Cheesy grits with fried eggs
Creamy cheddar grits topped with fried eggs, blistered cherry tomatoes and green onion, a Southern bowl of comfort ready in half an hour.
- 30 min total
- 25 min hands-on
- Follow-a-recipe easy
- Serves 4
- About $2.29 a serving
- 590 calories
- Vegetarian
- Gluten-free
Dolly says: Read the steps once before you start. Everything goes smoother after that.
Ingredients
For 4 servings.
- 1 cup milk
- 1 cup quick grits
- 2 tbsp butter
- 1½ cups shredded cheddar
- 1 package cherry tomatoes, 10 oz
- 8 large eggs
- 2 green onions, sliced
- 1 tsp hot sauce (optional)
From your pantry
- 3 cups water
- 1 tsp salt, divided
- ½ tsp black pepper
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
Each serving has about 590 calories, 29 g protein, 39 g carbs and 35 g fat, and costs about $2.29 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 green onions? Chives work.
- No hot sauce? Sriracha works.
Steps
Tap an underlined word for a quick explanation.
Bring the water, milk and ¾ teaspoon salt in a medium over medium-high heat.
Bring to a boil. It means heating a liquid on high until it’s fully boiling before you move on. A lid on the pot gets it there faster, which makes it a good moment to chop something.
How you’ll know: Big bubbles break all over the surface, and they keep coming when you lift the lid.
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.
Medium-high heat
Dolly’s tip: Milk loves to boil over. Stay close and turn it down the moment it bubbles up.Slowly whisk in the grits. to low, cover and cook 5 to 7 minutes, every minute or two, until thick and creamy.
Reduce the heat. It means turning the burner down, usually to medium-low or low, so food cooks gently instead of hard. Electric burners cool slowly, so lift the pan off for a moment if it’s bubbling hard.
How you’ll know: Within a minute the bubbling calms to a gentle simmer, or the sizzle turns quiet.
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.
Low heatTimer: 6 min
Dolly’s tip: Grits spit when they bubble. Keep the lid on between stirs.Take the pot off the heat and stir in the butter, cheese and pepper until . Cover to keep warm.
Melt. Melting means gently heating something solid, like butter or cheese, until it turns liquid. Low or medium heat keeps it from browning or burning.
How you’ll know: It’s smooth and liquid, and butter may foam a little but hasn’t turned brown.
Heat the oil in a large nonstick over medium-high heat.
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.
Medium-high heat
Add the tomatoes and of salt and cook, shaking the pan now and then, until blistered and starting to burst, about 4 minutes.
Pinch. A pinch is what you can hold between your thumb and two fingers, less than an eighth of a teaspoon. It’s a small, forgiving amount, so there’s no need to measure.
How you’ll know: It’s a light sprinkle you can barely see on the food, not a little pile.
Medium-high heatTimer: 4 min
Tip into a bowl.
Turn the heat to medium.
Medium heat
Crack 4 eggs into the , cover and cook until the whites are set and the yolks begin to , 3 to 4 minutes.
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.
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.
Medium heatTimer: 3 min 30 sec
Food safety: For the safest eggs, cook until the whites are fully set and the yolks begin to thicken. Dishes made with eggs are done at 160°F.
Repeat with the other 4.
Medium heat
Stir the grits, adding of hot water if they have stiffened. Spoon into bowls and top with 2 eggs, the tomatoes, green onions and a few shakes of hot sauce.
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.
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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