Bloody Butcher Red Grits

[Suzanne F]

An heirloom dent corn, via a mill in Doylestown, PA. I bought a package of these at my Greenmarket yesterday (from the traveling Grains and Beans stand). Yes, I am a Northerner and grits are not part of my heritage (except distantly as mamaliga; that's from a different part of Europe than my forebears). But I like to think I know flavor, and these are THE BEST grits I have ever tasted. I cooked them just with salted water for most of the time--they took between 45 minutes and an hour, and worth every bit of occasional attention--and the corn smell coming out of the pot was incredible. Added a large glug of heavy cream about 30 minutes in, but it really wasn't necessary. The flavor was as strong as the aroma: pure corn. And yes, they are cream-and-red in color. Unusual and lovely.

 

If I did a grit-to-grit comparison with the stuff Quaker sells, it would be no contest: Quaker is tasteless goo compared to these, even the longer-cooking version; instant is nowhere in the running (I've never eaten instant grits, although my Alabama-born b-i-l will).

 

I have some left over, which I packed into a blocky container so I can cut slices and fry them. Maybe next time I'll make grits arancini, as Wilf mentioned.

[joethefoodie]

I'm going to keep my eye out for these; I really like grits. I've a couple of different bags o' grits in my freezer right now.

 

According to Mr. Brock, "Always soak grits for at least 6 hours, preferably overnight. Soaking grits starts the hydration process." And "use the soaking water to cook the grits."

[Suzanne F]

If I'd planned ahead, I probably would have done that. Next time. I don't think anything suffered from not soaking, but I'll know better when I try it.