This Classic Shrimp and Grits recipe is SO easy, SO simple, and the ULTIMATE Southern comfort food. This traditional low country recipe uses bacon and is served with a simple sauce and uses stone-ground grits with cheese (but it’s easy to adapt to have no bacon, or other flavors and ingredients). And the whole thing only takes 30 minutes to make!
Shrimp and grits is a Southern staple. It originated in the Lowcountry of the South Carolina coast, during the season when shrimp were plentiful. It’s traditionally a breakfast dish, but I love it for a quick dinner.
Other Southern regions have developed their versions of shrimp and grits- for example, you can find blackened shrimp and grits in New Orleans with a creole/cajun spin.
In this version, the grits are cooked with milk, butter, and chicken broth, with cheese melted in at the end.
The shrimp is cooked in bacon fat and then mixed with a simple buttery sauce, then served on top of the grits with crumbled bacon and green onions. It’s so insanely delicious!
I love the simplicity of this recipe. Often, shrimp and grits recipes are made with peppers and onions, or with blackening seasoning for extra flavor. When it comes to comfort food, I like mine to be simple.
This version of shrimp and grits keeps things simple. I used salt and pepper only for seasoning, with a garnish of green onions at the end. The smoky bacon flavor stands out and the chicken stock and butter makes it super savory and creamy tasting.
First, let’s talk about the grits.
What kind of grits to use for Shrimp and Grits
I used stone-ground yellow grits to make these classic shrimp and grits. You can use white if you want, and they are more traditional… the only reason I used yellow is because it’s the only thing my grocery store had.
I DO recommend that you use stone ground, however, whether they are white or yellow. I used Bob’s Red Mill Yellow Corn Grits/Polenta. Make sure you don’t buy cornmeal by accident- it’s not the same!
Stone ground grits are classic. They are the steel cut oats of the grit world. The texture has some bite to it, and the flavor is, for lack of a better word, super “corny.”
They do, however, take longer to cook than quick cooking grits or instant grits. If you are pressed for time, you can certainly use one of these as a substitute.
How to save time cooking stone-ground grits
Here’s my time-saving trick for cooking up these delicious grits: you don’t have to whisk them continuously. Some traditional Southern cooks may be rolling in their graves right now. Many people think that you do have to whisk or stir them for almost the entire cooking time.
The thought is that the more you whisk the grits, the more starch is released, and the creamier the grits become. Kind of like when you cook risotto.
And while this may be true, I find that grits will get creamy no matter what, and it’s not worth the labor of constantly attending to them.
Instead, I whisk them every few minutes for about 10-15 minutes. Then, when they are creamy but still not quite done, I cover them and remove them from the heat to let them steam the rest of the way. It comes out perfect, with much less labor and boiling grits sputtering in your face!
This method also allows plenty of time to prepare the bacon, shrimp, and sauce portion of the shrimp and grits.
What kind of shrimp to use for Shrimp and Grits
While we’re on the subject of what’s worth the time and what’s not, I recommend buying already peeled and deveined shrimp.
I spent a good 20 minutes peeling and deveining the shrimp myself, and while I may have saved some money, I didn’t think the time spent peeling them was worth it.
You can save a bit of money buying shrimp with the peels on, but I don’t think it’s worth it. The grits are so cheap, so spend a little more money on some already peeled and deveined shrimp.
I DO recommend buying large or jumbo shrimp. They are easier to cook, and have a meatier texture that holds up well with the creamy soft grits. And I think the flavor is better, since they are harder to overcook.
How to make shrimp and grits
Cooking shrimp and grits is easy- just cook the grits and add some cheese. While they’re cooking, sauté some bacon, cook the shrimp in the bacon grease, then make a simple butter sauce in the same pan!
- Cook the grits in a mixture of chicken stock and milk. I also added a little butter for extra richness.
- Then, cook up some bacon until it’s crispy, then remove it from the pan and chop it up when it’s cool.
- Pat the shrimp dry and season it with salt and pepper, and sauté the shrimp in the bacon fat. This will only take a few minutes, since shrimp is really fast to cook.
- Add some butter and chicken stock to the shrimp. Once the butter is melted, turn off the heat so the shrimp doesn’t overcook. The butter will melt into everything and the chicken stock will help deglaze the pan, making a super flavorful sauce to spoon over the grits. SO GOOD!
- Stir in some shredded cheese into the grits. YUM. I used cheddar.
To serve, spoon some grits into a shallow bowl, and scoop some of the shrimp and some of the sauce on top. Then, sprinkle with the chopped bacon and some sliced green onions. It’s so simple and delicious!
FAQs and Variations
This is a dish best eaten immediately. But if you do have leftovers, they are salvageable! The grits may clump together, so I recommend reheating them on the stovetop with a little extra water or chicken stock to thin them out. Reheat the shrimp in the microwave for only a few seconds, so they don’t get rubbery/overcooked.
Absolutely! You can make it completely meat-free by sautéing the shrimp in olive oil or butter instead of bacon fat. You may want to season the grits and shrimp with a little extra salt, since bacon is salty. And you can always add some other meat, such as andouille sausage or chorizo.
