We can agree that southern Illinois contains some true-blue country folks even if we will not agree concerning the merits of grits...
Grits or Polenta?
- Thread starter DoctorShavegood
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Grits are good for breakfast, lunch, supper, or snack. Good on their own or with butter, eggs, bacon, ham, refried beans or a host of other complimentary foods. Grits is good eatin'... There is a Dr. Seuss style poem in there somewhere. I just lack the time to find it...
Conversation. Michael Jackson and Muhammad Ali together in 1977. Ali joked with Michael: “You got to float like a butterfly part down brother Michael, but before you can sting people out of their wits, you gotta put on some meat and keep on eating your grits."
You gonna eat them grits? No? Slide 'em over here...
True fact. Even if you don't have the grits they do know how to make breakfast. I remember a breakfast at a little place near where a bunch of us gathered for a little week-long party a few years ago. The porkchop came on a separate plate because the sausages, eggs and biscuits'n'gravy took up all of one platter. Alongside the porkchop was some fried apples, and a second cup of gravy just in case one wanted to improve on the cook's excesses.
After eating all that I waddled out to the parking lot where I had enough mass for once to crank up a high-compression Shovelhead with just one kick. What a load of food.
O.H.
Exhibit A: Tonight's dinner...
Warning: May not be suitable for viewers with underdeveloped taste...
Warning: May not be suitable for viewers with underdeveloped taste...
Because I'm lazy, I would have put the eggs on top of the grits. One less plate to wash!
Never heard of Polenta. But why do I suspect it is popular with people who listen to National Public Radio?
Mea culpa...I listen to National Public Radio. On the weekends, when AM talk radio suddenly thinks I want to listen to gardening shows, divorce lawyers, and retirement planning!
Mea culpa...I listen to National Public Radio. On the weekends, when AM talk radio suddenly thinks I want to listen to gardening shows, divorce lawyers, and retirement planning!
Yeah, and if a little egg yolk got into the grits, yummm. Oh wait, where's the hot sauce?Because I'm lazy, I would have put the eggs on top of the grits. One less plate to wash!
All that needs is a couple of slices of cantaloupe.
And a dash of hot sauce.
Also, I've been known to listen to NPR while eating both polenta and grits.
I believe I'll have to try that one some day. I am, however, partial to eggs fried in 50/50 lard/butter in a cast iron skillet...Because I'm lazy, I would have put the eggs on top of the grits. One less plate to wash!
This house makes and enjoys both polenta and grits and fixes them many ways. I could eat a pretty big bowl of grits loaded with goat cheese and Hatch chilis. Grits and scrapple with maple syrup is pretty fine for breakfast. As for polenta, I like it soft and on a soup plate with something that has a hearty sauce like veal of pork chop Marsala. On day two the leftovers are firm, fried, and topped with hot sandwich toppings like cheesesteak, meatballs, or sausages; all the hot sandwiches that are good on hot Italian rolls work just as well on polenta.
LOL I just remembered that the timer on my digital watch is set just for cooking grits! I turn the heat down and start the timer.
>>> Looks for the "grits" timer on watch... comes away disappointed.
Oh, I dunno. I worked in an NPR affiliate network for 13 years, and didn't start eating polenta until after I'd put in a little time working for a CBS Radio affiliate. So that proves you wrong, right there.
O.H.
Today's lunch was enough to make a Southern Gent's heart skip a beat. Grits, two free range eggs, and cantaloupe.
I like them both , but if I had to choose one it would be polenta with braised short ribs ....
Is that yours? Yum. Osso buco is acceptable on occasion, yes?
Now that's a recipe! What time is dinner? I'm more than happy to the dishes and I'll bring my own bowl and spoon.CPT & Dave:
'Bingo' (on both counts)!
It's also been a long, long while since I last made polenta.
In our house, I like to sauté a little minced red onion and minced garlic. I add about 1 quart chicken stock. Heat to boil and add 1 cup yellow (I like the color...although some use white), fine (some use medium or coarse, but using fine will be 'lighter' than the other ground methods), hominy cornmeal while continually whisking.
Lower heat to simmer and whisk about every five (5), minutes until creamy and light (about 30 minutes).
Remove from heat, add unsalted butter (1 tbsp), sea salt, cracked pepper ( to taste), and fresh grated parmesan (hmmm...say 3oz).
Yield: Approx 6-8 servings.
Then, I pour the polenta ("Polenta? Oh, you mean Italian grits." Unknown), into a pan (I use a deep cake pan lined with parchment paper), and refrig until firmly set.
Then I use a cookie cutter to cut out triangle shapes, (gently now...gently), lightly bread (flour, egg, milk, fine bread crumbs), and fry or just brush with olive oil and sauté both sides.
[FONT=&]Bon Appétit[/FONT]
"Polenta is like food for the brain. [...]". Peter Davies
I've had the great joy of living with and next door to immigrant Croatians: awesome family. My friend would make polenta. The first she bought what she usually obtained and dinner was amazing.
I have a couple of grain mills for grinding flour. One of my mills does really well grinding corn for either of the foregoing in this discussion. Using organically grown dent corn, I'd grind a meal to whatever consistency moved me in the moment and 2 hours later we were having fresh ground polenta under some lovely venison stew or a swordfish head stew, replete with homemade wine and rakia (grappa).
I've made this on my own as well and have added to the pot, butter, fontina, parmesean, and pecorino. This might find itself under some sort of slow roasted chicken and veg or venison stew.
My favorite way of making/eating polenta is to prep it a tad loose so it's more like porridge and the top it with whatever moves me. The last time I made this was for a chef friend of mine and we went vegetarian (shallots, onions, garlic, squash and mushrooms.) I don't recall the wine I brought, but it was red, lush and worked well with dinner. Her contribution was sharing a bottle of Macallen 18 y.o. Single Malt... It was something of an epic dinner.
