Grab a favorite beverage, sit down, and sink your eye teeth into some of my tastiest video clips from last year. The Cheap$kate Culinary Cineaste made over 20 videos in 2013. So just scroll down to the end of this post to see the outrageous video highlights.
As usual there is a cupboard full of recipe videos. One from my nephew, Cajun Chef Matt, and the other by my tie-dye wearing sister from Austin, Denise. Chef Matt shows you how to make a strawberry vinaigrette and coat a fish fillet with pecans, while my sister goes vegetarian with an Eggplant Burger recipe.
And The Racontour of Recipes has a slurry of stop motion animated videos -- from the humble Black-eyed Peas to a Mexican taco truck favorite, slow cooked pork Carnitas. These videos are a lot of fun to watch (and make as well,) but manage to get all the recipe details right.
This Kitchen Commando does not live by recipes alone. I got to get out and explore the vast culinary landscape of Los Angeles. And you have a front passenger seat when I hit the town, finding frugal dining destinations: from 99 Cent Fish Tacos in East LA, to the latest Top Chef-run prix fixe hot spot on the Westside.
While I've been reviewing eateries from the beginning of my food blogging, this year it all came together in my Cheap$kate Dining series of videos. The format is simple, all I do is shoot an exterior of the joint, followed by closeup shots of the food, and finally I rate the meal with a 1 to 9 number, 9 being best.
You'll be surprised to know that the best al pastor tacos in Los Angeles comes from a Taco Truck, while the worst fried chicken is from a truck by Top Chef and The TastejudgeLudo Lefebvre! (You've got to check out my Fried Chicken Ludo Truck video, where after taking a rating hit, Chef Ludo gets in the last word - let's just say you may never look at a billboard the same way again!)
Be sure to check out all the videos (over 175 so far) on my YouTube channel (click here,) or on my food blog. (Scroll down the right side to see my Video headings and click on any text, under: Recipes, Restaurant Reviews, Comedy Shorts and Documentaries.
It's been a productive year so far, and I have a slew of new videos in various stages of completion, that I know you will enjoy. Be sure to lookout for my upcoming special Sushi Recipe Video Series -- I know, that sounds impossible, but The Cunning Cuisinier always finds a way around financial roadblocks.
And my Cajun family is back! I just spent a week shooting video in Gonzales, Louisiana. My Mom, just shy of 80 years old, is as feisty as ever in the kitchen -- along with all the nieces, nephews, grandkids and siblings dropping by to create a ruckus. Plus, as a special treat, I introduce a new culinary character, The 99 Cent Swamp Chef.
If that isn't enough to keep you coming back, I don't know what is!
2013 Video Highlights Reel -VIDEO
Play it here, video runs 6 minutes, 21 seconds.
My YouTube video link for viewing or embedding, justclick here.
My foodblog videos would be anemic and boring without the help of my friends, family and the cooperation of local eateries -- a big 99 thanks!
It's a family affair, in the latest 99 Cent Chef recipe video. My nephew, Chef Matt, picked the spinach from his garden, Lacee caught a whopper in the stream behind a powder blue trailer, and their cute kid, Miles, picked the pecans scattered at the base of a pecan tree in the front yard! And the Chintzy Chef was in Gonzales, Louisiana to record it all.
Uncle Tightwad sticks his toe back in the swamplands for his latest culinary tale. And I'm as pleased asMom's Pecan Pie to bring you this tasty recipe from Cajun Chef Matt: a Pecan Crusted Fish & Spinach Salad with a Strawberry Vinaigerette.
This is a country club expense account recipe where Chef Matt cooks, rattling copper coated pots and laying out real silverware. While his entree is on the fine dining end of the scale, anyone can easily afford to do it now that The 99 Cent Chef has run the recipe through this chintzy food blog.
I get my small fish fillets from the frozen discount case in local markets and 99c only Stores. As I've mentioned before, unless you catch it yourself (or are lucky enough to personally know who hooked them) most fish are put on ice and refrigerated when caught, so don't feel you are getting a inferior fillet, just because it's frozen.
This recipe works best with a firm fish like: rockfish, tilapia, catfish, salmon and swordfish. If you have a local catch you like them by all means use it.
