Grits Defined

For those of you outside the US:

Grits are made by treating field corn with lye. The hard husk is removed from the kernel. The result is "hominy". Hominy is dried and ground to make "grits". Grits are a cooked cereal. By custom in the South, grits are served with eggs at breakfast. If you don't want them you must specify when you order that you do not want grits. If you are asked, "Do you want grits or hash browns?" you are not actually in the South. The grits come free of charge.

Grits were served with eggs at the dining hall where I attended college. Boys from the North (Yankees) usually put milk and sugar on them and complain that they were the saltiest cream of wheat they had ever had.

I once heard the grace of God described using the analogy of grits. You don't order them, they come even if you are not expecting them, and you don't pay for them.

I won't comment on list sibs grit-seasoning customs, since I don't eat them. Most people I've seen put butter and pepper on them. You have to put something on them as they have essentially no taste. Grits can be kept in a loaf pan in the refrigerator over night where they congeal. They are then sliced, browned in a frying pan and served with syrup. This custom is found in the Mid-west, not the South. Actually it sounds kind of good.