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- Stone-ground grits give the dish a more robust flavor and texture than the quick or instant stuff.
- The casserole is deliciously buttery and cheesy, but using sharp white cheddar balances out the richness of the dish with a tangy pungency.
- Beating eggs into the thick grits before baking keeps them smooth and airy — not gluey.
“Folks in the South start eating grits young,” says Alabama-born clothing designer Billy Reid. “You learn to love them as a kid and it never goes away.” Here, Reid puts them to use in his famous grits casserole, which is sure to be a crowd-pleaser. It’s creamy and rich with sharp white cheddar, and beaten eggs give it a lovely pillowy texture — in the words of John T. Edge, who joined Reid at a potluck for a 2007 Food & Wine feature, the cozy casserole is “so light it might as well be called a soufflé.”
Choose your grits wisely
Using old-fashioned, stone-ground grits gives the casserole a better texture and flavor than quick-cooking grits. Stone-grinding is a historic milling method that leaves more of the nutrients and structure of the corn intact, since the process is slower and generates less heat than modern industrial milling. You can find stone-ground grits in many specialty food stores — Reid likes the grits from Adams Foods, based in Dothan, Alabama — or order them online from producers like Maine Grains and South Carolina’s Anson Mills. Note that this recipe calls for white cornmeal, the default in Southern cooking, rather than yellow.
Notes from the Food & Wine Test Kitchen
For menu planning ideas, why not try some of the other dishes at the Alabama potluck Reid attended — pork roast, broccoli casserole, buttermilk biscuits, pan-fried chicken, chess pie, pecan sandies, and plenty of bourbon.
