Cheesy Tomato Grits with Chiles and Bacon is a super easy, ready in 25 minutes, side dish that is perfect for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. With grits, cheese, tomatoes, green chiles, and bacon this is an over-the-top southern comfort recipe!
One of the first recipes I ever posted on Lana’s Cooking was my favorite Cheese Grits. I grew up eating grits pretty much every week. Sometimes several times a week. Grits are as quintessentially southern as fried chicken and pimiento cheese.
If you've never had grits, I do wish you'd give them a try. They're really just ground corn, first cousins to the famous Italian polenta. If you like cornbread, you'll probably like grits.
I always recommend trying a regional southern brand such as Dixie Lily or Jim Dandy and never, ever, under any circumstances use "instant" grits. Just no.
A southern breakfast wouldn't be quite complete without grits to go along with your fried eggs and bacon (or sausage!). But don't think they're only breakfast food. By no means! One of the more popular ways to serve grits outside of breakfast is with fried fish.
Grits are also delicious with other things mixed in. Like cheese. Or greens - turnips, mustard, or collards. Or as I've prepared them in this recipe with crispy bacon, plum tomatoes, green chiles, and sharp Cheddar cheese.
Serve this alongside any protein - chicken, fish, and pork are best - or topped with a fried or poached egg for the main course on its own.
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Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Ready in under 30 minutes
- You can adjust the heat level to your preference
- Great side dish for lots of different proteins
Ingredients You'll Need
- Bacon (use your favorite breakfast bacon)
- Green onions (make sure they're nice and fresh, no wilting or bad spots)
- Chicken broth (canned or boxed is fine, but if you have homemade use it!)
- Salt and pepper (the classic seasoning combination for almost all cooking)
- Quick-cooking grits (if you have a regional brand such as Jim Dandy available, use those)
- Plum tomatoes (I prefer canned for this recipe)
- Canned green chiles (any brand you like; my preference is Hatch)
- Cheddar cheese (I like extra sharp for this)
You'll find detailed measurements, ingredients, and instructions in the printable version of the recipe at the bottom of this post.
How to Make Tomato Chile Cheese Grits
I always like to show you the photos and step-by-step instructions for my recipes to help you picture how to make them in your own kitchen. If you just want to print out a copy, you can skip to the bottom of the post where you'll find the recipe card.
Cut the bacon crosswise into about ½-inch wide pieces. Cook in a deep skillet over medium high heat until brown and crisp – about 8-9 minutes. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon to a paper towel lined plate to drain. Keep the bacon fat in the pan.
Add the sliced green onions to the hot bacon fat and cook for a minute or two until slightly softened.
Add the broth, salt, grits, diced plum tomatoes, green chiles to the pan. Bring to a boil, stirring often. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 15-20 minutes, stirring frequently.
Stir in 4 ounces of the Cheddar cheese. Serve immediately topped with remaining cheese and bacon to garnish.
Recipe Tips
- Either quick grits or old-fashioned grits work fine in the recipe. Stone ground grits are my favorite, but they take quite a bit longer to cook. Just don't use instant grits. Just no. Not ever. For anything.
- Change the heat level to suit your taste by using mild, medium, or hot chiles.
- Switch up the cheese if you like. Any type of Swiss or Gruyere is great!
Serving Suggestions
- These grits are really fantastic with grilled shrimp (for a quasi shrimp and grits), grilled chicken, or a ham steak. They're not bad with pork chops, either :-)
- Top with a fried or poached egg for a standalone main dish.
FAQs
Yes! One of the great things about grits is that they store and reheat very well. You may find that they need a little liquid added when reheating. Just stir in some water a little at a time until you get the desired consistency.
Leftover grits store really well, but usually need thinning with a bit of water when reheating. They're easily reheated in the microwave or on the stovetop (stir often to prevent sticking).
Grits are simply ground corn. More specifically, they're made from dent corn. The corn kernels are dried, then the outer hull is removed and the remaining kernel is ground to create grits.
