Happy Valentine’s Day!
It would be nice to take your sweetheart out for dinner tonight but traditionally, Valentine’s Day is one of the busiest for most restaurants.
If you don’t mind, one of the quickest meals to prepare is cooking with shrimp as cooking for 3-4 minutes is all you need to create a wonderful dish.
I am big on brining my Thanksgiving turkey as you may well know, but brining shrimp for a short period, like one hour, will make your shrimps succulent, tastier, and juicy. You can soak them in a saltwater solution, along with sugar, herbs or spices of your choice to add to its flavors.
Brining shrimp
1-1/2 pounds 20-21 count large shrimp
(The number denotes the amount of shrimp to a pound, so the smaller the number, the larger the shrimp)
3 cups cold water
3 tablespoons kosher salt or 2 tablespoons table salt
1-1/2 tablespoons sugar
Combine water, salt and sugar. Stir to dissolve. Transfer to a sealable bag, add the shrimp (cleaned and deveined), seal and refrigerate for 1 hour.
Remove from brine and pat dry with paper towels.
• • •
If you are just searing your shrimp, high heat will create the best texture and sear for only 1 to 2 minutes.
The crevice in the back of the shrimp where the vein is removed, at the thickest part of the shrimp, at the opposite end of the tail, should turn translucent to opaque. Remove the shrimp from the heat as it will continue to cook.
If your sweetheart likes Japanese, how about shrimp tempura with assorted vegetables?
This is my favorite tempura batter:
Dean’s Tempura Batter for Fish and Shrimp
1 cup cake flour
1/4 cup cornstarch
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
Iced water to make a batter
Mix dry ingredients, then add iced water to make a light, watery batter. Season shrimp with salt and pepper before dipping into batter.
This batter is also great for eggplant and onion tempura.
Make sure your oil is hot enough but not too hot to burn this delicate batter. This will make a very light batter.
Want to do Chinese? I like this honey walnut shrimp with some Asian slaw.
Asian Slaw
Serves 4
Whisk together in a large bowl:
3 tablespoons mayonnaise
2 teaspoons rice vinegar
1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
1/4 teaspoon salt and white pepper
Add and toss to combine well:
1 small Chinese cabbage, thinly sliced, about 12 ounces
1 cup sugar snap peas, cut in half on the diagonal
1 green onion, thinly sliced
Chinese Honey Glazed Walnut Shrimp
Serves 4
First make the honey walnuts:
3/4 pound shelled walnuts
Mix together:
1/3 cup honey
4 tablespoons sugar
Mix honey and sugar, toss with the walnuts, bake in a 250 degree oven for 30 minutes, until the nuts are dry and well coated.
About 15 minutes before dinner:
1/2 pound 21-30 shrimp, peeled, deveined, butterflied and slightly flattened and brined for one hour
1 large egg white
Drain shrimp from brine, pat dry and mix shrimp with egg white.
Add:
2 tablespoons cornstarch
Heat:
2 cups vegetable oil
Fry shrimp quickly, remove from oil, drain on paper towels.
Mix together:
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
2 teaspoons condensed milk
2 teaspoons evaporated milk
While still warm, toss the shrimp in the mayonnaise mixture along with the honey walnuts. Coat well and place on a serving platter with the Asian slaw.
• • •
Have mango chutney? This recipe may bring back great memories of shrimp curry with a side of mango chutney, chopped green onions, chopped hard-cooked eggs, grated coconut, sliced bananas and raisins.
Hawaiian Shrimp Curry
Serves 6
1-1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 medium onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 pieces fresh ginger, finely chopped
2 tablespoons curry powder
1/2 teaspoon brown sugar
2 tablespoons flour
In a heavy saucepan over medium heat, add the onions, garlic, ginger and cook until aromatic. Add curry powder and brown sugar. Stir for one minute, add flour and stir until slightly cooked, another minute or so. Gradually add:
2 (14 ounce) cans coconut milk
1/2 cup chicken broth (add only if you feel the sauce is too thick)
Salt to taste
Stir constantly. Do not heat too much or the coconut milk could separate.
Add: 1-1/2 pounds cooked shrimp
Just heat through. Do not overcook. Cool and allow to rest.
Serve with mango chutney, chopped green onions, grated coconut, chopped candied ginger, raisins, chopped bananas and chopped cooked eggs.
Foodie bites
Hawaii Community College’s Culinary program’s Cafeteria and Bamboo Hale is open from Tuesday through Thursday.
Call 808-934-2591 to make reservations for the Bamboo Hale, 808-934-2559 for the Cafeteria or check out http://hawaii.hawaii.edu/cafeteria.
Email Audrey Wilson at udreywilson808@gmail.com.