This would be great with sautéed mushrooms or other veggies such as peppers and onions. I recommend cooking them in the bacon fat before adding the shrimp.
Yes! Use all chicken stock for the grits instead of milk, and omit the cheese.
You can make a thicker, more luxurious sauce by making a simple gravy. Remove the shrimp from the skillet and sprinkle in 2 tablespoons of flour into the leftover bacon fat along with a tablespoon of melted butter. Whisk together for a minute or so to make a roux. Then, add one cup of chicken stock and whisk together, continuing to cook until heating.
I love adding chili powder to the seasonings. You can add any other spices you love – cayenne or other hot pepper for heat, herbs, etc.
Other Southern Comfort Food Recipes
Other Easy Shrimp Recipes:
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Easy Classic Shrimp and Grits
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups chicken broth preferably low sodium, divided
- 2 cups whole milk
- 4 tablespoons butter divided
- 3/4 cup stone-ground grits
- 1 cup sharp cheddar cheese shredded
- 4 strips bacon (or 2-3 thick-cut slices)
- 1 lb. jumbo shrimp peeled and deveined
- kosher salt to taste
- black pepper to taste
- thinly sliced green onions for garnish (optional)
Instructions
- Bring 2 cups of the chicken broth, the milk (2 cups), 3 tablespoons of the butter, and a pinch of salt to a gentle boil in a medium sized pot. Add the grits and whisk together. Simmer for 10-15 minutes, or until grits are soft and creamy, whisking every few minutes. Cover and set aside off heat – they will finish softening up while they sit.
- Cook the 4 bacon strips until crispy in a nonstick or cast iron skillet. Set aside on a paper towel lined plate. Once cool, chop into small pieces.
- Drain all but 2 tablespoons of the bacon grease from the skillet.
- Rinse the shrimp with cold water and pat dry. Season with salt and pepper (if your shrimp is treated already with sodium – check the ingredients! – then only use a little bit, if any, of added salt), and any other spices you want to add (optional). Cook in the bacon grease until only just cooked- about 2 minutes per side.
- Add the remaining tablespoon of butter and 1/2 cup of chicken broth to the shrimp and stir until melted and broth is heated. Taste and add salt if necessary.
- Stir in the cheese to the grits (1 cup) until melted. Taste and add salt if necessary.
- Serve the shrimp mixture over the grits, making sure to spoon some of the liquid from the skillet over the grits, and sprinkle with the bacon pieces and sliced green onions, if using. Serve immediately.
Notes
- Money Saving Tip: Buy frozen shrimp and defrost them yourself. Most “fresh” shrimp you buy at the store has actually been previously frozen, but is marked up anyway.
- This recipe is best served right away, since shrimp get rubbery from reheating and grits turn more solid after they cool. If you have leftovers, the grits can be reheated on the stovetop with some extra water to break them up, whisking them as they reheat. Heat the shrimp only for a few seconds in the microwave- as little as possible. Or, enjoy the leftover grits plain and add the cold cooked leftover shrimp to a salad to prevent overcooking.
- You can use water instead of chicken broth to cook the grits.
- To save time, you can use quick cooking grits instead of stone-ground (but the texture will be different).
- I used yellow grits, since it’s all I could find. You can use white if you want to!
- Spice it up! Add other seasonings, herbs, or hot pepper to the shrimp with the salt and pepper. You can also serve it with hot sauce.
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition Information Disclaimer
The provided nutrition information is my best estimate and reflects one serving of the recipe (total servings indicated at top of recipe card). It does not include any added sodium from seasoning to taste, any optional ingredients, and it does not take brands into account. I use an automatic API to calculate this information. Feel free to calculate it yourself using one of these tools:
Carol
Can I use instant grits?
Elizabeth Lindemann
Yes, the texture isn’t quite as nice in my opinion and you’ll have to follow the instructions on the package to compensate for timing/liquid but they can be used if you want!
Cat
Great classic recipe – I love that you recommend stone ground grits. For me, the coarser, the better. But I use fresh shrimp, throw the shells and heads into a small pot of water and make a concentrated shrimp broth, which I mix extra low sodium CB.
At the end, it allows me to mix that slurry of broths and corn starch and thicken the pan juices so I have more jus or thin gravy for the dish and, maybe a biscuit. I could probably add flour to the pan after frying, but this is quicker and just as satisfying.
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it! Love the idea of making your own shrimp stock. Thanks for sharing your suggestions!
Marcenne Nisbett
SOUNDS EASY AND DELISH.. CAN’T WAIT FOR DINNER TONIGHT
Elizabeth Lindemann
Hope you loved it!
Marie
Too salty with bacon grease
Elizabeth Lindemann
This was likely not a result of the bacon grease (though that does add a little extra salt). More likely, the chicken broth or shrimp made it too salty. I recommend low sodium chicken broth. Most frozen shrimp from the grocery store is treated with some kind of sodium – be sure to check the ingredients. If it is, then use very little, if any, added salt. I’ve updated the recipe card with all of this advice, so thanks for bringing this issue up so I could improve the instructions!