Coastal Cooking: Chef Joe's Shrimp & Grits
Part of the Coastal Cuisine Series
Part of the Coastal Cuisine Series
The Original Oyster House has been a tradition for many families' Gulf Shores vacations for more than 30 years. Opened in 1983, it's one of the longest-running seafood restaurants in south Alabama, and for good reason. Generations of families have walked through the doors ready to pull up a chair to their favorite seafood dishes. In fact, after the immediate success of the Gulf Shores location, another Original Oyster House was opened on the Mobile Bay Causeway in 1985. For more good eats in Gulf Shores and Orange Beach, visit the restaurant directory online.
Now retired, Original Oyster House former owner and chef Joe Roszkowski personally developed many of the flavors families have feasted on at the restaurant. Joe got his start in the kitchen when he was 15 years old, cooking with his mother at the Polish American Club in Akron, Ohio. Joe's father told him he needed to start thinking about what he wanted to do for the rest of his life and
Joe said cooking was calling his name. Joe said his passion for cooking came from his family. His grandparents were Polish immigrants who made simple fare, and his mother was an outstanding cook. Joe's most memorable moment at the restaurant was reopening the Mobile Bay Causeway restaurant two months after Hurricane Katrina destroyed its location. Visitors to Original Oyster House know the restaurant has withstood the test of time, thanks to its down-home, Southern seafood classics that are spiced up with just the right amount of care and attention.
When you're not vacationing in Gulf Shores, fire up your stove top and have a little bit of Original Oyster House at home with Josh's Shrimp & Grits, named after Joe's son.
Chef Joe's Shrimp & Grits
Ingredients
- 2 lbs. 21-25 ct. shrimp, peeled tail, heads removed
- 1 cup unsalted butter, melted
- 2 Tbsp. Joe & Dave’s YaYa Spice
- 3 cups water
- 1 Tbsp. unsalted butter
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1 cup instant grits
- 8 oz. American cheese
Directions
Blackened shrimp
- Heat a heavy skillet to medium high.
- Thread seven shrimp per skewer and brush one side of each skewered shrimp with melted butter.
- Sprinkle each buttered skewer with YaYa Spice, coating that side of the shrimp.
- Place seasoned side of skewer in hot dry skillet.
- Brush butter on top side of skewered shrimp while cooking, and coat with YaYa Spice.
- Flip skewer after 2-3 minutes and cook other side for 2-3 minutes.
Cheese grits
- Bring water to a boil; add butter, salt and grits. Cook for five minutes.
- Remove from heat and stir in cheese.
- Place a serving of cheese grits and a shrimp skewer on each plate.
