Grits Anywhere?

[RFerrington]

1 hour ago, ZoeyVictoria said:

I like to season grits with lots of salt and butter, then add a scoop of corned beef hash to the center.  Don’t stir it (it does not look appetizing once stirred), but get some of each on each spoonful.

2 of my favorite things !!  ...together in 1 vessel.  Genius !

Edited January 29, 2019 by RFerrington

[fla gang]

If you are at the Windjammer just give the grits a good stir. They do get quite lumpy. Being a southerner I eat grits every day, but never really cared for the cream of wheat. I just get oatmeal and add a tiny bit of milk and sugar if I'm not having grits. Eggs over easy with grits!

[SRF]

Grits available most morning in the WJ on Grandeur out of Baltimore also.

[SRF]

On 1/27/2019 at 8:37 PM, Terre said:

I'm a southern girl, too.  They have them in the MDR on every ship I've been on listed under cereals.  They bring a huge bowl as an appetizer so you will need to tell them to bring a small bowl with your meal.  The buffets also have grits.

They don't know how to properly cook them so they may be a little thick.  Carnival is the only line that can cook them properly in my opinion.

 

On Grandeur they tend to be a bit too soupy. 😄

[SRF]

21 hours ago, sellwingri said:

They’ve always had them for breakfast in the MDR  but on our last cruise on Adventure 2 weeks ago, they only offered cheese grits.  Obviously not the same for grits lovers.  My DH just ordered oatmeal.  Cream of wheat was also not on the menu and it always had been in the past.

 

Cheese grits be GOOD. 😄

 

I like cheese grits as well as plain grits (which I then doctor).

[SRF]

16 hours ago, KuffMUp said:

Grits.  That's what you call that pot of "stuff" next to the oatmeal in the Windjammer?  The only good grits I have had were in New Orleans.  Perhaps I am spoiled but I didn't think the white glop the texture of thick cream of wheat tasted anything like the grits I got in NOLA.

 

Grits are a canvas.  You can then make them into what you want.

 

Plain grits need salt, pepper, and butter.

 

Then you can add other things.  Cheese and bacon (chopped up) are my favorites.  But just about anything.

[TravisP]

I love grits but usually stay away from them when I am not in the Southeast states, I would imagine the grits on the ship are very bland and need tons of butter and salt to get them to even remotely taste like grits you get back home. 

[gatour]

16 hours ago, cruisinfromtampa said:

 

Delicious.  Grits are delicious.

 

Basically ground corn boiled in water.  Similar to polenta before it solidifies. Some people put sugar in it, others salt and pepper.  Traditionally, in my experience, those from the South use S&P, while sugar is a Northern thing.  Great as a breakfast item, but also savory later in the day.  Shrimp and Grits with Tasso Gravy is very popular in the Low Country of South Carolina and Georgia as a dinner entree.  One of the best dishes I've ever had was an app at Disney of all places...Pan Seared Sea Scallops with Blue Cheese Grits.  It's been a decade, and my mouth still waters.

Sugar in grits????  Wow I never have seen that.  I know northerners like a sweeter cornbread than southerners, but didn't realize it extended to grits.

 

Still love the Joe Pesci scene in My Cousin Vinny.  "What is a grit?"

[Rala]

19 hours ago, cruisinfromtampa said:

 

Delicious.  Grits are delicious.

 

Basically ground corn boiled in water.  Similar to polenta before it solidifies. Some people put sugar in it, others salt and pepper.  Traditionally, in my experience, those from the South use S&P, while sugar is a Northern thing.  Great as a breakfast item, but also savory later in the day.  Shrimp and Grits with Tasso Gravy is very popular in the Low Country of South Carolina and Georgia as a dinner entree.  One of the best dishes I've ever had was an app at Disney of all places...Pan Seared Sea Scallops with Blue Cheese Grits.  It's been a decade, and my mouth still waters.

For me,  grits are so bland and blah that you really do need to use them as a canvas (as SRF said above) for other flavors be it sweet , savory, spicy. I know I have probably  riled a few Southerners out there, so I will just say  it is only my personal opinion !  ;-)

Edited January 29, 2019 by Rala
add'l info

[WVHillbilly]

Had them in the MDR on Oasis and Grandeur, learned on the Grandeur to ask for a small bowl.

[kochleffel]

To be clear, grits are made from corn milled to a coarser texture than the cornmeal used for cornbread, mush, or polenta, so the texture after cooking is somewhat gritty(!). In addition, grits are typically hominy grits, that is, made from corn that has been treated with an alkaline solution that makes it more digestible (corn for tortillas undergoes a similar treatment).

