Shrimp Eight Ways

Shrimp Eight Ways

Last year for my oldest daughter’s birthday party, I did Duck Eight Ways: http://lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.php?t=5109&highlight=duck

At the risk of sparking a boat-load of Forest Gump allusions, my oldest daughter has this year requested a birthday meal of Shrimp Eight Ways.

Off the cuff, I’d say the likely dishes will include a classic shrimp cocktail, some kind of shrimp soup, a shrimp salad, perhaps a shrimp done in the style of Coquilles St. Jacques. I’d also like to make a shrimp dessert – maybe something in a vanilla reduction.

But I’m open to suggestion. Thus, this post.

David Hammond wrote:At the risk of sparking a boat-load of Forest Gump allusions, my oldest daughter has this year requested a birthday meal of Shrimp Eight Ways.

So, are you going to make reservations at Red Lobster for Shrimpfestacular 06®?

Grilled Marinated Shrimp -

I made these for Mother's Day - http://barbeque.allrecipes.com/az/BasilShrimp.asp

I recommend double skewring them - they look pretty and dont spin around when you flip them.

Does she like Mexican food as much as her dad? Why not take the theme a step further and make it ocho estilos del camaron?

Cocktel de camarones
Seviche de camarones
Tortillas de camarones
Sopa de albondigas de camaron
Camarones a la diabla
Chiles rellenos con camarones
Alambre de camarones

Dessert...you're on your own with that one.

Best,
Michael

Shrimp ice cream!

Iron Chef Hammond!

How about shrimp dejonghe? A nice chicago touch.

eatchicago wrote:Does she like Mexican food as much as her dad? Why not take the theme a step further and make it ocho estilos del camaron?

Cocktel de camarones
Seviche de camarones
Tortillas de camarones
Sopa de albondigas de camaron
Camarones a la diabla
Chiles rellenos con camarones
Alambre de camarones

Dessert...you're on your own with that one.

Best,
Michael

Or here's another hurdle, how about I go with Mexican shrimp dishes exclusively from Nayarit!

Seviche should definitely be on the list -- really appreciate the input.

re: Shrimp Dessert...

what did we do before the internet?

See Japanese Ice Creams for a description of a Shrimp Ice Cream product from Roman Holiday...

Do dried shrimps count? They can make a great powder to sprinkle over, say, a regular green salad.

Well...I don't know how old your daughter is but if it's a birthday celebration, how can you not have some sort of fried shrimp?

Or possibly a version of salt and pepper shrimp?

Something crispy and yummy always does it for me.

Shannon

An attractive and easy to make favorite of mine is portabella mushroom caps stuffed with shrimp and gorgonzola cheese topped with strips of roasted red peppers and fresh basil. Bake them in a rectangular pan or baking dish covered with foil to keep the mushrooms from drying out. Some liquid will collect in the pan which can be spooned over the mushrooms.

Shrimp potstickers or empanadas are also good party food. Or how about shrimp fritters?

Two ideas from a recent dinner at Spoon, thanks to Dmnkly and Erik M.
I can now (happily) vouch for shrimp dessert.

Kristen

Dmnkly wrote:
kûng châe náam plaa
raw shrimp marinated with lime juice, fish sauce, garlic and chile

and

Dmnkly wrote:
sômtam pôh la mâi
pounded mixed fruit salad with fish sauce and dried shrimp

d4v3 wrote:An attractive and easy to make favorite of mine is portabella mushroom caps stuffed with shrimp and gorgonzola cheese topped with strips of roasted red peppers and fresh basil. Bake them in a rectangular pan or baking dish covered with foil to keep the mushrooms from drying out. Some liquid will collect in the pan which can be spooned over the mushrooms.

Shrimp potstickers or empanadas are also good party food. Or how about shrimp fritters?

Hey, my daughter (who is going to be 24) loves portobello mushrooms, and Nichols has had some nice big ones at the Oak Park Farmer's Market, so that might work.

Last year, the fried duck wantons/pot stickers were a big hit, so doing a shrimp version might be a good idea.

Here's an easy one that's a favorite with both my kids....get some jumbo shell on shrimp and throw them in the smoker (fruitwood works best) for about 30 min. @ 225 degrees. Then peel and serve with a sprinkle of bbq rub or a good sweetish bbq sauce. Mango or peach salsa also goes well with these. Grownups love 'em too.

kuhdo wrote:Here's an easy one that's a favorite with both my kids....get some jumbo shell on shrimp and throw them in the smoker (fruitwood works best) for about 30 min. @ 225 degrees. Then peel and serve with a sprinkle of bbq rub or a good sweetish bbq sauce. Mango or peach salsa also goes well with these. Grownups love 'em too.

The last time I smoked shrimp was in the dead of winter -- I was banking on the ambient temperature keeping the heat down so the shrimp could go low and slow and get good smoky flavor without overcooking. I do have some sand in the garage (for the water pan) and some cherry wood, so I've not ruled this menu item out, but do need to get my nerve up.

