Shrimp and Grits, Jimmy Red Corn, and Carolina Gold
Plus, the Sea & Sand Festival and a frosted refuge
This week, we’re Lowcountry-bound, where coastal marshes and historic towns like Charleston and Beaufort welcome winter visitors with mild temperatures, crisp mornings, and regional dishes that blend fresh seafood with Southern tradition.
First, we share Patricia Branning’s exploration of shrimp and grits, then tell you about two kinds of heirloom rice still being cultivated in the Southeast to make grits, whiskey, and other products. We end with a preview of Folly Beach’s upcoming annual Sea & Sand Festival, featuring surfboard painting and sand sculpting competitions.
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Harvesting History
A Lowcountry tradition goes from creekside breakfast to menu star
Shrimp and grits didn’t begin its life on fine china with parsley sprigs and waiters in starched shirts. This dish was born of necessity, cooked creekside at dawn by hungry fishermen.
A shrimper would take a pot out on the boat—grits, shrimp, maybe a little bacon grease if luck was with him—and let it bubble over a low flame until it was edible. Practical. Filling. Cheap. It was the sort of meal meant to warm the bones and fuel a hard day’s work.
But its story reaches further back, long before Charleston existed. Food historian Michael Twitty traces the roots to Mozambique, where people were preparing cornmeal and shellfish centuries before the transatlantic slave trade. Later, enslaved Africans carried that knowledge with them across the ocean, and in the Lowcountry it took root—bubbling in plantation kitchens, along riverbanks, and in the boats of Carolina shrimpers.
Upgraded subscribers will receive a separate email tonight containing this story, plus Patricia Branning’s delicious Lowcountry Shrimp and Grits recipe.
Preserving Heirloom Rice
Patricia Branning’s Lowcountry Shrimp and Grits recipe in Harvesting History features Jimmy Red Corn stone-ground heirloom grits. Both Jimmy Red Corn and Carolina Gold grits are go-to grains for perfecting this regional classic the traditional way.
