Our local food bank has some unexpected finds occasionally…which is why I have 5 pounds of (dry) corn grits.
I’ve found recipes to cook it up and use it as a base for lasagne, or with other Italian sauces, but I’m interested to hear what other ideas the Dope may have.
Breakfast! It’s delicious with eggs, maple syrup, and bacon.
I use it for a base for anything - sliced up Italian sausage, beans, cheese, you name it.
If you cook it solid, you can cut it into strips and fry it as kind of a side. Add jam or maple syrup and it’s breakfast. Add parmesan cheese or marinara and it’s a lunch or dinner item.
Yum yum polenta!
You can also make a sort of corn chip with it. Just extrude it into doodle shapes or slice small shapes and then bake till crispy. Don’t be afraid to substitute chicken stock for plain water.
I always add parmesan to the mix, a little finely minced rosemary, chili flakes, or what have you. Super num.
I cook it up, add some shredded cheese, garlic powder and leftover cooked chicken (or if I have it, shrimp). If you’ve got a tomato, you can chop it up and add it too.
Bear with me here, the only way I’ve ever used this was in a tube. I sliced it and fried it and wasn’t impressed, but it didn’t occur to me to actually season it.
So, I can
…cook it like oatmeal for breakfast
…cook it thicker and cut it up and either fry it or bake it into chips (does it get crispy?)
…mix vegetables with it for a sort of rice-y type dish?
This is so out of my realm. It’s kind of exciting–and with 5# of it I should certainly be able to try enough methods to find one I like!
Corn grits really aren’t the same thing as polenta; although they are related, polenta is ground more finely. Personally I’ve never had any success slicing cold cooked grits and frying it as polenta. It always reverts back to the more porrigey texture it has while warm, admittedly with nice crispy bits fried in.
Thus, personally I just embrace its porridgey nature, rather than try to make it something its not, as in my above-suggested casserole-style concoction. :). You can use it like flour dumplings or rice and pour flavorful sauce or stew over it. For breakfast with lots of butter and black pepper. Cheese grits is the classic side dish.
It has almost no taste on its own.
Okay, so you’re a complete noob, re: grits. So let’s start with the basics: ALWAYS, and I mean ALWAYS, season during cooking. It’s darn near impossible to get enough salt into already-cooked grits. And the cooking directions on the side of the bag are a decent starting point, but I always start with more cooking liquid than the directions indicate, and cook for longer than directed, for a creamier product. (I just looked at the pot I generally use for grits, and started measuring. Generally, for one cup of grits, the directions call for about 4.5 cups of water - or whatever you’re using. I usually start with about six cups of water/milk/stock/whatever, and add more at the end of cooking. Short of actually scorching, I doubt you can actually overcook corn grits.)
This being the SE US, I usually treat grits as a breakfast dish - cook with salt, and add butter, cheese, etc. for flavor. As a breakfast food, you can treat it like Cream of Wheat - sweeten it, butter it, whatever. If you want to make it into a pan-fried cake, cook it thicker, and either coat it with something (like bread crumbs) or add a binder (like eggs) to help it hold together. IME, it’s just a mess otherwise. I’ve never tried mixing it with vegetables for a “rice-ish” dish, but I don’t know why it couldn’t work. Let us know!
Timely thread. I was cooking dinner the other night and made grits for the first time other than breakfast and they were a huge hit. Then I just used garlic salt and added grated cheddar and some Velveeta. However, next time I think I’ll add some mild jalapenos and a little Tobasco too. Additional possibilities are many; black bean and corn salsa, crumbled bacon, Hatch chilies, pine nuts, etc.
Lacunae, I’m going to try your extra water and cook time trick. We loves the creamy.
So I made grits today. I followed the directions on the back, which was a basic recipe. Added butter and salt. Every time I walked into the kitchen, I tried a bite and said, “Hmm.” The kids thought it was hilarious.
At dinnertime I cut it blob into fry-sized slices, seasoned them, and baked them at 400 with the chicken strips. And they were…good! I was quite excited and spent a good deal of time trying to get the kids to try them (no dice).
I’m very happy with the experiment and still have some left for later this week. 
Very timely as I just made some cheddar polenta to go with some braised beef short ribs tonight. I used ~4 cups of liquid (half water, half milk), cooked with garlic, fresh thyme and a bay leaf. Butter and cheese off heat, stir in some parsley (because I had some chopped), top with the ribs and braising liquid.
And I love some hominy grits for breakfast. Brown sugar, cinnamon, butter and a touch of vanilla extract.