Easy Cheesy Parmesan Shrimp and Grits features wonderful creamy grits with Parmesan cheese topped with sautéed shrimp swimming in butter, garlic, and lemon juice.
Easy Cheesy Parmesan Shrimp and Grits features wonderful creamy grits with Parmesan cheese topped with sautéed shrimp swimming in butter, garlic, and lemon juice. With a blog name of Grits and Pinecones, you would have thought this would have been one of my first posts. But as they say, better late than never….
This recipe for Easy Cheesy Parmesan Shrimp and Grits is one of my husband’s and my favorite dishes. It’s not only quick and easy, but it is delicious. It can be prepared in less than 20 minutes and makes a great weeknight dinner or a special entrée for guests.
There are lots of shrimp and grits recipes out there, but I hope you try this one. Like any southern girl, I love, love, love cheese grits and have them for breakfast all the time, but I usually use cheddar cheese. I think any cheese is delicious with grits, but this recipe uses Parmesan cheese, along with lemon juice and garlic and it elevates your grits to a new level of deliciousness. It’s simply divine!
The ingredients for Easy Cheesy Parmesan Shrimp and Grits include quick grits, shrimp, garlic, Parmesan cheese, butter, parsley, cayenne pepper, kosher salt, ground black pepper and a lemon.
**(May 15, 2016 – This recipe has been modified from what was originally posted.) To cook your grits, bring 5 cups of water to a boil in a medium saucepan over high heat. Add about 1/2 teaspoon of salt, some pepper and then add 1 cup of quick grits. Don’t go overboard and think you have to use fancy stone ground grits, or think you can save time by using instant grits. Quick Grits works perfectly in this recipe and doesn’t take any time to cook.
Once your grits are boiling, reduce the heat to low and continue cooking, frequently whisking until thickened. If your grits get too thick, add more water and mix well. I prefer my grits on the thin side and usually add a bit more water, but if you like thick grits, by all means, skip the extra water. Once your grits have thickened, (about 5-7 minutes) add two tablespoons of unsalted butter and two tablespoons of heavy cream. (The cream is optional, and you can use Half and Half or milk. It just makes them extra creamy!) Once your grits are done and have reached your desired consistency, add the Parmesan cheese and whisk well. Remove the grits from the heat and cover to keep warm while you saute your shrimp.
While the grits are cooking, season your shrimp with a little pinch of salt and pepper. Be careful here, the Parmesan cheese in the grits naturally has quite a bit of salt, so use restraint.
Melt four tablespoons of butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the minced garlic, shrimp, and cayenne pepper and saute, frequently stirring until the shrimp are pink, 3-4 minutes. Remove from the heat and add four tablespoons water, lemon juice, and parsley. Stir to coat the shrimp with the sauce.
Divide your grits into four bowls and top with the shrimp mixture. Sprinkle with extra parsley if desired. Enjoy!
If you make this recipe, I would love to hear how you liked it. Please come back and leave a comment!
| Prep Time | 5 minutes |
| Cook Time | 10 minutes |
| Servings | servings |
- 1 cup quick grits *
- 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 2 Tbsp butter
- 2 Tbsp heavy cream optional
- 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 4 Tbsp unsalted butter
- 1 1/4 lb peeled and deveined shrimp
- 2 cloves of garlic finely minced
- pinch of cayenne pepper
- juice of 2 lemon
- 2 Tbsp fresh parsley chopped
Ingredients Grits
Shrimp and Sauce
|
- Bring 5* cups of water to boil over high heat. Once your water is boiling, whisk in 1 cup of Quick Grits,1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper. Reduce heat to low and continue cooking, whisking frequently to prevent lumps. Cook for about 5-7 minutes. Stir in 2 Tbsp butter and 2 Tbsp cream, if using, and mix well. Add the Parmesan cheese and mix well again. Remove from heat and cover to keep warm.
- Meanwhile, season your shrimp with salt and pepper. Add 4 Tbsp of butter to a large skillet and once melted, add the minced garlic, shrimp and cayenne pepper and cook, stirring frequently until the shrimp are pink, about 3-4 minutes. Add chopped parsley, lemon juice and 4 Tbsp water and mix well to coat the shrimp.
- Divide the grits into 4 bowls and top with the shrimp mixture. Sprinkle with extra parsley if desired.
- Enjoy!
- *This recipe has been modified from what was originally posted. May 15, 2016
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