Grits and polenta: cousins of the corn

Downtown grits and their uptown relative, polenta, may seem a world apart. But both, made from ground corn, are similar enough to substitute for each other.

By Karen Pryslopski, Times staff writer
Published October 10, 2007

I was raised in upstate New York. My people were potato people. They liked them every which way - baked, mashed, scalloped, boiled, fried.

In my 20s I moved to New Orleans and discovered another delightful starch known as grits. Warm, delicious, comforting sometimes instant grits seemed to be everywhere. You could have them with eggs at breakfast and with shrimp at dinner.

It provided a wonderful new way to get butter and cheese into my life. Grits even seemed to cure a hangover.

Like potatoes, grits appeared to be a classic peasant food - simple and inexpensive. What could be more down-home and available than ground up corn?

Then I started hearing about polenta, which seemed high-class and fancy. A favorite of cooking show chefs, polenta sounded exotic, even when served simply with grilled vegetables. Yellow and creamy, it looked delicious, and the first time I tasted it I discovered it was.But as I ate it I had to ask myself, isn't this just grits?

Sure, they look different - grits are white, polenta is yellow. And polenta is ground more coarsely than grits.

But they sure taste a lot like each other, they both consist of ground corn and they're both prepared the same way.

So what's the difference?

Basically, it comes down to the part of the corn kernel used, and the size of the grind.

Classic hominy grits come from corn that has been stripped of its hull, leaving behind the white kernel, which is then ground to the consistency of coarse sand.

Polenta consists of whole corn kernels coarsely ground.

Because grits are ground so fine, they cook faster. Polenta, on the other hand, is so coarse that you may stand at the stove stirring it for 45 minutes before the ground grain gets creamy.

Despite its high-class reputation, polenta is less expensive than grits. A pound of polenta, or coarsely ground cornmeal, is usually less than 50 cents, while grits generally cost about $1.20 a pound.

The New York Times recently ran a recipe for Buttery Polenta with Parmesan and Olive Oil Fried Eggs to be served for dinner. But at heart that's just a dressed-up version of a Southern classic - grits and eggs.

I think the two recipes here demonstrate that grits and polenta are like fraternal twins - not quite identical, but similar enough to stand in for each other.

Karen Pryslopski can be reached at karen@sptimes.com .

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Entree
Very Soft Polenta With Rock Shrimp Ragout
1 tablespoon sugar
1 cup quick-cooking polenta (6 ounces)
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Salt
4 scallions, thinly sliced
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
3 tablespoons tomato paste
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 1/2 pounds shelled rock shrimp
1/4 cup coarsely chopped flat-leaf parsley
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 1/2 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest
Freshly ground pepper

- In a medium saucepan, bring 5 cups of water to a boil with the sugar. Whisk in the polenta in a thin stream. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until thickened, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat. Stir in 3 tablespoons of the olive oil and season with salt. Press a piece of parchment or wax paper directly onto the surface of the polenta and keep warm.

- In a large skillet, heat the remaining 3 tablespoons of olive oil. Add the scallions and crushed red pepper and cook over moderate heat for 1 minute. Add the tomato paste and cook, stirring, until slightly darkened, about 3 minutes. Add the wine and 1/4 cup of water and simmer over moderately high heat for 1 minute.

- Add the shrimp and simmer, stirring, until just cooked through, about 2 minutes. Stir in the parsley, lemon juice and lemon zest and season with salt and pepper. Remove from the heat.

- Rewarm the polenta over moderately high heat, whisking constantly. Spoon a pool of polenta in the center of 8 shallow bowls. Spoon the shrimp and sauce over and around the polenta and serve right away.

Source: Mario Batali

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Entree
Shrimp and Grits
2 servings cooked grits
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 cup diced tasso ham (see note)
2 tablespoons diced leeks
2 tablespoons diced onion
2 tablespoons diced green peppers
20 medium to large shrimp, peeled and deveined, with tails on
1 to 2 tablespoons white wine
1 cup heavy cream
Salt and pepper
Green onion tops, chopped

- Cook grits according to package directions; set aside and keep warm.

- Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add tasso and saute until crisp. Add diced vegetables and saute until onions are translucent.

- Add shrimp and saute for 30 to 45 seconds, or until pink. Remove from the pan and set aside.

- Deglaze the pan with a little white wine. Slowly add the cream and let reduce until thickened. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

- Divide grits among 2 serving plates. Line plate edges with shrimp (10 shrimp per serving). Pour sauce over grits. Garnish with green onion tops.

Note: Tasso is a Cajun ham and is often hard to find outside Louisiana, but you can find it at some specialty gourmet shops or by mail-order. If not, you can substitute salt pork, pancetta or prosciutto, but you will have to beef up your seasonings, as tasso is very flavorful.

Source: Paula Deen

[Last modified October 9, 2007, 11:33:03]