Pecans are harder to come by, but every time I go back to visit Mom in Louisiana she always locally shelled, and frozen pecan meat in the refrigerator. You can use any cheaper local dried nut that is special to your area. Here in Los Angeles I can get small $1 packages of nuts from my local 99c only Store, including: cashews, almonds, pistachio and peanut. You could even use a cheap small packaged of nuts from the corner liquor store. Just be sure of wash off the salt and pat dry the nuts.
For the vegan Spinach Salad a sweet Strawberry Vinaigrette is the star. Strawberries in season are certainly cheap enough and pre-washed packages of spinach are too. If it's cheaper, then use any favorite greens you have locally.
The preparation is simple and straight forward. Just soften some strawberries with a small amount of vinegar and water over medium heat and blend it all with some olive oil, for a tasty Strawberry Vinaigrette. I have the feeling you will come back to make Chef Matt's Strawberry Vinaigrette recipe many times and add it to all manner of salads you come up with.
As for the Pecan Crusted Fish, it's simple to do. Just crush some peeled pecans (or favorite nuts) in a blender or use Chef Matt's outrageous beer bottle method! Mix in a little flour and coat the fish for a quick saute. Assemble the salad with strawberry dressing and add the fish, that's it.
So watch my video below and try out Chef Matt's Pecan Crusted Fish & Spinach Salad with a Strawberry Vinaigerette -- and impress your date, family, or friends.
Pecan Crusted Fish & Spinach Salad with a Strawberry Vinaigerette - VIDEO
Play it here, video runs 9 minutes, 14 seconds.
99 thanks to Chef Matt, Lacee, Miles and my Cajun family.
My YouTube video link for viewing or embedding, just click here.
Ingredients for Pecan Crusted Fish (serves 2-4)
2-4 fish fillets - best to use a firm fish, like: catfish, salmon, halibut, swordfish, bass, cod or almost any local catch. Chef Matt coated one side only, but you could do both for extra coating.
1 cup pecans - if you are using a small cheap package of nuts you can reduce other ingredient amounts by half.
1/4 cup flour
1 tablespoon oil per fillet - as needed for sauteing fish.
1 teaspoon butter per fillet - optional. For a lighter meal, okay to leave it out.
Salt and pepper to taste.
Spinach Salad with Strawberry Vinaigrette Ingredients (serves 2-4)
5 large strawberries - quartered or roughly chopped.
1/4 vinegar - any type, Chef Matt used red wine vinegar.
1/4 water
1 cup of olive oil - It's okay use half the amount for a lighter vinaigrette.
1/2 teaspoon sugar - or favorite sweetener
1 bunch of spinach or favorite greens - clean spinach if necessary. Set greens aside until fish is cooked.
Directions for Strawberry Vinaigrette
Remove green tops from strawberries. Quarter or roughly chop them. Add to a pot along with 1/4 cup each of water and vinegar, and 1/2 a teaspoon of sugar. Low boil over medium heat until strawberries are soft, about 3-5 minutes.
You can let the strawberry mixture cool down for a couple of minutes, then add to blender. Pulse blend until smooth, about 15 to 30 seconds. Now bring it all together by slowly adding a cup of olive oil while blending. This will emulsify and create a thick soup-like salad dressing. For a lighter vinaigrette it's okay to use half the amount of oil. Set aside in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
Directions for Pecan Crusted Fish
Crush 1 cup of pecans. You can easily place pecans in a plastic bag and use a hammer, rolling pin, or like Chef Matt, the bottom of an empty (beer) bottle. Okay to use a food processor or blender, just be careful not to pulverize pecans into powder. Pieces should be similar to bread crumbs when done.
Add a 1/4 cup of flour to crushed pecans. Mix well.
If a fish fillet is too dry, do a quick rinse with water to moisten it, so the pecan mix will stick to the flesh. Sprinkle fish with salt and pepper to taste. Press fish fillet onto a plate of pecan and flour coating.
Add a tablespoon of oil to a frying pan over a medium to medium/high heat. When oil is hot place fillet with the pecan coated side onto the hot pan -- okay to add a few fillets to fill the pan. Chef Matt just coated one side of the fish, but you could do both, for extra pecan flavor.
