Instant Pot Shrimp and Grits is a delightful one-pot meal. Tender shrimp and crisp bacon in a spicy tomato-based sauce combine with creamy grits to create a delicious fusion of flavors. The beauty of this recipe is that you can cook the grits with the shrimp in the same pot. This popular recipe gets rave reviews!
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Table of Contents
Introduction
This Instant Pot Shrimp and Grits recipe was adapted from my own stove-top recipe for shrimp and grits that I’ve been making since I lived in the South.
Shrimp and grits is a classic southern recipe. If you’re wondering what grits are, they’re coarsely ground dried corn, similar to Italian polenta.
Originally served as a breakfast dish in the Southeastern US, shrimp and grits has gained in popularity on restaurant dinner menus. There are probably as many variations of shrimp & grits as there are restaurants serving the dish.
I’ve had shrimp and grits without tomatoes, with mushrooms, with cheese, or with andouille sausage or chorizo instead of bacon. Some versions are simple with just salt and pepper for spice and other versions use more bold flavorings.
My version is not the salt and pepper kind! It has spice-rubbed shrimp in a rich tomato-based sauce served on a bed of creamy grits. In adapting the recipe to the electric pressure cooker, I wanted to make the dish a one-pot meal with as few steps as possible.
The dish is easy to make: of the 45 minutes of cooking time, less than 10 minutes are hands-on. The end result is a wonderfully flavorful and comforting shrimp and grits.
You’ll notice that the shrimp is not sauteed at the beginning. It’s seasoned with a dry rub of Old Bay seasoning added in at the end. This seals in all the flavors.
Since the shrimp cooks in the residual heat of the Instant Pot, make sure you close the Instant Pot immediately after adding the shrimp – you don’t want to let too much heat escape!
I hope you get to try out this Instant Pot Shrimp and Grits recipe. If you’ve never tried grits, this is the way to try them because they go so well with the shrimp. It’s a meal-in-one that’s delicious and satisfying.
Here are some Instant Pot recipes you might like to try out!
– Instant Pot Jambalaya
– Instant Pot Gumbo
– Instant Pot Red Beans and Rice
TIPS AND SUBSTITUTIONS
Grits
Authentic grits are made from hominy, but it’s not easy finding authentic southern-style stone ground grits where I live. The best option I’ve found is Southern-style Bob’s Red Mill white corn grits, made from
Depending on the quantity of grits I’m making, they can be lumpy when finished cooking. I usually don’t have a problem if I make the recipe as written but when I double it, I need to break up the lumps with a fork once the cooking time is over.
If the grits seem too liquidy when you take them out, they will thicken if you let them sit for 15 minutes or so.
To make the grits more creamy, add a tablespoon or two of cream or butter.
Find out all about the different types of grits from Southern Living.
Cooking the Shrimp and Grits Together
This Instant Pot shrimp and grits recipe uses the pot-in-pot method to cook the dish. You’ll cook the sauce ingredients directly in the inner pot, put the grits in an oven-safe bowl that’s placed on a trivet in the sauce, and cook both together.
The steam from the sauce will build pressure and cook the grits, allowing you to make the main dish and side dish together!
Trivet
I have two trivets: the one that came with the Instant Pot and a 2.7 inch trivet. The tall one was too tall to fit the glass bowl I used for the grits, so I used the former, which was a bit messy since it sat in the sauce instead of above it.
After making this recipe, I purchased this 2 inch trivet, which I feel is just the right size. Find out more about what a trivet is and how to use it.
Lemon Juice
The lemon juice gives this recipe a slightly tart flavor. If you wish, you can reduce the quantity of lemon juice.
Spice Level
The spice level is mild to medium. If you want spicy shrimp and grits, you can increase the quantity of Old Bay Seasoning and/or hot sauce (reduce lemon juice if your hot sauce has an acidic flavor) and also the Old Bay Seasoning.
Feel free to substitute creole or cajun seasoning for the Old Bay Seasoning.
Adding some hot sauce or red pepper flakes at the end will allow you to add more spice to individual servings.
Servings
This recipe easily feeds four in my family. However, if you’ll be serving people with big appetites, you may need to make more. The recipe can be doubled but make sure that the dish you use for the grits is big enough!
