Shrimp for breakfast? Absolutely! Shrimp and grits has been a breakfast standard in the South for a very long time. Sausage gravy over biscuits is another venerable tradition. The addition of shrimp to biscuits and gravy opens up a whole new can of delight!
You can make homemade biscuits from scratch, or you can bake up some of the refrigerated 'Grands'-type biscuits. In either case, make sure they're fresh and hot when you ladle this delicious gravy over them.
NOTE: If you're starting with raw, unpeeled shrimp, use the shells to make this Quick Shrimp Stock before you start (using 1/4 cup less water than the instructions call for.)
Makes 4 servings of Biscuits with Shrimp and Sausage Gravy
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients:
- 2 Tablespoons canola or vegetable oil
- 1 cup chopped sweet onion
- 1 cup cooked, crumbled breakfast sausage (see Cook's Note)
- 1 1/2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 cup shrimp stock or light chicken stock
- 1/4 cup half and half or light cream
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon dried marjoram or dried savory
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- Pinch of cayenne pepper (or hot pepper sauce to taste)
- 10 ounces raw shrimp, peeled and deveined, or 8 ounces cooked peeled shrimp (any size from Small to Extra Large is fine)
- 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice (or more to taste)
- Salt
- 4 large, hot biscuits, split
Preparation:
Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Saute the onions until softened (about 8 minutes.)
Stir in the sausage and flour. Cook 3-5 minutes, stirring often, until the flour is lightly browned. Pour in the stock (half a cup at a time) and the cream, stirring well until thickened.
Add the shrimp and stir until just firm and opaque (or heated through, if cooked.) Remove from heat, add lemon juice, adjust salt.
Ladle sauce over biscuit halves and serve immediately.
COOK'S NOTE: This recipe uses pre-cooked packaged sausage crumbles from the supermarket to save time, but you can use any type of cooked breakfast sausage broken up into small chunks.