You may not have heard of grillades (pronounced Gree-Yahds) and grits if you aren’t from the South, but they are a popular breakfast or brunch dish. The beef stewed in the savory and piquant trinity, coupled with grits that have been doctored up with a little cheddar and parmesan, make this rib-sticking dish an explosion of flavor.
Grillades and grits are also some of the best hangover food you can find.
We’ve rated this recipe as CHALLENGING due to the amount of multitasking, the steps required, and the familiarity and comfort you’ll need to have with your camp stove.
They take a little while to cook, but with a little preparation at home before you head out camping, you can cut the time down quite a bit.
Stone Ground Grits
One thing I can’t stress enough is to buy good grits. If you don’t normally cook grits, but want to try them for the first time, you’ll think they’re nasty if you end up with a package of the cheap instant grits.
Get a package of good stone-ground grits. Without them, you’d be better off using rice.
Simmering on a Camp Stove
A big challenge with the recipe is the fact that you are attempting a low simmer on a camp stove. Camp stoves can generally put out some heat, but they struggle quite a bit with low heat.
A cheap solution to the problem (instead of buying an expensive camp stove) is using a heat diffuser.
Due to slow simmering the grillades and the grits simultaneously in two pots, I used two heat diffusers at a time for this recipe. You could probably get away with only one under the grits and letting the grillades simmer a little hotter. Just be sure to stir about once every five minutes if you do that.
For both simmering your grillades and simmering your grits, you need to have some familiarity with your camp stove so that you don’t cook too hot or too cool. Cooking a few meals on it is a good idea before heading out to the sticks.
For practice, you can just plop your camp stove down on your kitchen counter and use it for daily cooking to grow accustomed to it. I do it all the time to test recipes for the website.
Just remember, the difference between your counter and the campsite is the temperature in the room and wind speed.
More Tips for Your Grillades and Grits
Don’t try to use too small of a pot for your grillades. You will be searing the beef as well as simmering in your trinity using the same pot.
I originally tried using a 5-quart dutch oven but it was just too small. I ended up using my Lodge 7.5-quart enameled dutch oven. It was crowded on my camp stove, but it worked very well. The bonus of the enamel coating is the flour on the grillades is less likely to stick and scorch. A non-enameled cast-iron dutch oven will do the job though if that’s what you have.
Explore more camp stove recipes.
As an aside, I like my Lodge enameled dutch oven for camping better than my Le Creuset of the same size. The reason is that the Le Creuset is very thin and doesn’t distribute the heat as well on a camp stove. I also don’t have to worry about such an expensive dutch oven at a campsite.
Without a doubt, Le Creuset is of higher quality. It just isn’t the right tool for the job in this case. No need to take out a second mortgage to get the proper tool. Just get a Lodge at an eighth of the price.
Grillades and Grits
Equipment
- A couple of extra plates for flouring the grillades
Ingredients
For the Grillades
- 1 medium yellow onion – finely chopped
- 1 medium red bell pepper – finely chopped
- 3 celery stalks – finely chopped
- 1/2 cup green onions – finely chopped – green part of one onion reserved for garnish
- 1 1/2 lb. round steaks – 1/2" thick
- salt and pepper – to taste
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil
- 1 15 oz. can diced tomatoes
- 5 cloves garlic – minced
- 1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
- 1/2 tsp. dried oregano
- 3 cups beef stock
- 1 cup mushrooms – sliced
- 1 tbs. dried parsley
For the Grits
- 1 1/2 cups chicken broth
- 1 1/2 cups whole milk
- 1/4 tsp. Morton's Kosher Salt
- 3/4 cup Stone-ground grits – don't use instant grits, those are nasty
- 1/2 cup cheddar cheese – shredded
- 1/4 cup parmesan cheese – grated
Instructions
Before You Leave Home
- Chop onion, celery, and bell pepper. Combine and add to a zip-top bag or resealable container.
- Chop green onions. Add to a separate zip-top bag or container.
- Combine cayenne and oregano and add to separate zip-top bag or container.
- Combine shredded cheddar and grated parmesan and add to separate zip-top bag or container.
- Put the flour in a small resealable container or zip-top bag.
- Put the sliced mushroom and dried parsley in a resealable container.
- Put the grits into a resealable container or zip-top plastic bag.
At the Campsite – Grillades
- Cut the round steaks into 3" squares, season with salt and pepper on both sides. Dust lightly with flour, shaking off any excess.
- Heat oil over medium-high heat. Saute meat until brown on all sides. Remove and set aside.
- Add onions, celery, and bell peppers. Saute 8-10 minutes until very soft. Add garlic and saute an additional minute.
- Add tomatoes, green onions, cayenne, oregano, and beef stock. Bring to a low boil then reduce to a simmer. Add grillades back to the dutch oven. Cover and simmer for 45 minutes, or until tender, stirring occasionally. About fifteen minutes in, start cooking your grits (see below).
- Add mushrooms and parsley. Adjust salt and pepper, if necessary, and cook an additional 10 minutes.
At the Campsite – Grits
- Bring chicken broth and milk to a boil. Stir in the grits and salt. Return to a boil.
- Cover and reduce heat to a very low simmer. Cook 20-25 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in cheese. Keep warm until ready to serve.
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