Allow the pecan coated fish to saute for a minute before moving the fillet -- this allows time for the coating to stick to the fillet and not the pan. After a minute check to see that the pecans are nicely browned, then flip the fillet and cook on the other side for another minute or two. Add a pat of butter for a luscious finish -- this is optional of course if you want to keep it lighter. And watch the video to see how Chef Matt deglazes the pan and bastes the fish in it's own buttery juices.
Cooking time will vary depending how thick the fish fillet is, or how well-done you like your fish. Better to finish cooking on the uncoated side, so you don't loosen pecans from fish. But if a few pecan pieces come off during cooking, it's okay to set them aside, then put them back on when plating the fish.
While the fish is cooking, time to finish the Spinach Salad with Strawberry Vinaigrette. Over cleaned and washed spinach, drizzle on the cooled Strawberry Vinaigrette. Add as much as you like, about 2 tablespoons per salad. Mix well.
When Pecan Crusted Fish is done, place it on the Spinach Salad. Drizzle on some of the Strawberry Vinaigrette and chow down! It's also okay to leave off vinaigrette and serve fish with pecan coating only -- it's a little extra crunchy that way.
You could also just place the cooked fish on the plate and serve the salad on the side.
What a wild 5 years it's been. And I've got 366 blogposts and over a 130 food themed videos to prove it. So check out The Culinary Cheap$kates video highlight reel below -- it's a feast for the eyes and ears, and it's just the icing on the cupcake. (And click on any color coded name in the paragraphs below to see recipe links and/or video links.)
Play it here. Video runs 8 minutes, 20 seconds.
When I started The 99 Cent Chef five years ago food blogs with videos were just beginning to appear on the internet. Noticing how easy it was to upload videos, I decided to start my food blog. I've always followed television cooking shows: from The French Chef with Julia Child (I watched as a teenager,) to the unveiling of the Food Network. What I noticed lacking where tasty recipes cheap enough for anyone to make, presented with a bit of wit.
This Grinchy Chef does not live for recipes alone, heck that's no fun. I like to mix it up, so I delve into many food related themes - my blog is a variety show for foodies. If you look on the right side of this blog and scroll down just a little bit, you'll see different groups of videos that are just a click away, including: Recipes, Comedy, Restaurant Reviews and Documentaries. Or you can go to YouTube and subscribe here to see all my videos.
My nephew Chef Zakk
There were no silver spoons on my dinner table growing up -- my mother was a waitress for some years and I was exposed to the working class side of the restaurant business. Counting my Mom's tips after her shift, I grew up literally pinching pennies.
I like the challenge of creating scrumptious meals using inexpensive ingredients. And this blog is dedicated to working stiffs, struggling-to-pay-tuition students, retirees living on Social Security, and families (without health insurance) living on minimum wage. You can just get by, and still eat well. I moved to Los Angeles when I turned 21, knowing nobody, and with only a few hundred bucks in my wallet -- so I learned how to stretch a dollar in the big city.
For my blog I create appetizers, side dishes and entrees with ingredients costing 99.99 cents or less, that I cull from 99c only Stores, ethnic markets, and regular grocery stores. I include fresh fruit and veggies in my recipes, too (that I get on sale for way less than a dollar per pound.) You won't find many recipes using beef, but I've created plenty of delicious entrees using economic chicken and pork. (Like my go-to recipe of French Cassoulet that combines roasting chicken with white beans - so good.) You won't go hungry reading The 99 Cent Chef food blog, and you'll be entertained along the way with playful prose, eye candy photos, and clever videos.
I began this just as economy crashed -- then things started happening fast, and after 6 months I was a chintzy food expert on NBC's Nighty News and NPR Marketplace!You could say I was the flavor of the month to the media.
The Chintzy Chef & Brendan Francis Newnam of NPRradio
I've been steadily cranking out videos like a fast food burger slinger - quick and tasty, like my one minute Coffee Comedy shorts; or sometimes it's a Wolvesmouth-like tasting menu involving 8 unique video small plates illustrating my trip to Seattle for a Public TV cooking segment (on the menu was a Thanksgiving side dish twist I called Stuffing Cupcakes.) You'll never know what I'll come up with, so do check back.
