Smoked Sausage and Grits

Course Main Course

Cuisine American, Southern

Keyword smoked-sausage-and-grits-recipe, smoked-sausage-cheese-grits-with-fire-roasted-tomato-sauce

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 20

Total Time 40

Servings servings

Calories 660kcal

Author Melissa Sperka

Kielbasa: Grill smoked kielbasa on a grill pan or outdoor grill over medium-high heat. Cook for 5 minutes per side and fully heated through. Remove to a platter and keep warm.
Grits: In a heavy bottomed saucepan or pot, bring the chicken broth, evaporated milk and table salt to a boil.
Add the grits in a steady stream, whisking constantly, until fully combined. Adjust the temperature to low and allow the grits to gently bubble and thicken.
Cook covered for 15-20 minutes until smooth and creamy. Stir periodically to prevent sticking. Add extra chicken broth when needed, to thin.
After the grits have reached desired consistency stir in the heavy cream (or half and half), butter and shredded cheese. Stir until the cheese melts. Remove from heat, keep warm.
Tomato Sauce: Meanwhile, In a medium size pot or saucepan sauté the diced onion in a couple of drizzles of olive oil. Sauté for 3-5 minutes over medium-high heat until onion is soft, translucent and beginning to brown. Add the minced garlic. Cook for one minute longer.
To the pan add the fire roasted tomatoes, seasoned salt, pepper flakes, oregano, basil and sugar. Cover and simmer over low heat for 10 minutes until tomatoes break down. Mix in parsley. Keep warm until serving. (The sauce will easily double.)
Serve: Slice the grilled sausages on bias. Spread the grits into a shallow bowl, top with sausage slices and drizzle with the fire roasted tomato sauce. Sprinkle with additional parsley and serve immediately.

Chicken Broth - You can use chicken broth or chicken stock in this recipe.
Cheese - The sky's the limit with cheese options. You can adapt using gruyere, swiss, pepper jack, mild cheddar cheese or Parmesan cheese.
Sausages - You could use turkey sausage, andouille sausage, chorizo sausage or kielbasa in this recipe.
Tomatoes - I used fire roasted tomatoes in this recipe. You could use Italian seasoned tomatoes, chili seasoned tomatoes, Rotel tomatoes or simply canned diced tomatoes.
Tomato Paste - If you'd like to thicken the tomato sauce, you can use tomato paste adding 1 tablespoon at a time. Repeat until your desired consistency is reached.