the past and was never impressed. This recipe, however, is delicious! As suggested by one reviewer, I used chicken broth in lieu of water for the grits and also removed much of the bacon grease before adding the shrimp. Will definitely make this again!
Paula Deen’s Shrimp and Grits
Ingredients
- 1 cup stone-ground grits
- Salt and pepper
- 1/4 cup (2 oz) butter
- 2 cups shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
- 1 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined, left whole if small and roughly chopped if medium or large
- 6 slices bacon, chopped into tiny pieces
- 4 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley
- 1 cup thinly sliced green onions, white and green parts
- 1 large garlic clove, minced
Instructions
- In a medium saucepan, bring 4 cups of water to a roiling boil. Pour in the grits, add a goodly amount of salt and freshly ground black pepper, and stir well with a whisk. Turn down the heat to the lowest setting. (A flame tamer is a great idea if you have a particularly aggressive stove.)
- Cook the grits until all the water is absorbed, about 10 to 15 minutes. Take the pan off the heat and stir in the butter and Cheddar cheese. Cover the pot and keep it warm until ready to serve.
- Meanwhile, cook the bacon in a skillet until crispy and brown, then transfer to a paper towel to drain. Dump the shrimp into the skillet and sauté them in the bacon grease over medium heat until they just turn coral pink, about 3 minutes.
☞ TESTER TIP: Whatever you do, don't overcook them. You don't want rubbery shrimp. Immediately drizzle in the lemon juice and mix in the parsley, green onions, and garlic. Take the skillet off the heat.
- To serve the shrimp and grits, ladle the grits into a large serving bowl. Scrape the shrimp mixture over top the grits. Sprinkle with bacon and hightail it to the table!
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Recipe Testers’ Reviews
Did you know only 68% of the recipes we test make it onto the site? This recipe survived our rigorous blind testing process by multiple home cooks. It earned the Leite’s Culinaria stamp of approval—and the testers’ reviews below prove it.
My first experience eating grits was not the best. Then I tried some at a small restaurant in North Carolina and realized that if the grits are properly cooked, they really could be amazing. When I finally decided to make grits at home, this shrimp and grits recipe was my first try, and it couldn’t be any easier to make. The grits came out wonderful—filled with strong cheese flavor yet not so overwhelming that I couldn’t enjoy the shrimp and bacon. This is extremely filling and better suited to lunch so you can enjoy a little nap afterward.
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First time trying Shrimp n Grits and it was awesome!
Thanks, Meghan. We’re so pleased you gave it a chance.
My family loves this! Great recipe!!
Thanks, Lisa! So glad your family enjoyed it.
The first time I tried shrimp and grits was at a small restaurant called The Blue Mingo after seeing a performance of Porgy and Bess at Glimmerglass Opera House this past summer. Before that I’d see truckers eating huge platters of white gummy oozing stuff that made me shudder. But wow! The meal I had at the Blue Mingo left me searching the web to see how I could recreate it. I wanted the grits to be creamy, just shy of soupy, and I wanted the shrimp to be juicy and spicy and sprinkled with chopped green onion. So here is my improvised take on shrimp and grits – 2 cups of chicken broth, 1/2 cup of grits, cooked and 2 oz of cream cheese and a cup of cheddar stirred in at the end – and for the shrimp, I skinned and chopped chorizos and sautéed them in some olive oil and drained them and then tossed the shrimp (marinated in chopped garlic and Old Bay and smoked paprika for about five minutes) in and cooked them in the same oil making them a nice shade of red. Plate the grits and the shrimp, sprinkle chorizo bits and chopped green onion on top. Not exactly low calorie food, but if you’re going to go, might as well go big.
I am going to try this new recipe and compare it to mine–I’ve yet to try a recipe on this website that wasn’t perfection, but I gotta say I don’t think there is a way to mess up grits and shrimp unless you’re eating the white gummy stuff at a truck stop with red gravy!
Marilyn, I love your recipe for grits. It’s interesting: My grandmother Vovo Costa, used to fry Portuguese chouriço in oil then pour off the oil and save it in the fridge. When she had enough, she’d fry potatoes in the oil. They came out smoky, crispy, and orangey-red.
David, that sounds delicious! I love potatoes!
I’m making this version of shrimp and grits tonight (my husband usually makes it his way but I’m the cook tonight). I almost always serve it with Okra and Tomatoes. I look forward to trying this with a dash of cayenne since my guys like spicy. Thanks for the recipe! I can’t wait to visit Charleston really soon. And Marilyn, I plan to use your idea for grits soon too.
Tanya, I shall wait with bated breath to hear what you think! Take a picture if you can!