As you can see I do more than just rattle pots and pans -- when I get out of the kitchen that's when the fun really begins. Living in Los Angeles, I get a thrill introducing my blog visitors to our melting pot food culture. You can check out my month long series of videos on the local exploding food truck scene, including the one that jump started it all, Kogi Taco Truck. I covered it's travels through the streets night and day. When chef Roy Choi added Korean BBQ onto a Mexican tortilla he created a culinary sensation, and an avalanche of unique food trucks followed. I still think Kogi Taco Truck is the top dog.
You wouldn't know it, but Los Angeles is fast becoming the Hot Dog Capital of the World. Well, I did another video series on some of my favorite temples to tube steak. There are Soul Dogs topped with yams and collard greens, and carts selling wieners made from heirloom, grass fed and hormone free, animals (check out my video on Let's Be Frank, here.)
But, I would say the epicenter is way out in the Valley, at Fabs Hot Dogs, located in an outdoor mall (wouldn't you know it.) The owner, Joe Fabrocini, travels throughout the country picking up regional recipes like the Kansas City Dog, Carolina Slaw Dog, New Jersey Ripper and our own LA Street Dog. And he does them to perfection, including a Chicago Dog topped with neon green pickle relish -- and be sure to check out my radioactive reaction after ingesting one! And as a bonus I shot a video recipe of a bacon wrapped LA Street Dog.
I live in South Los Angeles so you know I got the soul food angle covered. Check out the video of my favorite chintzy soul food restaurant Marilyn's Soul Food Express. And just down the street on Crenshaw Boulevard are the Pulitzer Prize food winner Jonathan Gold's recommended hot dogs at Earlez Grille. Rub elbows with the chefs, colorful customers, and the raconteur owner, Duane -- for hot dogz in the hood.
Just this year I introduced a unique way to present my cheap and delicious recipes -- using stop motion animation and time lapse photography. These short videos give you step-by-step instructions presented succinctly, while retaining my clever and fun antics. (Plus, you don't have to look at my mug!) To see what I mean just click on the video compilation below:
A Year of Stop Motion Food Animation
Play it here. Video runs 2 minutes, 16 seconds.
My background is in art, film, video editing and street photography. All these disciplines come together in my cinematic series, Restaurant Nocturnes. This Noir-Eyed Chef likes nothing better than cruising neon splashed nighttime Los Angeles streets and shooting restaurant facades -- this is when they look the coolest. And as a bonus I collect audio menu descriptions for each one, so this series is groovy to look at, and you learn their culinary stance.
With 11 Restaurant Nocturnes under my belt I've only scratched the Teflon surface of LA's dining scene. I compile a bakers dozen eateries in each Nocturne, and I include every kind of cafe: from Top Chef season 6 winner Michael Voltaggio's hip ink. restaurant on Melrose Avenue, to Chinatown's Hop Louie, a time capsule constructed in the 1940's.
I also started a anthropological series called First Bites. I'm shooting my now 2 1/2 year old neighbor, Lola, tasting her first sushi California Roll, wheatgrass, asparagus and many more ingredients. It's a hilarious series that I will be revisiting. 99 thanks to her parents Bob and Lori. I've also started shooting a Southern version called Miles First Cajun Bite, that includes tasting: crawfish, jambalaya and cheese grits -- the kid not only eats it, but wears it! Click on a title above so see a sample of these too cute L 'Enfant Terribles.
Lola's First Bite
My food blog would be anemic without the contributions of family, friends, restaurants and their staffs. Anytime you see me in a video, there is someone helping me shoot it (especially Amy, Pete, and Bob) and I owe them 99 thanks. And it's so much better when I can get my Mom, sisters and my young buck nephews, Chef Matt and Chef Zakk, on camera. They are fun to hang out with, plus they make look good.
Finally, thanks to all my blog visitors for your time and comments. Subscribe and keep coming back as I have a cupboard full of recipes, videos and fun food ideas to share with you!