 

I wonder whether the reason that grits outside the South aren't as good is that they are made from "quick grits" rather than traditional coarse grits. Here in the far North, quick grits are the only kind available in most supermarkets. But I'm from north of the Mason-Dixon line, so what do I know?

[island lady]

10 hours ago, fla gang said:

If you are at the Windjammer just give the grits a good stir. They do get quite lumpy. Being a southerner I eat grits every day, but never really cared for the cream of wheat. I just get oatmeal and add a tiny bit of milk and sugar if I'm not having grits. Eggs over easy with grits!

 

MMmmmm...one of my favorites!  And easy to find in the WJ when you need a hurry up breakfast!  🙂 

[island lady]

3 hours ago, gatour said:

Sugar in grits????  Wow I never have seen that.  I know northerners like a sweeter cornbread than southerners, but didn't realize it extended to grits.

 

Still love the Joe Pesci scene in My Cousin Vinny.  "What is a grit?"

 

My mother (we grew up in Michigan) would put butter and brown sugar on plain white rice.  We never had (or heard of) grits up there...but I bet she would have done the same with grits.  Yuck.  😮 

 

Me....Salt and butter in grits, cheese grits, shrimp and grits...yumm!  Love the blue corn grits from South Carolina also.  🙂 

Edited January 29, 2019 by island lady

[island lady]

1 hour ago, Rala said:

For me,  grits are so bland and blah that you really do need to use them as a canvas (as SRF said above) for other flavors be it sweet , savory, spicy. I know I have probably  riled a few Southerners out there, so I will just say  it is only my personal opinion ! 😉

 

Same thing with plain white rice.  Needs to be flavored with something.  

[fla gang]

1 hour ago, island lady said:

 

Same thing with plain white rice.  Needs to be flavored with something.  

Salt,Pepper, and butter

[cruisinfromtampa]

1 hour ago, island lady said:

 

My mother (we grew up in Michigan) would put butter and brown sugar on plain white rice.  We never had (or heard of) grits up there...but I bet she would have done the same with grits.  Yuck.  😮 

 

Me....Salt and butter in grits, cheese grits, shrimp and grits...yumm!  Love the blue corn grits from South Carolina also.  🙂 

 

Growing up My brother and I would put butter and sugar on white rice. I guess my parents allowed it because at least we were eating the rice. 

 

[Paulette3028]

On 1/27/2019 at 9:38 AM, thegoodlife247 said:

Being from the south, I love grits with breakfast.  Can you find grits anywhere for breakfast on Royal Caribbean?

When it comes to hot cereals, oatmeal is universal and easily available in the Windjammer and on the menu of the MDR for breakfast.  What they also serve and call 'grits' is available near the oatmeal in the Windjammer, but to me it is more like Cream of Wheat or otherwise called farina.  It generally is a little less firm than I like it, and it is not as smooth as I prefer it, when I make it at home.   Would real southerners call it 'grits' -- I am not sure.  DH and I only eat breakfast in the MDR once or twice on any cruise and I don't ever remember seeing it on the MDR menu while oatmeal is always available as an option on the MDR breakfast menu. 

 

Just my 2cents.

[ZoeyVictoria]

1 minute ago, Paulette3028 said:

When it comes to hot cereals, oatmeal is universal and easily available in the Windjammer and on the menu of the MDR for breakfast.  What they also serve and call 'grits' is available near the oatmeal in the Windjammer, but to me it is more like Cream of Wheat or otherwise called farina.  It generally is a little less firm than I like it, and it is not as smooth as I prefer it, when I make it at home.   Would real southerners call it 'grits' -- I am not sure.  DH and I only eat breakfast in the MDR once or twice on any cruise and I don't ever remember seeing it on the MDR menu while oatmeal is always available as an option on the MDR breakfast menu. 

 

Just my 2cents.

 

No, this Southerner does not call it grits, but I don’t have to cook it or clean up after it so I find it acceptable.

[SRF]

On 1/29/2019 at 7:08 AM, TravisP said:

I love grits but usually stay away from them when I am not in the Southeast states, I would imagine the grits on the ship are very bland and need tons of butter and salt to get them to even remotely taste like grits you get back home. 

 

Grits ARE bland, until you do YOUR thing to them.

 

All they are is ground, dried corn, reconstituted in boiling water.