They're very similar. Grits are made from white corn and polenta from yellow corn. Polenta is also coarser than grits. They're not exactly interchangeable but can be substituted for each other in a pinch.
There are several different types. Stone-ground are made from whole kernels by the traditional method of grinding corn between two grind stones. They have a speckled appearance, a richer corn flavor, and take much longer to cook. Hominy grits have the hull and germ removed before grinding. Quick grits are finely ground and processed to cook quickly. Instant grits have been pre-cooked and dehydrated. I do not recommend using instant grits for any reason in any recipe.
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📖 Recipe
Cheesy Tomato Grits with Chiles and Bacon
Ingredients
- 2 slices bacon
- 3 green onions sliced
- 29 oz. chicken broth (2 14.5 ounce cans)
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 cup quick cooking grits not instant
- 14.5 oz canned plum tomatoes drained and diced
- 4 oz canned diced green chiles lightly drained
- 6 oz extra sharp Cheddar cheese grated
Instructions
- Cut the bacon crosswise into about ½-inch wide pieces. Cook in a deep skillet over medium high heat until brown and crisp – about 8-9 minutes. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon to a paper towel lined plate to drain. Keep the bacon fat in the pan.
- Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon to a paper towel lined plate to drain. Keep the bacon fat in the pan.
- Add the sliced green onions to the hot bacon fat and cook for a minute or two until slightly softened.
- Add the broth, salt, grits, diced plum tomatoes, and green chiles to the pan.
- Bring to a boil, stirring often. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 15-20 minutes, stirring frequently.
- Stir in 4 ounces of the Cheddar cheese. Serve immediately topped with remaining cheese and bacon to garnish.
Notes
- Either quick grits or old-fashioned (stone ground) grits work fine in the recipe. Stone ground grits are my favorite, but they take quite a bit longer to cook. Just don't use instant grits. Just no. Not ever. For anything.
- Change the heat level to suit your taste by using mild, medium, or hot chiles.
- Switch up the cheese if you like. Any type of Swiss or Gruyere is great!
- These grits are really fantastic with grilled shrimp (for a quasi shrimp and grits), grilled chicken, or a ham steak. They're not bad with pork chops, either :-)
- Top with a fried or poached egg for a standalone main dish.
Leftover grits store really well, but usually need thinning with a bit of water when reheating. They're easily reheated in the microwave or on the stovetop (stir often to prevent sticking). FAQs: Can this recipe be made in advance? Yes! One of the great things about grits is that they store and reheat very well. You may find that they need a little liquid added when reheating. Just stir in some water a little at a time until you get the desired consistency. Are grits and polenta the same thing? They're very similar. Grits are made from white corn and polenta from yellow corn. Polenta is also coarser than grits. They're not exactly interchangeable but can be substituted for each other in a pinch.
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information is calculated by software based on the ingredients in each recipe. It is an estimate only and is provided for informational purposes. You should consult your health care provider or a registered dietitian if precise nutrition calculations are needed for health reasons.
More Grits Recipes ...
- Sausage Flavored Breakfast Beans and Grits from Fat Free Vegan Kitchen
- Black Truffle and Cheese Grits from No Recipes
- Fried Green Tomatoes over Basil Goat Cheese Grits from Eats Well with Others
Carol at Wild Goose Mama.com says
I don't think about grits. So thank you for the reminder. This would make a GREAT side dish and definitely different for me to fix.
Rose | The Clean Dish says
I still haven't come around to grits, even after 5 years of living in the South! I'd be willing to try your recipe, though, as it looks fantastic :) I have never made my own grits, perhaps that's my mistake... Bookmarked!!
Cookin Canuck says
I still remember the scenes from My Cousin Vinny where they talk about grits: "No self-respecting southerner would ever use instant grits!" That line sticks in my head. I love this take on classic grits, Lana!