Hammond

How about a Catalan style rice dish with shrimp...
(cf. http://lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.php?p=67981#67981)

Or fideus with shrimp... (cf. Fideuejat amb mariscs)?
http://lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.php?p=67862#67862

A

Salt & Pepper Shrimp is pretty easy. Googled Here!

You need a Cookshack Smokette. So easy it almost feels like cheating (some call it "lazy-Q"). I have several other smokers but this electric device is by far the easiest and best (especially for seafood). The insulation is so good I can do a side of salmon in 20 min. when it's zero outside. The seals are so good it's almost impossible to dry anything out.

As far as other shrimp dishes..... additional favorites around my house....1)shrimp in lobster sauce (or black bean sauce if feeling less inspired); 2)Shrimp toast ; 3)Shrimp DeJongh ; 4) Gambas con ajillo (light on the chile flakes for my kids please) ; 5)shrimp fajitas 6) Shrimp pizza (apart pizzeria does an outstanding version ) and 7) Tempura shrimp Finally ( one of my personal favs)... Southern Shrimp Salad (with Rice-a-Roni and chopped green olives) . This always disappears fast. Recipie is from Paula Dean and is on the food network website.

OK, dangerously veering into Bubba Gump-hood here...

I'll second Shrimp Dejonghe or however it's spelled.
I'm a bisque fan myself in the soup department.
Etouffee is another fave of mine (sure, better with crawfish, but darn nice with shrimp)

And don't forget to get some really big ones and fry them.

JoelF wrote:I'll second Shrimp Dejonghe or however it's spelled.

A menu from the DeJonghe Restaurant spells it Shrimps DeJonghe.

Them Gumpers eats good sometime.

David Hammond wrote:I’d also like to make a shrimp dessert – maybe something in a vanilla reduction.

Patricia Quintana in her Mexico Feasts of Life has a singular recipe for vanilla shrimp. Not dessert, but terrific.

Bill/SFNM

I can't help thinking that shrimp chips could be incorporated into some sort of dessert -- maybe just as a garnish for a mango-lime sorbet with a splash of tequila-- though that may be chickening out on the shrimp dessert thing.

Okay....i was thinking about this and I remembered my mother used to make this really lovely shrimp dip -- you take little boiled shrimp and process them with cream cheese, garlic, cocktail sauce of your choice and some lemon for freshness and serve it up with nice yummy crackers. I always used to add a little extra horseradish with your basic cocktail sauce for a bit more piquancy. You could do a variation with chipotle peppers, perhaps and make it more latin-flavored.

In terms of the dessert -- how about a mousse of a reddish/pinkish nature (strawberry? raspberry? lingonberry???) and mold it in the shape of a shrimp!!! <Grin>

Overall, I am knocked out by some of the excellent advice I’m getting here. The menu is shaping up (I do intend to post pix of the final platters), and I think the biggest hurdle (and most fun to clear) will be dessert. That it’s feasible to use one main ingredient from app through entrée (including sides) to dessert is testimony to the amazing versatility of shrimp.

Certainly some intriguing options for dessert.

germuska wrote:See Japanese Ice Creams for a description of a Shrimp Ice Cream product from Roman Holiday...

Wow. Why not? Wonder if they sell it locally…

Bill/SFNM wrote:

David Hammond wrote:I’d also like to make a shrimp dessert – maybe something in a vanilla reduction.

Patricia Quintana in her Mexico Feasts of Life has a singular recipe for vanilla shrimp. Not dessert, but terrific.

Bill/SFNM

Appreciate the lead. I took Quintana’s book out of the library earlier this year, but forgot that recipe was in there. Bad news: The Wife and Youngest Daughter are making noises about wanting coconut shrimp, which I’m much less enthusiastic about making, but if compelled, would have to make it dessert. I’d rather do the vanilla shrimp, but we’ll see.

Josephine wrote:I can't help thinking that shrimp chips could be incorporated into some sort of dessert -- maybe just as a garnish for a mango-lime sorbet with a splash of tequila-- though that may be chickening out on the shrimp dessert thing.

That is brilliant, and if time becomes an issue, I may go that route. There would certainly be something quite festive about the colorful chips in a fruity sorbet…and, of course, the tequila helps. Technically though, it would be kind of meeting the minimum requirements with a technically “shrimp” dish. Still, intrigued.

Very grateful for all the input.

Hammond

David Hammond wrote:But I’m open to suggestion. Thus, this post.

Hammond,

Here's two favorite grilled shrimp recipes. Both from friends, both of which I've made any number of times.

