Grits! Never has a food been more ironic than in this tiny cornmeal form. Southern states slop grits on plastic plates at Waffle House next to scrambled eggs and bacon or fried chicken n' waffles ($4-$7.) Once upon a time I lived in Birmingham, Alabama and built up a true fear of such gut-busting southern traditions. In years since I've come to find that us fancy coastal residents also eat grits... but we call it Polenta, serve it for brunch with pancetta, fennel and poached eggs, or for dinner alongside wild boar ragu, and even with marscapone and rosemary-braised lamb shank ($10-$30.) After noticing so many tasty dishes on my favorite menus around town, I put my preconceptions aside and dove into the realm of grit. And guess what? Grits are delicious and can be paired with drink far beyond the PBR tallboy.
At home I made creamy parmesean grits with caramelized shallots as a side for seared bay scallops and green-tea butter jus. My-oh-my did our 2009 Cormons Isonzo de Friuli Pinot Grigio ($19) shine with the dish. A later attempt at savory grits and sauteed vegitables proved miraculous with De Trafford's 2005 oaked (!) South African Chenin Blanc ($17.)
Portland's polenta!
Irving Street Kitchen aged hanger steak, roasted garlic grits, dino kale, seared eggs + bacon madeira sauce
roasted crawdad + manila clam creole, grits, smoked cippolini + cajun xo
Delta Cafe blackened snapper with grilled garlic + cheese grits (maaaybe it's okay to pair with a bucket of PBR 40s this time... doin' it southern style!)
Nel Centro spit roasted pork loin with creamy polenta + stone fruit chutney
Lauro Kitchen braised beef short ribs with fried polenta + rapini
Screen Door braised carlton farms pork belly, gulf shrimp + creamy grits
No comments:
Post a Comment