Cheese
Adding cheese to the grits makes the grits creamier and more flavorful. You can omit the cheese. I make this recipe with plain grits or cheese grits. Keep in mind that cheese is salty, so adjust the quantity of salt if needed. You have a few options for cheese including:
Shrimp
I use medium shrimp when making this recipe. If you’re using large shrimp or jumbo shrimp, you may want to add a few more minutes to the shrimp cook time.
FAQs
There are a couple of things to consider when doubling this recipe:
– Double all ingredients.
– Make sure the container you use for the grits can accommodate double the grits.
– Keep the shrimp in the residual heat for a bit longer than the recipe says, and if they’re not completely cooked, heat in Saute mode for a minute or so.
– Pressure cook the grits for an extra minute or two, just to be safe.
To use sausage, saute about 6 oz. of smoked andouille sausage (cut into rounds) after sauteing the bacon. Add the sausage back in when you’re adding the cream.
Usually, just letting the grits rest for about 10 to 15 minutes allows it to thicken up.
Stir the grits up using a fork and add a little bit of cream to make them smoother.
Yes, you can use your choice of cheese. Some options are shredded parmesan cheese, pimento cheese, or goat cheese. Adjust the quantity of salt as needed.
Frozen shrimp won’t cook if you’re using my method of heating the shrimp in the residual heat. You’ll need to pressure cook the shrimp at high pressure for a minute or two with a quick release of pressure.
Instant grits are much less flavorful than regular or stone ground grits. Some readers have used quick grits and had good results but I have not tried using them.
No, you put the entire contents of the can into the Instant Pot.
– Substitute half and half for the cream. It won’t be as creamy and may be a bit more liquidy.
– Using stone ground grits is healthier than using regular or instant grits.
– Drain off the bacon fat and use olive oil to saute the onions.
– Or omit the bacon.
Yes, a stainless steel container should also work. I would use the same cook time.
If you’re new to the Instant Pot and aren’t familiar with how to use it, you might find it helpful to first read one of the following guides and then come back here to learn how to make this recipe.
- Instant Pot DUO Beginner’s Manual
- Instant Pot ULTRA Beginner’s Manual
- Instant Pot DUO EVO PLUS Beginner’s Manual
- Instant Pot DUO NOVA Beginner’s Manual
- Instant Pot DUO GOURMET Beginner’s Manual
- Instant Pot DUO CRISP Beginner’s Manual
- Instant Pot PRO Beginner’s Manual
- Instant Pot PRO CRISP Beginner’s Manual
Instant Pot Shrimp and Grits – Ingredients List
- Bacon
- Lemon juice
- Broth
- White wine
- Scallions
- Green bell pepper and/or red bell pepper
- Onions
- Garlic
- Seasoning
- Salt
- Shrimp
- Tomatoes
- Hot sauce
- Pepper
- Cream
- Shredded cheese (optional)
More details in the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post
How to Make Shrimp and Grits in the Instant Pot (Step by Step Instructions)
- Season shrimp
- Saute bacon
- Add onions and peppers
- Add tomatoes and seasonings
- Place grits on a trivet
- Pressure cook
- Release pressure
- Remove grits and add shrimp
- Cook shrimp and add cream
- Heat through
Season shrimp
- Season shrimp with Old Bay seasoning and set aside.
Saute bacon
- Press ‘Saute’.
- Cook bacon until crisp, about 3 minutes.
- Using a slotted spoon, remove bacon to a plate and set aside.
Add onions and peppers
- Add onions and bell peppers. Saute in the rendered bacon fat till onion is translucent, about 2 to 3 minutes.
- Add garlic and saute for another 30 seconds.
- Turn Instant Pot off.
Add tomatoes and seasonings
- Deglaze with white wine, and stir well to remove any browned bits from the bottom of the Instant Pot, allowing the wine to mostly evaporate.
- Add in tomatoes, lemon juice, broth, tabasco, salt and pepper.
- Stir to combine.
Place grits on trivet
- Place trivet in the Instant Pot.
- Stir together milk, water, grits, salt and pepper in an oven-safe glass bowl.
- Place bowl on trivet.
Instant Pot Duo Pressure Cook 10 minutes
- Close the lid and make sure the steam release handle is in the Sealing position.
- Press Manual (or Pressure Cook) and + or – until the display reads 10 (10 minutes).
Instant Pot Ultra Pressure Cook 10 minutes
- Close the lid.
- Select Pressure Cook mode and adjust the time to 10 minutes (00:10).
- Press Start.
Pressure Cooking Process (Duo and Ultra)
- Instant Pot display will change to On.