Enjoy,
Gary
--

Parsley Shrimp

2 pounds shrimp, shell on
6 cloves garlic, fresh
1 onion, medium
1/4 cup parsley, fresh
1/2 cup olive oil, or peanut oil
1 teaspoon basil, dried
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1 teaspoon salt
juice of 1 lemon

Puree all ingredients except the shrimp. Marinate the Shrimp for at least 1/2 hour. Soak bamboo skewers in water for at least 1/2 hour. Thread shrimp on bamboo skewers. Grill over charcoal. Do not peel the shrimp prior to grilling or they will dry out.

Jan Bloom

==-==-==-

Sambuca Marinated Grilled Shrimp

24 large shrimp
1/2 c. sambuca
14 c. extra virgin olive oil
1/4 c. chopped fresh rosemary
kosher salt and black pepper
8 paper-thin slices prosciutto

Peel and devein shrimp leaving on tail. Marinate in next 4 ingredients for at least 15 minutes. Wrap shrimp and grill over charcoal for at 1 1/2 minutes per side.

Melissa Graham

David Hammond wrote:...I think the biggest hurdle (and most fun to clear) will be dessert.

David: ask your youngest daughter to make (again) her shrimp-shaped cookies hanging off the sides of a cocktail glass!

Amata

David Hammond wrote: Bad news: The Wife and Youngest Daughter are making noises about wanting coconut shrimp, which I’m much less enthusiastic about making, but if compelled, would have to make it dessert.

To build on the sorbet/shrimp chip approach-- you might satisfy the wish for coconut by clothing the shrimp chips in toasted coconut. Perhaps, brush them with some Lyle's Golden Syrup (available at Treasure Island) for stickiness and then enrobe in toasted coconut. This could be served with a pineapple-based sorbet.

To move slighty further into using the actual shrimp for the dessert, you might incorporate the pretty cartilaginous (is that a word?) pink tails as a garnish in the Iron Chef tradition. One way might be to deep fry for crunchiness and then arrange them artfully and make a praline with them. You could then rig a thin sheet of shrimp praline to the mound of sorbet. Seems like it might have a good crunch to it.

Another shrimp dessert idea...shrimp beignets or doughnuts. You could make a caramel sauce with shrimp paste for dipping.

Rick Bayless' Camarones al Mojo de Ajo is one of my favorites. A simple recipe with lots of toasted garlic, chipotle in adobo, lime juice and olive oil.

Recipe here:

http://www.globalgourmet.com/food/speci ... hrimp.html

Shrimp Eight Ways: The Dinner

This discussion really helped me focus up on what I wanted to make. Making any one thing eight ways is kind of challenging, so the idea exchange helped a lot.

We started with Ebi Sushi (I).



I should have followed Amata’s advice and had my youngest daughter make cookie shrimp cocktails; instead, I had her make the sushi which as you can see has WAY too much wasabi – it was blinding but fortunately I had enough shrimp crackers on hand (thanks for the hint Josephine!) to scrap the dead skin off our tongues before proceeding.

Shrimp Cocktail (II) came with a sauce made with some of the aged catsup I got from Bruce; turned out very well, somewhat less sweet and more deep than cocktail sauce made with commercial castup.

Thanks to Eatchicago, I was inspired to do a Shrimp Ceviche (III). I added some tuna, which was a mistake; it didn’t taste bad, but as MikeG observed on a similar dish at Katsu, marinating just doesn’t add much to fresh tuna. Still, it was the Birthday Girl's favorite dish:



The only disaster (one out of eight ain’t bad!) was the Shrimp Soup (IV). I used a chicken broth that I’d simmered with some shrimp shells, then (taking a cue from d4v3) added puff ball mushrooms and glass noodles. We improvised; we failed; the taste was just odd, and without C2 on hand, I believe we may have mishandled the fungus: it was chewy. Should have used the portobellos.



We also had some Shrimps DeJonghe (V; great idea, gleam; thanks for the spelling research, ReneG.), but my pix were too sucky even for me to post. People seemed to like them enough to just about finish them all in one sitting (and they came late in the lineup, so that’s saying something). I also did a Shrimp Salad (VI) and Chilies Gueros Stuffed with Camarones (VII) – they were OK but no KO.

The all-out-favorite, and winner of Dave’s “I’ll have thirds, please” Award, goes to The Wife’s Coconut Shrimp (VIII). I had resisted this bastard dish, but it turned out to be quite pleasing; here are the shrimps, with some fresh coconut (fortified with some bagged stuff) sizzling away in a bunch of grease:



With some sweet-sour dipping sauce, this probably inauthentic but entirely pleasing preparation was an excellent last course/dessert, with none of the sickly sweetness of other versions I've had of this dish.

I’m trying to talk my daughter into maybe going with eight uses of a single spice or seasoning next year, like maybe cinnamon. Maybe cilantro. Or salt.

Thanks again for all the thoughtful suggestions – even if I didn’t use your suggestion, every post contributed to our thinking about what would be the right configuration of dishes. Almost makes me sorry I was limited to only eight ( ).

Hammond