Chef Kardea Brown is a native of Charleston, South Carolina, of Gullah/Geechee descent. She has channeled her West African lineage and delicious cooking skills as a sunny presence on the Food Network, on her show "Delicious Miss Brown." We caught up with Miss Brown at the 2024 New York City Wine & Food Festival and were curious about what was the oldest family recipe in her rich repertoire.
Brown surmised, "It would more than likely be my great-grandmother's shrimp and grits." She added, "That's the one that's been in our family forever." Turns out this is also her favorite seafood dish, and she told us "That's my number one go-to.
They say if you were on death row and your last meal, what would it be? Shrimp and grits." Grits are simply coarse ground corn that becomes a magical porridge thanks to water or milk, and when combined with shrimp, a staple catch along the southern coast of the U.S.
, you get a classic dish. South Carolinian kitchens had been a sort of ground zero for the rise of shrimp and grits, and that's certainly true of the one Kardea Brown grew up with. Shrimps and grits is a family affair It wasn't just Brown's great-grandmother who helped shape the family's take on the signature dish — her husband had an influential role in it as well.
Brown noted, "My great-grandfather used to cast shrimping nets on the sea islands of Charleston in South Carolina. He would cast and actually make the nets by hand. And so, shrimp was very plentiful for us.
" Shrimp remains .