I know LOOKS like a replay of the cat’s breakfast… but trust me, it’s delicious.
I believe I may be the only human being on the planet who loves (adores, craves, dreams about) hominy casserole. But what’s not to like?
“I know you like it,” Mom said, “But let me just say it’s not one of my favorites. Why would you do that to hominy, when sauteeing it in a little butter is all it needs?”
I love my mother dearly, but do sometimes wonder about her sanity: Hominy casserole is the most delicious side dish I’ve ever encountered. AND it’s the perfect vegetarian entree if you don’t feel like eating meat.
I whipped some up last night, a perfect accompaniment to the pounding rain outside.
“You know,” The Resident Carpenter-Blacksmith said, scooping another forkful, “This would be delicious if you took the hominy out.”
“Nathan,” I said patiently, “ANYthing mixed with this much sour cream and cheese would taste good. EARTHWORMS would taste good.”
“Better than hominy, anyway,” he muttered under his breath. Nathan’s mountain man ethos includes consuming things you’d normally call a pest control company to remove, so he may be speaking from experience.
This recipe was my ex-mother-in-law’s. To say she and I didn’t get along is an understatement; she talked my fiancé into a blind date with his ex-girlfriend the day before our wedding. No matter, that woman could COOK, in the classic cholesterol?-what’s-that? midwestern style. Four of my all-time favorite recipes* came from her kitchen.
Not needing a postprandial myocardial infarct, I rarely make any of them…but life is very, very good when I do. BTW, this is a simplified version of a recipe I posted quite some time ago–either one is quite delicious. Try both, and when you get out of the Cardiac Care Unit, let me know which one you prefer.
Hominy Casserole
There are several kinds of hominy out there; what you want is the large, white kernel hominy, although the yellow works equally well. If “Mexican” hominy is all you can find, you can use that too, but for some reason the kernels have a slightly hard shell at the tip, which interrupts my enjoyment. I prefer to make my own bread crumbs, especially if I have some homemade sourdough bread going stale (more about that later). Just pop it in the toaster, then whir it in the food processor until it’s as fine as you like.
Ingredients
- 2 large cans of hominy
- 1 pint sour cream (don’t go all healthful on me and try yogurt or low-fat sour cream, get the real thing)
- 1 small can of diced green chilis (if you’re into heat, substitute a half cup of chopped pickled jalapenos)
- 1 lb of sharp yellow or white cheddar cheese, shredded (if you can find Tillamook Smoked Cheddar…yum)
- 1/4 teaspoon tarragon
- 1/4 teaspoon thyme
- 1 tablespoon red pepper flakes
- salt and pepper to taste
- 3/4 cup bread crumbs
- Optional: About 2 tablespoons of butter
- One large baking/casserole dish
Method
This one’s really simple: Dump all the ingredients except the breadcrumbs, butter, and 1/4 cup of the cheese into a large bowl. Mix until everything is evenly distributed, then dump it in the baking dish. Spread the breadcrumbs evenly over the top, sprinkle the remaining cheese over that. You can dot it with the butter, although I find it’s not necessary–there’s enough fat in all that cheese and sour cream that the breadcrumbs don’t dry out.
Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.
This stuff freezes exceptionally well, so I tend to have a hominy casserole dinner, while the casserole is cooling. Then I dump the remainder into freezer bags, label them, and save them for days when I need comfort food.
* Hominy Casserole, Mother-in-law Chicken Breasts, Raspberry Salad, and Butter Toffee
I haven’t eaten hominy in I can’t remember how long. reminds me of the night we had a couple over for dinner and I made smothered chicken with a rich gravy, probably mashed potatoes as a side with a veg. the male half of the couple made some comment about instant heart attack. it was very good though.
Yeah, I think this is from the Midwest’s time-honored “smother it in sour cream and cheese” genre, which includes any starchy variation you can imagine. The RCB suggested potatoes, but rice, water chestnuts, noodles, probably taro root works just as well.
I once tried something called “Helen’s Good Stuff” from one of those PTA cookbook activities my mom joined, where everyone contributed recipes and got back a thick volume bound in colored construction paper (Mom’s was green). Much the same thing, except you used cubic inch chunks of ham, cheddar cheese, and potatoes. I remember it being delicious but not exactly diet food.
I have a nearly identical recipe which uses three-four cups cooked white rice in place of the hominy. It’s written in one of my recipe binders as Jeannie’s Cheesy Rice Casserole. I have no idea who Jeannie is.