Grits and Grillades

After many visits to my sister while at Tulane in New Orleans, my dad decided he needed to recreate this favorite for the family.  In classic dad style, he told me what was in it but not how much of anything.  I tested it a couple of times and came up with these measurement.  The picture does not do it justice.  I will try to get a new one one of these day but this is such a beautiful New Orleans comfort dish.  You can very easily substitute shrimp for the pork.  

Ingredients

1 medium onion, chopped

1 bell pepper, seeded and chopped

3 cloves of garlic, minced

2 stalks of celery, chopped

2 tablespoons of canola oil plus 2 more for sautéing pork

2 tablespoons of butter

1/4 cup flour plus 1/2 cup for dredging

2 medium tomatoes, chopped

2 cups of chicken stock

1/2 teaspoon of paprika

Pork cutlets pounded thin

Creole seasoning

Salt and pepper

Quick cook grits

Cheddar cheese, grated

Heat canola oil in a pan over medium heat until shimmering.  Add onion, bell pepper, garlic and celery and sauté until translucent about 5 minutes.  Remove to a bowl.  Add butter and flour to the pan, adding more butter or oil if necessary to form a very thin paste (roux). Cook the roux stirring regularly until it has reached the color of peanut butter, about 10 minutes.  Add chicken stock and stir to thicken.  Add back in sautéed vegetables, tomatoes and paprika.  Season to taste with salt and pepper and then allow to simmer for about 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat canola oil in a separate pan.  Add dredging flour to a container that will allow the pork cutlets to lay flat.  Season both sides of the pork cutlets with creole seasoning and then dredge in flour.  Sautéed in oil until brown on one side about 3-5 minutes depending on thickness.  Flip pork and cook on the other side until brown.  Add pork to sauce for 5-10 minutes to cook through and  flavor. Cook grits according to package directions and once cooked add grated cheese. About 1-1.5 ounces of freshly grated cheese per serving of grits.  Serve grits on the bottom followed by pork then
topped with sauce.

Left over ideas:

Cheese grits and sauce reheated and topped with a fried egg and grated cheese.

Variations:

Substitute shrimp for the pork and skip dredging in flour.