5th Anniversary Video YouTube link (to view full size) click here
One Year of Stop Motion Animation YouTube link click here
While conversing with a swamp gator in my latest video, this cheapskate Dr. Doolittle cuisinier finds out what an aquatic reptile's favorite meal is (hint - the alligator was eyeing my flank a little to closely for comfort!) That's just one outre scene from my video shoot in Creole country -- you will also get a cooking tutorial from my Cajun nephew, Chef Matt, followed by a Fried Alligator Po' boy tasting session from the family. It's a good time video filled with Southern hospitality.
If you don't know what a Po' boy sandwich is, just click here to see the New Orleans Po' boy Tour I shot last summer. A po' boy is the official sandwich of Louisiana. Any protein you can come up with has been stuffed into a locally baked roll of French bread. I've tried it with hot links, cold cuts, roast beef, and fried crawfish, catfish, oysters and alligator. And in the South a sandwich is "dressed" -- that means adding slices of tomato, pickle and lettuce with a smear of mayo. It's a Cajun version of the subway sandwich.
Chef Matt makes a mean Fried Alligator Po' boy, and I'll take you through his easy step-by-step Southern cornmeal frying method. I love fried chicken done soul food style, which is made with a seasoned coating of flour; while Dixie fried seafood is usually covered in cornmeal (or a cornmeal/flour combination.) I especially like catfish and fried oysters done this way, unlike L.A. Weekly food journalist Elina Shatkin, who differs in her review of a Fried Oyster Po' boy from The Gumbo Pot (click here). The Gumbo Pot also sells an Alligator Tail Fillet meal for the decent price of $10.75 (menu here.) In my view, cornmeal is a flavorful coating with an extra crunchy texture, when done right.
Chef Matt also does a buttermilk wash, before adding cut alligator cubes to the cornmeal. If you can't find buttermilk sold locally, a cheap substitution is done by adding a tablespoon of vinegar (or lemon juice) to a cup of regular milk, and letting it sit for five minutes.
And since this Alligator Whisperer is in Louisiana, I'm sticking with local protein. That means I'm using $9.99 per pound fillets of alligator tail meat! Gator is not for everyone, it can be a little chewy, with the texture of a well-done pork chop. The flavor is somewhere between chicken and fish. But I do have some cheaper substitutions that fry up just as deliciously.
The fried cornmeal coating also works well with budget one dollar fish fillets of tilapia (which I frequently find at 99c only Stores, and in frozen meat grocery deli cases.) You could even use chunks of white meat chicken for a tasty cheap Fried Chicken Po' boy. If you ever visit Louisiana, I would recommend getting the more typical Fried Catfish Po' boy, which uses the same cornmeal coating and is sold for half the price of an alligator version.
In my South Los Angeles neighborhood, Southern transplants are catered to by local chain groceries selling catfish fillets in the fresh seafood section for around $3 per pound -- get a pound and you could easily fill three po' boys. You can use any locally harvested firm fish -- just try frying it in Chef Matt's seasoned cornmeal coating and making a po' boy sandwich with it.
With Spring around the corner, be sure to bookmark Chef Matt's Fried Alligator Po' boy recipe video for you first patio party of the year. Even if you can't find alligator, or prefer not to use it, substituting fried catfish fillets will make the party a winner. Mardi Gras is in full swing in New Orleans (my belly-filling Crescent City Po' boy Video Tour is a click away, here) -- so join the celebration and cook up a po' boy with The 99 Cent Chef!
And check back to view my final recipe video of February Sandwich Month -- a homemade version of a breakfast corporate-tweaked classic, the Egg McMuffin -- done in this arty chef's animated stop-motion style.
1/2 pound alligator - or use tilapia fish or boneless chicken for a cheaper (and easier to get) substitution.
1 cup buttermilk - or make your own by mixing regular milk with a tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice, and letting mixture sit for 5 minutes. It's okay to just use regular milk or even water -- just to dampen meat so cornmeal will stick.
1 cup of cornmeal - white or yellow. You could also go with a mix of half flour, half cornmeal.
Cornmeal is seasoned with - 1 teaspoon of Cajun spices (I use Tony Chachere's, but any generic blend will do), garlic powder and black pepper.
Large French bread baguette - cut into 6-inch sandwich sizes. Okay to use 6-inch bakery rolls from your local grocery.
Sandwich is dressed with mayo, sliced tomato, pickle and lettuce.
