Corn Stock Is The Key Ingredient For The Absolute Best Grits

Grits are a popular breakfast component in the southern United States and can be made quite simply with butter, salt, and black pepper. Like most dishes, there are many chef-worthy ingredients to improve grits like shredded cheese and a dash of hot sauce. But no matter what goes in the pot, you must use some liquid to boil the grits into the creamy dish that you take a bite of. That liquid is usually water, but there's a strong case to boil the grits in corn stock for more flavor.

This technique is similar to when you boil rice in vegetable or chicken stock to give the grain more flavor. If you don't know, grits are made of ground corn, so corn stock will enhance the flavor that's already present. It's a good option because other stocks might take away from the flavor of the grits. Corn stock also keeps the dish vegetarian-friendly compared to beef, chicken, or ham, which you might be tempted to use for grits. This option is even more ideal if you plan to make grits from scratch because you'll use the cobs to prevent waste.

Corn stock is not quite as common as beef, chicken, or vegetables, so you might not find it on many grocery store shelves. Luckily, it's not incredibly difficult to make homemade corn stock with corn on the cob. To make homemade corn stock at the same time as the grits, roast and remove the corn from the cob, then boil the cobs with spices and herbs for up to three hours to turn it into stock. Meanwhile, turn the corn kernels into grits with the help of a blender according to your preferred recipe. Otherwise, use a store-bought box of instant grits to make our classic creamy grits recipe and replace the milk and water with corn stock.

To step up the corn element further, add a can of creamed corn to the grits after it's boiled with the corn stock. But why stop there? Add crunched bacon or pancetta to infuse the grits with meat and smoky flavors. Or turn your improved grits into a complete meal with this old-fashioned shrimp and grits recipe. Either way, a garnish of fresh herbs like parsley or chives, sliced green onions, or pickled jalapeños provide contrasting flavors. And, you'll still want those other classic additions like butter, salt, black pepper, and some cheese to the corn stock in the pot.