My Southern Shrimp & Grits recipe is simple, quick, and OH SO delicious!! Cheesy grits topped with perfectly seasoned and grilled shrimp in a light, flavorful sauce. It really doesn’t get much better than this!
Shrimp & Grits….just the name of this dish screams Southerness to me! Living in GA, if you’re going to make Shrimp & Grits, you better know how to make it right….especially the grits. Light, fluffy, and perfectly cheesy and topped with Old Bay seasoned shrimp in a light, delicious, simple sauce.
When I looked through recipes for Shrimp & Grits, I couldn’t believe how simple the sauce was – broth, butter, diced tomatoes, diced red bell pepper, Old Bay, and lemon juice. Every recipe from famous Southern chefs was about the same – the difference was in the delicious grits. I love my grits cheesy with a couple of different sharp cheese and super creamy.
And while we’re on the subject of ingredients, I need to take a minute to express my OBSESSION with Old Bay! If you don’t like it, I’m not sure we can be friends. Really. To me, it is THE perfect seasoning (Lawry’s Seasoning Salt is next on the list) – a tiny bit of spice and just SO flavorful. It makes any dish so much better. Maybe its a Southern thing?? Who knows and who cares. All I know is I appreciate the person who discovered it and hope there is never a shortage!
Here’s how to make Southern Shrimp & Grits:
For the shrimp:
- Lay the shrimp out on a plate or cutting board. Season liberally with Old Bay, a little sprinkle of cayenne, and a pinch of salt & pepper.
- Heat a large skillet over medium/high heat (closer to the higher side).
- Dice a couple of pieces of bacon and cook it in the skillet until crispy. Once crispy, remove from the skillet and set it to the side.
- Keep the heat high and carefully add the shrimp, seasoned side down, to the bacon grease. While one side cooks, sprinkle the other side of the shrimp with Old Bay. Make sure not to overcook the shrimp. Once it turns pink, flip it to the other side and cook just until the other side of the shrimp is pink. Remove from the skillet and set to the side.
For the sauce:
- In the same skillet you used to cook the shrimp, add 2 tsbp of butter. Once it has melted, add the diced onion and minced garlic. Cook for about a minute or until fragrant.
- Add the chicken broth to the pan and stir.
- Add the diced tomatoes and red bell pepper. If you like spice, you could also add a little diced jalapeno at this point.
- Add a sprinkle of Old Bay to the sauce and a good squeeze of half a lemon.
- Turn the heat to high and bring the sauce to a boil. Let the sauce cook until it thickens. While it is cooking, make your grits.
For the grits (aka the best part):
- In a medium-sized pot, add 1/4 cup of water, 2 cups of chicken broth, 1 1/2 cups of milk (I use 2%), and a good pinch of salt. Bring to a boil.
- Once it is boiling, slowly add 1 cup of grits, stirring as you add them. Bring them to a boil and then turn the heat down to the lowest setting (simmer). Stir every few minutes to prevent clumping. Once the grits have soaked up almost all of the liquid (but not all), remove from heat and add 1 tbsp of butter, 1/4 cup of grated Pecorino cheese, and 1/2 cup of freshly grated sharp white cheddar cheese. Stir well and taste to see if your grits need salt or pepper.
To assemble:
- Add shrimp back to sauce and top with bacon. Stir together so shrimp is coated in sauce.
- Add grits to individual serving bowls, top with shrimp and then top with sauce.
- Serve hot!
Southern Shrimp & Grits
Ingredients
- 1/2 bag frozen shrimp, peeled and deveined (tails on or off as preferred)
- 1 cup quick grits
- 3 slices of bacon, diced
- 1/2 medium onion, diced
- 2 tsp minced garlic
- 1/2 red bell pepper, diced
- 1/2 cup canned diced tomatoes
- 1 1/2 cup chicken broth
- 3 tbsp butter
- 1/2 lemon
- 2 tbsp Old Bay seasoning
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
- salt & pepper
Instructions
For the shrimp:
- Thaw the shrimp in the fridge or in a bowl of water.
- Lay the shrimp out on a plate or cutting board. Season liberally with Old Bay, a little sprinkle of cayenne, and a pinch of salt & pepper.
- Heat a large skillet over medium/high heat (closer to the higher side). Dice a couple of pieces of bacon and cook it in the skillet until crispy. Once crispy, remove from the skillet and set it to the side.
- Keep the heat high and carefully add the shrimp, seasoned side down, to the bacon grease. While one side cooks, sprinkle the other side of the shrimp with Old Bay. Make sure not to overcook the shrimp. Once it turns pink, flip it to the other side and cook just until the other side of the shrimp is pink. Remove from the skillet and set to the side.
For the sauce:
- In the same skillet you used to cook the shrimp, add 2 tsbp of butter. Once it has melted, add the diced onion and minced garlic. Cook for about a minute or until fragrant.
- Add the chicken broth to the pan and stir.
- Add the diced tomatoes and red bell pepper. If you like spice, you could also add a little diced jalapeno at this point.
- Add a sprinkle of Old Bay to the sauce and a good squeeze of half a lemon. Turn the heat to high and bring the sauce to a boil. Let the sauce cook until it thickens. While it is cooking, make your grits.
For the grits:
- In a medium-sized pot, add 1/4 cup of water, 2 cups of chicken broth, 1 1/2 cups of milk (I use 2%), and a good pinch of salt. Bring to a boil.
- Once it is boiling, slowly add 1 cup of grits, stirring as you add them. Bring them to a boil and then turn the heat down to the lowest setting (simmer). Stir every few minutes to prevent clumping.
- Once the grits have soaked up almost all of the liquid (but not all), remove from heat and add 1 tbsp of butter, 1/4 cup of grated Pecorino cheese, and 1/2 cup of freshly grated sharp white cheddar cheese. Stir well and taste to see if your grits need salt or pepper.
- Add shrimp back to sauce and top with bacon. Stir together so shrimp is coated in sauce.
To assemble:
- Add grits to individual serving bowls, top with shrimp and sauce. Serve hot!
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