- Once the Instant Pot is pressurized, the float valve will go up.
- The display will count down to 0; it will then switch to Keep Warm mode and display L0:00 or 00 00 and begin to count up the number of minutes since pressure cooking completed.
How to Naturally Release Pressure (NPR) on the DUO and ULTRA
- Allow the pressure to release naturally (NPR). The float valve will be in the down position. This may take 15 to 30 minutes. [Find out more about the pressure release methods and how and when to use them. ]
- Press Cancel and open the Instant Pot.
Remove grits and add shrimp
- Carefully remove the bowl containing the grits, add butter, fluff with a fork, and set aside. *
- For cheesy grits, add 2 ounces of cheddar cheese or your choice of cheese.
- Remove the trivet and stir in shrimp.
* Be sure not to let too much heat escape while you’re removing the grits. The shrimp will be cooking in residual heat of the Instant Pot.
Cook shrimp and add cream
- Close the Instant Pot and allow the shrimp to finish cooking in the residual heat.
- After 10 minutes, open the Instant Pot.
- Add cream and gently stir the shrimp.
Heat through
- Press Saute .
- When heated through (don’t boil), press Cancel.
- Remove to serving bowl and garnish with scallions and reserved bacon.
- Serve grits topped with shrimp and sauce.
Instant Pot Shrimp and Grits
Ingredients
Shrimp Ingredients
- 1 lb shrimp (500 grams) peeled and deveined
- 2 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning or more to taste
- 3 strips bacon diced
- ⅓ cup onion chopped
- ½ cup bell peppers red and/or green, chopped
- 1 tablespoon garlic minced
- 2 tablespoon dry white wine
- 1 ½ cups diced tomatoes canned or fresh
- 2 tablespoon lemon juice or to taste
- ¼ cup low sodium chicken broth
- ¼ teaspoon Tabasco sauce or hot sauce, more to taste
- ½ teaspoon salt or to taste
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper powder
- ¼ cup heavy cream
- ¼ cup green onions sliced thin (green parts only)
Instructions
- Pat shrimp dry and sprinkle with Old Bay seasoning. Set aside.
- Select Saute mode, cook bacon until crisp, about 3 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, remove to a plate and set aside.
- Saute onions and bell peppers in the rendered bacon fat till onion is translucent, about 2 to 3 minutes.
- Add garlic and saute briefly.
- Turn Instant Pot off.
- Deglaze with white wine, and stir well to remove any browned bits, allowing the wine to mostly evaporate. Make sure there's no food stuck on the bottom of the pot.
- Stir in tomatoes, lemon juice, broth, hot sauce, salt and pepper.
- Place trivet in the Instant Pot.
- In a medium bowl that will fit in the Instant Pot, stir together grits, milk, water, salt and pepper. Place bowl on trivet.
- Close Instant Pot lid and pressure cook on High Pressure for 10 minutes.
- Allow the pressure to release naturally. [Read More: The Different Pressure Release Methods]
- Open the Instant Pot, remove the grits and set aside.
- Remove the trivet.
- Carefully stir in shrimp.
- Close the Instant Pot immediately and allow the shrimp to finish cooking in the residual heat. Instant Pot will be in Keep Warm mode.
- While shrimp is cooking, add butter and cheese (if using) to the grits and fluff grits with a fork. Make sure you remove all lumps while fluffing the grits. *
- After 10 minutes, open the Instant Pot. Gently stir the shrimp.
- Select Saute mode and stir in cream. Heat through (don't boil) and turn off Instant Pot by pressing Cancel.
- Garnish with scallions and bacon.
- Serve grits topped with shrimp and sauce.
Notes
- Prep time does not include steps that are already accounted for in the ingredient list, e.g. chopped onions, minced garlic, peeled shrimp, etc.
- * To make the grits extra creamy, add some cream.
- You can substitute Old Bay seasoning with Cajun seasoning or Creole Seasoning. Adjust the quantity of added salt as needed.
- See the blog post for more detailed recipe tips
Nutrition
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I am not a certified nutritionist. I provide my best estimate of nutritional information merely as a courtesy to my readers. If you depend on nutritional information for dietary or health reasons, I suggest using your favorite online nutrition calculator to confirm the nutritional value of this recipe based on the actual ingredients that you use.
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More Instant Pot Shrimp Recipes
Paige
I made this for dinner tonight and my husband & me and we loved it! It was certainly more than enough for the 2 of us so we’ll enjoy the leftovers. The seasoning was perfect – not too spicy for my husband but just enough to make it interesting. I would like to know how others get the bowl of grits out without burning their hands!