[SRF]

17 hours ago, Paulette3028 said:

When it comes to hot cereals, oatmeal is universal and easily available in the Windjammer and on the menu of the MDR for breakfast.  What they also serve and call 'grits' is available near the oatmeal in the Windjammer, but to me it is more like Cream of Wheat or otherwise called farina.  It generally is a little less firm than I like it, and it is not as smooth as I prefer it, when I make it at home.   Would real southerners call it 'grits' -- I am not sure.  DH and I only eat breakfast in the MDR once or twice on any cruise and I don't ever remember seeing it on the MDR menu while oatmeal is always available as an option on the MDR breakfast menu. 

 

Just my 2cents.

 

Nope, it is grits.  Corn, not wheat.

[SRF]

23 hours ago, gatour said:

Sugar in grits????  Wow I never have seen that.  I know northerners like a sweeter cornbread than southerners, but didn't realize it extended to grits.

 

Still love the Joe Pesci scene in My Cousin Vinny.  "What is a grit?"

 

I was in Atlanta area with some buddies for a week.  One guy was from UK, but German descent.

 

He ate his grits with jam on them.  But, he was happy, so that is all that is important.  For me, grits are always savory.

 

I will eat cream of wheat either way, sweet or savory.  Sometimes it is with sugar and milk/cream, other times, butter and salt.

 

Oatmeal is always sweet for me.  And a wee dram of whisky is very interesting,  😄

 

 

[SRF]

Funny grits story.

 

For work, I was in Kenya, right on the shores of Lake Victoria.  I am leading a team of 4.  My roots are Southern, 2 others were out of Atlanta, and the last had spent time in the South (former military).

 

So first day, around lunch time, our driver asks what we want for lunch.  He offers some choices, but we ask, what would HE eat for lunch.  And he tells us, fried fish.  We say, great fried fish is good.  So he takes us to an area with a number of "restaurants" RIGHT on the shore of the lake.

 

So he asks what we want with the fish, and we ask what locals eat, and he tells us ugali and summawiki.  OK, we will try it.

 

They bring the meal and the 4 of us look at the plates, look at each other, and break out laughing.  The driver is upset, worried that something is wrong.  Finally, I stop laughing enough to explain that everything is fine, this is a typical US Southern meal.  So he is amazed we eat African food in the US. 

 

So we had in front of us, fried fish, very Southern.  Ugali is dried, ground corn, reconstituted in boiling water, yes, GRITS.  But they cook them very stiff, and they are eaten by breaking off chunks and eaten like bread.  Summawiki is kale, chopped up, thrown in a pot with some meat, and cooked, Southern greens.

 

We ate there every lunch for the week we were there. 😄

[island lady]

18 hours ago, fla gang said:

Salt,Pepper, and butter

 

That is how I do my slow cook grits.  

[island lady]

46 minutes ago, SRF said:

Funny grits story.

 

For work, I was in Kenya, right on the shores of Lake Victoria.  I am leading a team of 4.  My roots are Southern, 2 others were out of Atlanta, and the last had spent time in the South (former military).

 

So first day, around lunch time, our driver asks what we want for lunch.  He offers some choices, but we ask, what would HE eat for lunch.  And he tells us, fried fish.  We say, great fried fish is good.  So he takes us to an area with a number of "restaurants" RIGHT on the shore of the lake.

 

So he asks what we want with the fish, and we ask what locals eat, and he tells us ugali and summawiki.  OK, we will try it.

 

They bring the meal and the 4 of us look at the plates, look at each other, and break out laughing.  The driver is upset, worried that something is wrong.  Finally, I stop laughing enough to explain that everything is fine, this is a typical US Southern meal.  So he is amazed we eat African food in the US. 

 

So we had in front of us, fried fish, very Southern.  Ugali is dried, ground corn, reconstituted in boiling water, yes, GRITS.  But they cook them very stiff, and they are eaten by breaking off chunks and eaten like bread.  Summawiki is kale, chopped up, thrown in a pot with some meat, and cooked, Southern greens.

 

We ate there every lunch for the week we were there. 😄

 

Great story!  Love it!  We do the same thing, and prefer to try the local food, if we like it...score!  If not...we don't eat the rest.  Fun and interesting to try it.  I just make sure to ask how spicy it is.  😮 

[TravisP]

1 hour ago, SRF said:

 

Grits ARE bland, until you do YOUR thing to them.

 

All they are is ground, dried corn, reconstituted in boiling water.

 

If the person cooking them puts a little effort into cooking them, they can be far from bland. All it takes is adding in a few more ingredients when cooking them and not going lite on the salt. I do not skimp on butter when cooking them. I also subtatue half of the water for heavy cream. And sometimes I will add in some cream cheese when cooking.