Salt and Pepper Shrimp

It's Lent again and we abstain from eating meat on Fridays.

The easiest non-meat food that I know how to cook (sort of) is shrimp since we buy the frozen ez-peel shrimp type which have already been de-veined and
beheaded.

Now, I only have 2 shrimp dishes in my arsenal - shrimp alfredo pasta & shrimp tempura.

Tonight, I decided to make an extra effort in expanding our weekly menu and decided to try for Chinese-Style Salt & Pepper shrimp, di naman pala mahirap.

I found a few recipes with different variations, I chose what seemed to be the easiest recipe (from ChineseFood.about.com) and I chose it mainly because it was stir-fry and did not call for deep frying.

This is what we prepped:

1/2 pound large shrimp
1 tablespoons cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper (too much for our taste! Will use less next time)
2 tablespoons vegetable oil, for stir-frying
1 garlic clove, minced
1/4 cup chopped green onion
chili pepper (did not use)

Soak the shrimp in warm, lightly salted water for 5 minutes. --> I skipped this part because I used medium-sized shrimp and I didn't think that it needed more than the outer coating. It turned out okay in terms of saltiness. 

Rinse in cold water, drain and pat dry with paper towels.

Lightly coat the shrimp with the cornstarch.

In a small bowl, mix the salt with the freshly ground pepper and set aside.

Heat 2 tablespoons in a preheated pan on medium high to high heat. When the oil is hot, add the shrimp and stir-fry until they turn pink. Remove from pan.

Heat 1 tablespoon oil in the pan. When the oil is hot, add the minced garlic, chili pepper (optional) and the salt and pepper mixture. Stir-fry until fragrant (10 - 15 seconds) and then add the shrimp back into the pan. Stir-fry to coat the shrimp in the salt and pepper mixture. Stir in the green onion or serve as a garnish with the shrimp.

Next time, I will slice up some onions and add them to this dish.

Honey Walnut Shrimp

I was cleaning out my desk when I came across a typewritten recipe for this dish. I remember getting this from my friend, Wena. I don't know where she got this from so if this looks familiar, please drop me a line so I can give credit to whoever put this recipe together :)

Ingredients:
1 lb of large or medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
1/2 cup cornstarch
1/2 cup egg whites
1/2 cup oil

Sauce:
2 tbs honey
2 tbs mayonnaise
1 tbs fresh lemon juice
1/2 tbs condensed milk
1/2 cup walnuts (you can buy glazed walnuts from the grocery store)

• Mix cornstarch and egg whites together to form a thick, sticky texture and mix well with the shrimp.


• Mix honey, mayonnaise, lemon juice and condensed milk in a bowl until smooth.


• Heat oil until boiling then deep try the shrimp until golden brown.


• Drain shrimp then fold in honey mayonnaise mixture. Mix well and sprinkle with walnuts, arrange on a platter and serve.

Our first thanksgiving - Shrimp and Crab Stuffed Flounder, Baked Scallops w/ Bacon

I wanted to make something special for our first thanksgiving. I couldn't decide what to prepare but I knew that:

1) we are not standard thanksgiving fare fans (i.e. turkey, yams, stuffing,...) ; and,
2) given that we'll probably be spending thanksgiving by ourselves, there's no sense in having too much food that we'll be eating as leftovers in the next few days.

Inspiration struck when we were wandered, quite accidentally, into the supermarket's seafood section. There were crabs, shrimp, fish and scallops. It was then that I decided to prepare an all-seafood meal. Given that we're usually red-meat eaters - aside from the occasional chicken - this would be unique. Special, even.

Found a great recipe on the web for Shrimp and Crab stuffed flounder by Linda Reir.

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons butter
1 cup chopped onion
2 (4.5 ounce) cans small shrimp, drained
1 (4.5 ounce) can sliced mushrooms, drained
1/2 pound cooked crabmeat
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon paprika
8 (6 ounce) fillets flounder
2 (10.75 ounce) cans condensed cream of mushroom soup
1/3 cup chicken broth
2 tablespoons water
2/3 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Lightly grease a 9x13 inch baking dish and set aside.

In a saucepan over medium heat, melt butter and saute onion, shrimp, and mushrooms until onion is tender. Stir in crabmeat, salt, pepper, and paprika; heat through.

Spoon the shrimp and crab mixture onto each flounder filet. Roll the filet up and fasten with toothpicks. Place rolled filets in prepared baking dish.



(Note: Either the flounder filets I got were too small or I was trying to stuff too much of the crab mixture in so instead of rolling the fish, I just folded it over.)

In a small bowl, whisk together soup, chicken broth, and water until smooth. Pour over the filets. Sprinkle cheese over the top.









Cover the baking dish with aluminum foil and bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes.

Remove from oven and remove foil. Sprinkle the parsley over the top of the filets. Return the dish to the oven and bake uncovered for an additional 5 minutes or until fish flakes easily with a fork.

... and voila! Obviously, this dish is sorely lacking in presentation, but I swear, this is good!









We did make one concession in deference to turkey day, in addition to the stuffed fish, we had baked scallops wrapped in turkey bacon (hubby's idea). These turned out very good too. The scallops were huge - at least an inch and a half in diameter - and very very sweet, I just sprinked them with some seasoned salt and wrapped them in bacon.