38
MY
ROUSES
EVERYDAY
NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2013
FROM ROUSES
TEST KITCHEN
True Grit
by
Daniel, Rouses Deli Director +
photo by
Eugenia Uhl
Grits & Grillades are a great make-ahead for Christmas morning, and
leftovers can be easily reheated for subsequent breakfasts.
Y
ou can find the following in almost every local kitchen: onions, bell pepper, celery
and garlic, otherwise known as the Holy Trinity and the Pope. There is a package
of hot sausage in the fridge or freezer, and a can of Steen’s syrup in the pantry, next
to the cayenne pepper, oregano, at least one shaker of Creole seasonings, and at least two
bottles of hot sauce. Rice is a given. So are grits.
Grits are made with a gristmill. The grinding stones are adjusted to make coarse grits,
medium grits, fine grits or cornmeal. White grits use hulled kernels, while yellow grits
include the entire kernel.
Shrimp & Grits are a low country invention, but grillades are arguably local, with some
sourcing them back to the original Cajun boucheries. Beef and pork grillades were originally
served alone, then with rice and eventually with grits, the way we eat them today. Our
recipe uses the classic veal shoulder simmered in a Creole Red Gravy, but a beef top round,
pork shoulder or pork shoulder can be substituted.
GRILLADES
WHAT YOU WILL NEED
2 cups flour
2 teaspoons Zatarain’s, Tony Chachere’s or
other Creole seasoning
4 pounds boneless veal shoulder,
sliced into ¼ inch cutlets
¼ cup Rouses vegetable oil
1 large onion, diced
1 stalk celery, diced
½ bell pepper, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups canned whole plum tomatoes,
drained, seeded, and diced
2 cups beef stock (we like Kitchen Basic)
Leaves from 1 sprig fresh thyme
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 tablespoon Worcestershire
1 bay leaf
Hot Sauce to taste
Rouses salt and pepper to taste
HOW TO PREP
Combine flour and Creole seasoning in a
medium bowl. Set aside. Rinse and pat dry
veal cutlet then season with salt and pepper.
Dredge cutlets in the seasoned flour and shake
off excess. Do not discard flour.
Heat vegetable oil in a large skillet over high
heat until it is 360 degrees. You can test
the temperature by dropping a piece of rice
into the oil. If it pops right back up, you’re
ready. Fry the cutlets, several at a time, until
golden brown on both sides. Be careful not
to overcrowd the skillet. Remove cutlets from
skillet and continue to cook in batches until all
the veal has been browned.
When all of the veal has browned, reduce the
heat to medium-high. Add onions and cook,
stirring throughout, until they are a deep, rich
color, about 20 minutes. Add the celery, bell
pepper, and garlic, reduce the heat to moderate,
and continue cooking and stirring for 5 minutes
or until vegetables are cooked down. Sprinkle
1 tablespoon of the seasoned flour into the
skillet and stir to thicken the vegetable mixture.
Increase heat to high, stir in the tomatoes and
beef stock, and cook until it comes to a boil.
Reduce the heat to moderate and stir the
thyme, pepper flakes, and Worcestershire into
the vegetables. Add bay leaf. Add the veal
cutlets, cover, and simmer until the veal is fork
tender, about 45 minutes.
Season with salt, pepper and hot sauce. Serve
over grits. (
Serves 6)
