Gulf Coast Shrimp and Grits

By RoketJSquerl

Shrimp and Sausage cooked in a spicy tomato, roux and trinity enhanced sauce, and served on a bed of Garlic Cheese Grits.

Ingredients

• 4 cups of water
• 2 tablespoons of unsalted butter
• 6 small cloves of garlic, finely minced
• 1/2 cup of heavy cream
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup of uncooked quick grits
• 2 cups of shredded cheddar cheese
• 1 tablespoon of canola oil
• 1 cup of chopped Andouille or other smoked sausage
• 2 pounds of small to medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 2 tablespoons of canola oil
• 1 tablespoon of butter
• 1 tablespoon of all purpose flour
• 1/2 cup of chopped onion
• 1/4 cup of chopped green bell pepper
• 1/8 cup of chopped celery
• 1 can of Rotel or diced tomatoes, well drained
• 3 teaspoons of Cajun seasoning (like Slap Ya Mama)
• 1-1/2 cups of shrimp stock or chicken broth
• 1 tablespoon of unsalted butter
• Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper, to taste
• Red pepper flakes, optional
• Sliced green onion, for garnish

Preparation

Step 1

Fill a saucepan with four cups of water and place on a back burner over medium for the grits. You want to keep the water warmed so that you can start the grits quickly. Peel and devein shrimp and lay the shrimp out in an even layer on a baking pan covered with paper towels. Reserve heads and shells to make stock, if desired. Cover shrimp with paper towels and pat to remove as much moisture as possible; change paper towels if needed and set aside. Saute the garlic in a large skillet with the butter just until tender. Scrape out and set the butter and garlic aside in a small bowl - you'll need this for the grits later.

In the same skillet, add the tablespoon of canola oil, and over medium heat, saute the andouille sausage. Remove sausage and set aside. To the same skillet, add half of the shrimp and cook just until barely pink. Remove and set aside with the sausage; add remaining shrimp and repeat.

Sometimes water will accumulate from cooking the shrimp. If so, pour off the residual water and wipe the skillet clean. Otherwise, use the pan drippings and add enough canola oil to equal about 2 tablespoons and add 1 tablespoon of butter. Stir in 1 tablespoon of flour and cook and stir for about 3 to 4 minutes or until lightly browned. Add the onion, bell pepper and celery; cook and stir for about 3 minutes. Add the drained, diced tomatoes and Cajun seasoning, cook and stir about 3 minutes. Slowly add in the stock or broth, bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes. While the sauce is simmering, bring water to a boil for the grits and stir in the heavy cream. Slowly stir in the grits and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring regularly.

Add the shrimp and sausage back to the skillet and heat through. To thicken the sauce, stir in 1 tablespoon of butter, taste, add salt and pepper and adjust seasonings as needed. Sprinkle with red pepper flakes if desired. To the grits, add in the reserved cooked garlic and butter and the shredded cheese, just until the cheese is incorporated and fully melted. Spoon cheese grits into serving bowl, top with several spoons of the shrimp mixture and garnish bowls with sliced green onion.

For creamy grits, slowly stir in the grits to the boiling water/cream mixture, a little at a time - don't dump them in all at once. Then while they are cooking, continue to stir them often the entire time they are cooking, until creamy and thickened. If grits are kept holding and thicken too much, add additional cream and beat to loosen.