Neena Panicker
Paige, one thing you can try doing is making a sling with aluminum foil. Take a long piece of foil, fold it lengthwise multiple times till it’s about 2 inches wide. Place the foil sling under your bowl when you’re placing it on the rack. Tuck it out of the way when the food is cooking. Use the sling to lift the bowl out!
Amy Sonnenberg
Very tasty and a good use for the IP. I will agree that this serves two good sized dinner servings or 4 as an appetizer. Now my husband understands why I order s&p regularly when we go out.
My grits were kind of unevenly lumpy with dry spots. With some stirring, and a generous handful of Gruyere, it all worked out.
This is an easy recipe to make subs based on what you have handy— I used a Cajun spice mix from another recipe, chicken broth instead of wine to deglaze and in the grits, 1/2 and 1/2 at the end.
Paint the Kitchen Red
Amy, thanks for the comment. So happy to hear you liked the recipe. It could be you needed to stir the grits up a bit more. But glad you got it figured out.
Nancy Valant
This is the best shrimp grits recipe I’ve ever made!!
Paint the Kitchen Red
Thank you, Nancy – I appreciate you sharing that!
Deb
Awesome recipe! We thought it to feed 4 people fine. Rich and satisfying.
Paint the Kitchen Red
Thank you, Deb. I appreciate you taking the time to let me know. 🙂
Tina Chin
First… I don’t ever leave a review unless I have actually made the recipe… second, everything about this recipe is absolutely phenomenal!!! Flavor, consistency of grits and the serving amount which served for my family- 1 teen, 1 pre teen and 1 adult (a very large plate that could have very well been split into two….) and still had tons of the sauce left! I didn’t have the canon of tomatoes so I diced 3 fresh ones and boiled in a 1/2 cup of water just a bit. I also didn’t have a bottle of white wine so I just used some white cooking wine. I was totally tempted to double the recipe …. especially the grits, but opted to stick with the recipe as written…. SO GLAD I DID!!! I had never used another pot/bowl in the instant pot (I’m a newbie) so I was a little confused here and worried… I used a 7 in round cake pan. I just knew it would overflow and I would have grits everywhere! But to my surprise… perfection! There is not one step I would recommend changing nor one ingredient substituted… WELL DONE author, WELL DONE…this one is a keeper! Thank you!!
Paint the Kitchen Red
Wow, Tina! Thank you so much for your detailed review and kind words. You’ve made my day. Yes, I find grits to be surprisingly filling!
Monica Pileggi
I made this last night (April 15, 2020). I forgot to add the broth to the IP per the directions. I was afraid the pot would burn but it didn’t. When I added the shrimp, I added the broth (which I heated up in the microwave). I also added a heaping tablespoon of Parmesan cheese to the grits when I added the butter, as I felt the grits was too plan for my taste; however, the cheese was not needed because the sauce had a delicious flavor. This was excellent and I’ll definitely keep this in my recipe book. Thanks!
Paint the Kitchen Red
Hey Monica, thank for commenting and for letting us know your substitutions. Glad to hear you liked the recipe 🙂
Jennifer
This dish turned out to be absolutely brilliant!
After reading some of the comments, I was worried. Most people seem to take portion sizes out of context and devalue your recipe for their lack of research and common sense. We found no issue with your portion sizes. The grits turned out wonderfully and despite our decision to amend your recipe, you gave us a baseline to run with. We have tried your Jambalaya, gumbo and étouffée recipes and have been blown away each time! I am so pleased that you share your hard work and efforts with the world. The Instant Pot is a wonderful machine and we’re so glad you have taken the time to test some of our Southern/Creole favorites. Cheers!
Paint the Kitchen Red
Thanks, Jennifer! I’m pretty proud of this recipe because I was the first one to post this recipe with the shrimp and grits cooked together, and I developed the recipe myself. I very much appreciate you taking the time to comment and rate the recipe and letting me know about the Cajun recipes you liked!
Chris Cleeland
The only reason this got 4 stars is because it’s definitely not a “serves 4”. To serve 4 I would basically double it.
I also bailed on the “Old Bay” and used Tony Chachere’s creole seasoning for everything. Turned out extremely well.
Paint the Kitchen Red
Chris, thanks for taking the time to comment. I appreciate your feedback. It’s hard to set serving size, since it is subjective but I will keep your comment in mind for when I revise the recipe in the future.