About 2 cups vegetable oil - for frying coated alligator (or any favorite frying oil).
Directions
Add oil for frying in a pan or pot, over a medium/high heat.
Add buttermilk to a bowl and cornmeal to another bowl (or plate.) Season cornmeal with Cajun spices, garlic powder and black pepper. Slice meat into bite-sized pieces. Add meat to buttermilk and wash all sides. Next, add wet alligator pieces to seasoned cornmeal and coat well.
You may need to fry in batches, depending how large the pan or pot is. Carefully add a coated alligator nugget to the hot oil -- it should start frying and bubbling right away (see video.) Add more alligator, but don't overcrowd the frying pan. If you use fish fillets they will cook quicker; no more than a couple of minutes for each side. Alligator takes an extra minute or two longer, about 5 -7 minutes. Done when cooked through and the cornmeal coating is brown.
Remove pieces to a paper towel to drain, until all the alligator is fried.
Now it's time to build the sandwich. Cut French bread baguette into 6-inch sandwich sizes. Slice open roll and add mayo, sliced tomato and lettuce (pickle slices, too.) Fill it up with fried alligator nuggets. Best with a cold beer!
This week, it's a feast for the ears. The 99 Cent Chef ends where he began: Breakfast in Louisiana. Last week I featured Crawfish Etouffee, my final Cajun Cuisine Diary recipe. After this post, it's back to my normal format of unique budget recipes. No overriding menu theme, just scrumptiousness wherever I can find it.
Chef Matt's Shrimp and Grits
For my final Cajun video, you will eavesdrop on audio clips from my two months long Louisiana vacation food diary series. Listen in as my family paints quite a culinary aural mural of Cajun delicacies.
I hope you had as good a time is I did -- taking in my very personal tour of the sights and sounds of Cajun Country. I have to give a huge 99 Cent Chef thanks to my Louisiana family and friends for an unforgettable vacation. They are fun to hangout with, and are enthusiastic, passionate Chefs -- one and all!
Breakfast in Louisiana - Video
Play it here. The video runs about 1 minute and 11 seconds.
Sharing its Southern borderwith the Gulf Coast, Louisiana is all about seafood. And New Orleans style Shrimp & Cheese Grits is a quick way to get some in a delicious regional specialty! See how it's made in my recipe video, the second one I've posted in a full month of spicy Southern Cajun cooking.
My nephew, 24-year-old Chef Matt Keene, is the first of my sister Brenda's two boys (Brenda is featured in last week's Gumbo video recipe, click here.) Both young men are accomplished cooks -- I guess it runs in the family! Matt's brother, Chef Zakk, cooks up a Blackened Fish & Sweet Potato Hash in a video I'll post in a couple of weeks, so check for that back here.
My nephew Matt has experienced seven years behind the grill since he started out flipping burgers while in high school. He currently chefs at the exclusive Country Club of Louisiana in Baton Rouge. Shrimp & Cheese Grits is based on one of that restaurant's recipes, and Chef Matt is skillful enough to simplify it here without sacrificing flavor.
The Country Club uses gouda in Cheese Grits, Matt substitutes cheddar cheese. As for grits, he had instant on hand. Of course, you can use regular, longer-cooking grits -- they're certainly cheap enough.
Grits are made from ground corn, and similar to Polenta or Cream of Wheat -- smooth with a neutral, mild cornmeal flavor. Typically it is there to soak up a breakfast egg yoke, but Southerners are known to eat it any time of day.
Since I'm on vacation, I'll let the Louisiana chefs use their preferred local produce and protein. But I'll add some lower-cost ideas here and there, such as this: If I were to do this recipe cheaply back home, I would use a couple of 4-ounce packages of frozen bay shrimp, purchased for a buck each from a dollar store, or my local Albertsons Market.
My nephew Matt and his girlfriend Lacee were kind enough to invite Uncle 99 Cent Chef into their roomy trailer kitchen to cook up this yummy Cajun classic. I've always wanted to learn how to make Shrimp & Cheese Grits, and Matt has it down pat.
