Grits

Method

1. prep3 min
   cold water, off heat
   grits stirred into the measured water, then skim off whatever floats — stone-ground meal carries loose hull and germ that never soften and read as grit in the finished bowl. Pour off nothing else; the sunken starch is the dish.
2. boil6 min
   high
   the skimmed water + salt to a full boil. Salt goes in now because corn starch that has already gelatinized will not take salt evenly later, and salting at the end tastes like salt sitting on top of porridge.
3. whisk2 min
   boiling, whisking constantly
   grits poured into the boiling water in a thin stream. Dumped all at once, the outside of the clump gelatinizes instantly and seals dry meal inside — that is where permanent lumps come from, and no amount of later stirring opens them.
4. simmer35 min
   lowest heat, partly covered, stirring every 5 minutes
   grits at a bare simmer — a lazy blip, not a bubble. Starch granules need long slow hydration; hard heat swells and bursts the outer starch into glue before the center has taken up any water, giving something both gluey and chalky. Scrape the corners of the pot each time you stir, because that is where it catches and scorches.
5. mix5 min
   low, off the boil
   + milk, a splash at a time, until the grits fall thickly from the spoon rather than mounding. Dairy added at the start would have scorched on the bottom over 35 minutes and curdled at the simmer; added now it only loosens and enriches.
6. mix2 min
   off heat
   + butter + black pepper, stirred until the butter disappears. Off the heat the fat emulsifies into the hot starch instead of breaking out as a slick, which is what gives grits their gloss + optional cheddar melted in at this point
7. rest5 min
   covered
   the pot covered — the grits keep absorbing and tighten noticeably as they sit, so serve them a touch looser than you want them. Reheat with a splash of water, never by boiling.