Wild Patagonian Shrimp and Grits

The Vegetarian is coming out of her (seafood) shell, much like the patagonian wild shrimp I cooked came out of theirs before getting sauteed into a quick shrimp and grits, the yellow variety (More on that here). Yes, it is true. The vegetarian may not truly be a full fledged vegetarian anymore. She has taken a walk to the wild side, and I’m now able to incorporate shrimp (along with scallops) into regular rotation. In addition to that, some cooked fish is even acceptable — mostly just cod and mahi mahi, for now.

With that said, I purchased some wild patagonian shrimp, which were on sale. Unlike most shrimp you buy, these are actually wild shrimp caught in the waters by Patagonia Argentina. No artificial feeding, no pens, no GMOs, nothing, just fresh shrimp. I actually didn’t know this upon purchase, but now that I do, I’m even happier with the purchase. After eating them, you can really taste the difference. This recipe works with any shrimp though, just make sure they’re peeled and deveined (you can leave the tail on if they came that way).

I’m sure that any self respecting southerner would shun this quick version of shrimp ‘n grits, especially because I used polenta. However, it was pretty quick to make, and delicious to eat. I’ll save my eating of authentic shrimp n grits for when I go to a restaurant. The recipe partially comes from a Bobby Flay recipe that he got from Martha Nesbit. I made it a little differently. Also feel free to make white corn grits with this instead.

Ingredients:
Serves 4

4 cups water
1 cup quick cook (or regular) polenta
2 teaspoons kosher salt
2 tablespoon butter
1/4 cup milk
1 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined
1/2 lemon, juiced
3-4 scallion, thinly sliced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 small yellow/spanish onion, juiliened

Bring water and salt to boil in a medium sauce pot. Once boiling, slowly add polenta in a steady stream, while stirring with a wooden spoon. Once all polenta has been added, reduce heat to low, keeping the polenta from bubbling too much. Stir constantly until thick and pulls away from the side of the pot — about 30 minutes for regular, 10-15 for quick cook polenta.

Once polenta is cooked, add 1 tablespoon butter and milk. Stir, cover and remove from heat and set aside.

Heat remaining butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and cook until it begins to brown slightly, about 5-7 minutes. Add shrimp and cook until the shrimp sear slightly and turn pink. Add garlic, scallion, lemon juice and stir. Continue cooking until shrimp are cooked through, another 2-3 minutes.

Serve immediately over polenta.