The only complicated part is the buttery beer sauce. It was tricky to find just the right beer, so I bought a 12 bottle Party Pack of locally brewed Abita Beer. We had many bottles to try, from Turbo Dog to Jockamo IPA -- and a lot more flavors in between (this video recorded session will definitely make it on The 99 Cent Chef's year end highlight reel!)
After going through most of the 12'er, Matt thought Abita Amber would be best, as it wouldn't overpower his shrimp and butter sauce. I couldn't agree more. I think I could get away with substituting my local cheapie favorite, Miller High Life, for a 99 cent version -- or if you have a favorite brew, try it.
As for cheese, cheddar is cheap, but you could make it with gouda if you wanted to get extravagant. When the grits are hot, both types of cheese blend well - it's a deliciously creamy combination. I could have eaten a dish of Chef Matt's cheesy grits just by itself.
So, plan to give my Cajun nephew's Shrimp & Cheese Grits recipe a try sometime. In the meanwhile, sit back and watch this video demonstration to see how this young buck does it!
Chef Matt's Shrimp & Cheese Grits - Video Play it here. The video runs 7 minutes, 8 seconds.
View or embed from youtube, click here. 99 thanks to Chef Matt, Lacee & Miles.
Ingredients (serves 2)
12 shrimp (about 1/2 pound)- medium or large. Okay to use 1/2 pound of cheaper small bay shrimp.
1/2 cup of favorite beer - okay to substitute veggie or chicken stock.
1 teaspoon garlic - chopped
1/2 cup onion - chopped
1 tablespoon of chopped chives - or any favorite fresh colorful garnish, like parsley, optional.
1/4 teaspoon liquid smoke
1/4 teaspoon lemon pepper - or pepper with tsp. of lemon juice.
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper - or to preferred heat level.
1 teaspoon dried chicken stock - or 1 crushed bouillon cube. Okay to use 1/4 cup of liquid chicken stock, too -- if adding liquid, you may need to add a couple of extra minutes of cooking time to reduce sauce.
1/2 stick butter* - and an optional extra pat for Cheese Grits.
Salt and pepper to taste
1/2 tsp. of Cajun seasonings
2/3 cup of Grits - instant or regular.
1/2 cup of cheddar cheese - shredded. Okay to use small chunks, just make sure to blend well to melt when adding to hot grits.
1 cup of water - for grits.
Directions
Chop onion and garlic. Melt 1/2 stick of butter in a medium hot pan. Saute veggies about 3 minutes until soft.
Add spices and flavorings, including: Liquid Smoke, lemon pepper, cayenne pepper and chicken stock (dried, liquid or bouillon cube). Stir and mix well with sauteing veggies.
Time to get the grits going. Add 2/3 cup of grits to 1 cup of boiling water. Depending on your choice of Instant or Regular Grits, double check box directions for cooking times, and per serving amounts. This recipe is for 2 servings. You should taste grits before plating to make sure they are soft, not gritty.
Turn heat to low on pot of grits, cover and cook until half done, about 3 minutes. Add 1/2 cup of shredded cheddar cheese. Stir until all cheese is melted and grits turn light orange color. Cover and set aside over lowest heat.
Now we finish up the shrimp/beer sauce. Add 12 peeled medium to large shrimp (or two 4-ounce 99 cent packages of small bay shrimp) to sauteing veggies. Cook 2 minutes (if shrimp are precooked, then wait to add shrimp to sauce until just before serving, and heat through.)
De-glaze pan with 1/2 cup of your favorite beer. Stir and mix well. Add Cajun Seasoning with salt and pepper - to taste. If shrimp are precooked, then add them at this time.
Check on Cheese Grits and give a final stir. Adding a pat of butter (or butter flavoring) is optional.
Spoon or pour out grits into plate or bowl. Arrange cooked shrimp around plated Cheese Grits. And finally, pour beer sauce over shrimp, and top with tablespoon of chopped chives (optional.)
*Instead of 1/2 stick of butter, you can keep it light by substituting a tablespoon of olive oil. And add a little more beer and chicken (or veggie) stock if you like a lot of sauce.
Also, Chef Matt uses many spices and flavorings. If you don't have Liquid Smoke, Lemon Pepper or Cajun Seasonings, don't worry about it -- I'm sure it will be tasty nonetheless.
