Cajun chicken and grits
Spicy Cajun chicken, peppers and onions in a buttery pan sauce spooned over creamy cheddar grits, a Southern bowl of pure comfort.
- 40 min total
- 35 min hands-on
- A little more hands-on
- Serves 4
- About $2.67 a serving
- 630 calories
- Good the next day
- Gluten-free
Dolly says: Make the full amount. It’s just as good for lunch the next day.
Ingredients
For 4 servings.
- 2 cups milk
- 1 cup quick grits
- 3 tbsp butter, divided
- 1 cup shredded cheddar
- 1¼ lb chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch pieces
- 1 tbsp Cajun seasoning
- 1 green bell pepper, sliced
- ½ yellow onion, sliced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ cup chicken broth
- 2 green onions, sliced
From your pantry
- 2 cups water
- 1 tsp salt, divided
- 1 tbsp olive oil
Each serving has about 630 calories, 47 g protein, 43 g carbs and 28 g fat, and costs about $2.67 at typical US grocery prices. Both are estimates from what the recipe uses.
Missing something?
- No milk? Half-and-half works.
- No butter? Ghee works.
- No shredded cheddar? Cheddar cheese or Mexican blend cheese or Monterey Jack cheese works.
- No chicken breasts? Boneless chicken thighs or chicken tenderloins work.
- No green bell peppers? Red bell peppers or yellow bell peppers work.
- No yellow onions? White onions or red onions work.
- No chicken broth? Vegetable broth or bone broth works.
- No green onions? Chives work.
Steps
Tap an underlined word for a quick explanation.
Bring the water, milk and ½ teaspoon of salt in a medium over medium-high heat, watching so it doesn’t over.
Simmer. Simmering means keeping a liquid just below a boil, with small bubbles rising gently. It cooks food evenly and lets a sauce thicken without scorching on the bottom.
How you’ll know: Small, lazy bubbles break the surface every second or so, and nothing is churning.
Saucepan. A saucepan is a pot with tall, straight sides and one long handle. It’s for things that need depth, like rice, sauces or a few boiled eggs.
How you’ll know: The food fills it about halfway, leaving room to bubble without spilling over.
Boil. Boiling means heating a liquid until big bubbles rise and break all over the surface. It’s the fastest way to cook pasta, potatoes and eggs, because it’s as hot as water gets.
How you’ll know: Bubbles are breaking across the whole surface, not just at the edges, and steam is rising.
Medium-high heat
Slowly whisk in the grits, turn the heat to low, and cook 5 to 7 minutes, often, until thick. in 1 tablespoon of butter and the cheddar, cover, and keep warm.
Whisk. Whisking means beating quickly with a whisk or a fork to blend things together. It smooths out lumps and mixes eggs, oil or sauces evenly.
How you’ll know: It all looks one even color and texture, with no streaks or lumps.
Stir. Stirring means moving food around with a spoon or spatula so it cooks evenly and doesn’t stick. Unless the recipe says constantly, every so often is plenty, and it gives food time to brown.
How you’ll know: When you drag the spoon across the bottom, nothing is sticking or scorching.
Low heatTimer: 6 min
Dolly’s tip: Pour the grits in a thin stream while you whisk, and they’ll never clump.the chicken with the Cajun seasoning and wash your hands and board.
Toss. Tossing means gently lifting and turning food so everything gets coated, like pasta in sauce or vegetables in oil. It coats every piece evenly without mashing anything.
How you’ll know: Every piece looks glossy or evenly coated, with no dry spots hiding underneath.
Food safety: Wash your hands, the board and the knife with hot soapy water after touching raw meat, and don’t rinse raw chicken in the sink.
Heat the oil in a large over medium-high and cook the chicken 6 to 7 minutes, until and the biggest piece reads 165°F. Move it to a plate.
Skillet. A skillet is a frying pan: wide and flat with low, sloped sides. The shape lets steam escape, so food browns instead of stewing.
How you’ll know: It’s the pan you’d fry an egg in, and a 10 or 12 inch one handles most recipes.
Brown. Browning means cooking until the outside turns brown, which is where a lot of savory flavor comes from. Give food room and time without stirring, or it steams and stays gray.
How you’ll know: The food looks brown rather than gray, and the kitchen smells toasty and savory.
Medium-high heatTimer: 6 min 30 sec
Food safety: Chicken and turkey are done at 165°F in the thickest part. A thermometer is the only sure check. Without one, cut into the thickest piece: it should be white all the way through, with no pink.
Add 1 tablespoon of butter, the pepper and onion, and cook 4 minutes, until , then add the garlic for 30 seconds.
Softened. For vegetables it means cooked until they bend and lose their crunch; for butter, left out until it dents easily. Soft onions taste sweet, and soft butter mixes in smoothly.
How you’ll know: Onions squash easily against the pan with your spoon, and butter dents under a finger without looking greasy.
Medium heatTimer: 4 min 30 sec
Pour in the broth, , and 2 minutes. in the last tablespoon of butter, the rest of the salt and the chicken.
Scrape up the browned bits. It means loosening the brown bits stuck to the pan with a wooden spoon, usually right after adding liquid. Those bits are concentrated flavor, and they melt into the sauce.
How you’ll know: The bottom of the pan looks clean again, and the liquid turns darker and richer.
Simmer. Simmering means keeping a liquid just below a boil, with small bubbles rising gently. It cooks food evenly and lets a sauce thicken without scorching on the bottom.
How you’ll know: Small, lazy bubbles break the surface every second or so, and nothing is churning.
Stir. Stirring means moving food around with a spoon or spatula so it cooks evenly and doesn’t stick. Unless the recipe says constantly, every so often is plenty, and it gives food time to brown.
How you’ll know: When you drag the spoon across the bottom, nothing is sticking or scorching.
Medium heatTimer: 2 min
of hot water into the grits if they’ve , spoon them into bowls, and top with the chicken, sauce and green onions.
Stir. Stirring means moving food around with a spoon or spatula so it cooks evenly and doesn’t stick. Unless the recipe says constantly, every so often is plenty, and it gives food time to brown.
How you’ll know: When you drag the spoon across the bottom, nothing is sticking or scorching.
Splash. A splash is a small, quick pour, about a teaspoon to a tablespoon. It’s there to loosen or brighten a dish, so the exact amount doesn’t matter.
How you’ll know: The dish looks a little looser or tastes a little brighter, not soupy.
Thicken. Thickening means cooking a sauce or soup until it’s less runny, by simmering it down or adding something like cornstarch. A thicker sauce clings to food instead of pooling on the plate.
How you’ll know: It coats the back of a spoon, and a line drawn through it with your finger holds its shape.
Plan this in Dollop, and get the grocery list
Dollop puts this dinner on a night that suits your week, lists only what you still need to buy, and walks you through each step while you cook.
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