Grits are a dish that many people love to have during breakfast and they also are considered to be a bit of a southern comfort food by some.
If you are trying to make grits, then you might be worried about whether they’re turning out right. Some people like theirs to be a little bit runny, but others much prefer them to be as thick as possible.
Is there anything that you can do to thicken your grits up when you aren’t getting the right results? Keep reading to learn more about making them and how you can get them to turn out thicker.
This knowledge should allow you to have a better experience in the future so that you won’t have to deal with thin or runny grits.
1 – Use Less Water
You do indeed have to use quite a bit of water to make grits when you’re following most recipes.
However, the issue with your grits could be that you aren’t following the recipe correctly. You might have seen that it requires a certain amount of water but you could have just estimated that instead of really measuring the water out.
Often, little mistakes such as this will happen due to impatience and you’ll wind up getting less-than-stellar results. If you take the time to measure out a correct amount of water for the grits that you’re cooking, then you should have them turn out less runny than they have been.
If this was your major issue with making grits too thin, then you should be able to move forward with your head held high.
Just don’t try to make grits with too little water because they likely won’t turn out right. It’s about finding the right balance and using all of the proper ingredient amounts to get that satisfying flavor and consistency that you’re looking for.
It might take a bit of practice to get things just right, but it’ll be worth it in the end.
2 – Cook Them at a Lower Temperature
Overcooking your grits can actually cause some issues where they will become too runny. This often happens when people are cooking them at high temperatures, and you might be doing this to try to get things done faster.
Sometimes speed isn’t the best thing because it makes it so much easier for you to make mistakes that will cause your grits to be thinner than desired.
Cooking your grits at a lower temperature and simmering them without allowing them to really boil should make them turn out thicker. If you like your grits thick, this is going to be the method that you will want to employ moving forward. It might take a bit more time, but the results are going to be more to your liking.
Overall, this is going to be a much safer way to make sure that the grits turn out well. Cooking them for too long can actually cause you problems but cooking them at a higher heat makes it easier to overcook them.
Be mindful of this and try to make good choices so that your breakfast treat will turn out just right.
3 – Allow the Grits to Set up
Allowing the grits to properly set up can actually make them become a lot thicker than you might realize.
Instead of serving them immediately after you finish them, it might be better to allow them to set up for ten minutes. This should make them become the right level of thickness that you’re looking for.
Of course, this method is only going to work if you didn’t make them runny or if you didn’t overcook the grits. You just might not have realized that they can thicken up a bit just by being allowed to set up.
It doesn’t take that long for this to happen and you can easily keep them warm by placing the pan on the lowest warm setting of your stove.
For most people, this is going to be the solution that they overlooked. You might have just been a bit impatient and forgot to try to let your grits set up some before serving them.
Instead of eating your not-quite-as-thick grits right away, you can wait a few minutes and let them become thicker naturally.
Can You Thicken Grits That Have Already Been Made Too Thin?
There isn’t really much that you can do to thicken up grits that you have already made, aside from the aforementioned method of allowing them to set up.
If you made a mistake with your ingredients or overcooked the grits, then you won’t really be able to fix them. This might be a bit annoying to hear, but it’s not the end of the world or anything.
Remember that grits are actually a fairly fast food to make and you can certainly try to do a better job of cooking them the next time you get the urge.
Essentially, if you know that you made your grits too thin, you’re going to have to try to follow the right recipe next time. Use the correct amount of water and do what you need to do to avoid overcooking them.
It really is a lot simpler when you go ahead and cook the grits at a lower temperature. This keeps you from making simple mistakes that will cause them to overcook and turn out less than ideal. It might take slightly longer, but it isn’t going to add a lot of cooking time or anything.
Also, you could try to cook your grits earlier than you cook your other breakfast dishes. Make them about ten minutes or so before you cook your eggs and bacon.
By the time that you’re finished with the other stuff on the breakfast menu, they will have more time to set up and reach your desired level of thickness.
You might not be able to fix grits that have already been made to be runny or soupy, but you can make the right moves to cook them right in the future. It’s very possible that they will turn out to be one of your favorite breakfast foods moving forward.
You have the right knowledge now and it’s simply time to put it to the test.
Enjoy Your Grits
Enjoy your grits now that you know how to make them so that they will turn out a bit thicker. It’s going to be nice to have a good breakfast food such as this to add to your repertoire.
Whenever you feel as though you’re in the mood for a substantial breakfast, it’ll be easy to make these delectable grits.
The idea of making them around ten minutes before the rest of your breakfast really does have a lot of merit. Giving them that extra bit of time to set up ensures that they’ll be perfect. Hopefully, this little guide about how to make thick grits helped you out.
Even when you’re cooking the grits at a reduced heat level, it doesn’t take super long to make them.
So long as you’re following a traditional recipe, you’re going to have no problems getting them to turn out well. It’ll become a real breakfast-time pleaser in your household for sure.
Sarah is the founder of Baking Kneads, LLC, a blog sharing guides, tips, and recipes for those learning how to bake. Growing up as the daughter of a baker, she spent much of her childhood learning the basics in a local bakery.