Terence
Our family enjoyed this dish to varying degrees, ranging from my youngest (a teenager) who absolutely loved it, to me who thought it was just ok. On the plus side, I thought the shrimp were cooked perfectly! My biggest complaint is that the recipe says it serves 4. Perhaps as an appetizer, but for me, as an entrée, it serves closer to 2 (perhaps 3; if I had to pick a number, I’d go with 2.25).
I did not grow up on grits, but loved them when I had shrimp & grits in a restaurant in Washington D.C.; those grits were sooo creamy. These grits were not nearly as creamy and that disappointed me (if it’s easy to tweak the recipe to be creamier, might be worth a comment in the recipe). One other potential note to add to the recipe is for people to remove all the lumps when fluffing the grits.
Paint the Kitchen Red
Terence, regarding the creaminess of the grits I know what you mean and that’s most likely from using cream and butter 🙂 Yes, sorry about the serving size – I usually just put down the number of servings that a recipe feeds my family – we usually have a salad, etc. So it may not be accurate for everyone. I will put it on my list to update the tips with your suggestions because they are valid points. Thanks for your feedback.
Terence
I looked at other shrimp and grits recipes to see how to make the grits creamier. After the grits were cooked, I fluffed them and mixed in 5 oz (or so) of shredded cheddar cheese. Grits were outstanding with this addition.
I also doubled the amount of shrimp. This required additional cooking time (had to turn on Saute as I’m not sure all the shrimp would have fully cooked in just the latent heat).
Paint the Kitchen Red
Thanks for the update, Terence. I had a feeling that cheese or cream would do the trick – and you’re very kind to share your experience!
Chris Cleeland
A lot of the creaminess of grits is related to the grits you use. Quaker grits don’t really get creamy.
I was just in Mississippi and bought some “Grit Girl” grits after having some in a local restaurant, and they cooked up super creamy.
Paint the Kitchen Red
Thanks, Chris – good info!
Donna
We loved this recipe!
Paint the Kitchen Red
Thanks for your comment, Donna – I’m really glad you liked the recipe.
Amy
Do you think it will still be a good recipe if bacon is not added? I don’t eat pork.
Paint the Kitchen Red
I think it will be tasty still. Maybe you can add some chipotle chile or smoked paprika for a smoky flavor and saute the onions in some butter if you don’t mind the fat.
My
Thank you, great ideas!
Christine Haughton
I am not sure what I did wrong but this recipe did not turn out as well as the others. We used Autry grits the only difference. No flavor in the sauce just blah . My husband was so excited to have this Shrimp and grits as it is his fav. Not this though. It took over 2hrs to prepare and cook. I don’t get the benefit of this instant pot.
Paint the Kitchen Red
Christine, sorry this recipe didn’t meet your expectations. I love the flavors of this recipe, but maybe your taste buds require you to increase the quantity of spices, onions, garlic, etc. Maybe by one and a half.
Tanya
For some reason I have had a taste for shrimp and grits and the only wsy to get them was to make them myself. I love cooking in my pressure cooker so of course I had to find a recipe that used a pc, and ingredients I had on hand. This one was perfect. The first time I made them I just used 1/2 the recipe because I was only making for myself. It came out so good, and I had leftover shrimp and sauce so I had it over rice. And it was just as good or even better. My husband had a taste and asked me to make more. So within 1 week, I made this twice. Both times it came out perfect. Thank you for sharing your rcipr for this delicious dish.
Paint the Kitchen Red
Tanya – thanks for that wonderful comment! I’m glad it passed the hubby test 🙂
Angie
Made this for dinner tonight….my hubby said it was restaurant quality. Could it be because I didn’t have milk so I used heavy cream for the grits👨🍳 🤣😂.
Wasn’t sure how big of a bowl to use for the grits and all I had were the round Pyrex so I used the smallest 1qt size and it was perfect. Grits didn’t explode everywhere as I wasn’t sure how much it would rise. Also just as another reviewer said grits were a little runny at first but setup nicely as I waited for the shrimp to cook. Recipe is definitely a keeper. Next time I will try adding some sausage. Thanks for the great recipe!
Paint the Kitchen Red
Hi Angie, that’s funny – cream does make anything taste even better 🙂 Thank you for your comment and I so happy to hear you liked one of my favorite recipes. Sausage would be a nice and substantial addition.