The bed under the crab cakes. This is what turns a patty into a restaurant plate.
Serves 6 · Cook 55 minutes
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups stone-ground grits (not instant, not quick)
- 4 cups water
- 2 cups unsweetened oat milk
- 1 1/2 tsp kosher salt, plus more to taste
- 1 ear of corn, kernels cut off
- 3 tbsp vegan butter
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
Method
- Boil the liquid. Combine the water, oat milk, and salt in a heavy pot and bring to a boil.
- Whisk in the grits. Pour them in slowly while whisking constantly so no lumps form. Drop the heat to its lowest setting.
- Simmer low and slow, about 45 minutes. Cover and cook, whisking every 5 minutes and scraping the bottom, until thick and creamy with no grit left on the tooth. Add hot water a splash at a time if it stiffens too much.
- Finish. Stir in the corn kernels, vegan butter, olive oil, and pepper. Cook 3 more minutes so the corn just softens. Taste and salt again — grits need more than you think.
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Holding them for a buffet. Grits set into a sliceable block once they cool. Keep them in a slow cooker on warm, or in a bowl over barely simmering water, and stir in a splash of hot oat milk every 15 minutes. For a buffet they should be looser than you think — almost pourable.
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