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Sunday, May 6, 2012

Coconut Shrimp w/ Sweet & Spicy Dipping Sauce


This marks my fourth recipe featured in the Hinton Voice.  I am really excited to share this recipe with you all - and I can't wait to make it for the seafood lovers in my life! 

[It was while dining in Jasper last summer that I first fell in love with coconut shrimp.  As a huge fan of coconut, I’ve always been intrigued whenever I see it on a menu, but never quite adventurous enough to try it.  For some reason I had it in my head that coconut shrimp would be overwhelmingly sweet, but that is not the case at all.  The buttery breadcrumbs paired with the delicate sweetness of the coconut and juicy shrimp creates a flavor combination like no other.

I knew immediately after trying this dish (and paying a ridiculous amount of money for it) that I would have to try re-creating at home… am I ever glad I did!  At less than $2 per serving, this recipe works out to be a mere fraction of what you pay in a restaurant or even in the frozen section of your grocery store. 

I was surprised at how easy it was to make from start to finish – and other than the shrimp, I already had all of the ingredients at home.  I used a basic chicken finger recipe substituting coconut in place of ½ the breadcrumbs.  I found that panko (a coarse, Japanese style breadcrumb) works best for this recipe.] 

Ingredients
- 12 raw shrimp, deveined (I used 30-41/lb)
- 1/4 cup panko
- 1/4 cup coconut, unsweetened
- 2 tbsp all purpose flour
- 1 egg, whisked
- 2 tbsp butter
- 2 tbsp olive oil

Dipping Sauce
- ½ cup apricot jam
- 1 tbsp rice wine vinegar
- 1/2 - 3/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

Directions
Combine ingredients for dipping sauce and set aside.

Get three small bowls and line then up in a row.  Place flour in the first bowl, egg in the second bowl, and panko and coconut in the third bowl.

Peel the shrimp leaving the tail intact. This is surprisingly simple to do - I found it easier to lightly squeeze the base of the tail with one hand, while peeling the rest of the shrimp with the other.  This helps keep the tail securely in place.

Dip the shrimp in the flour, then in the egg, and then finally into the panko/coconut mixture.  Dipping the shrimp in flour first better enables the batter to stick to the shrimp.

Pre-heat a frying pan over medium heat – melt 1 tbsp butter and then add 1 tbsp olive oil.  Once the butter and oil is heated, place half the shrimp in the pan and cook 2-3 minutes on each side, until lightly golden brown.  It is important not place too many shrimp in the pan so you don’t overcrowd it – this will help ensure that all of the pieces cook evenly. 

Place cooked shrimp on a plate lined with paper-towel.  Take an additional piece of paper towel and wipe out your pan and start with fresh butter and oil.   Repeat this process until all of your shrimp are cooked.

Tip:  to save on calories and fat try baking the shrimp instead of frying.  Simply place shrimp on a lightly greased baking sheet and cook in a pre-heated 425-degree oven for 10-12 minutes (be sure to flip shrimp over halfway through).

Enjoy!

- Nutritional Info (6 shrimp - baked) -


Calories - 225  Fat - 12    Carbs – 17     Protein - 16   Fibre – 3


- Nutritional Info (6 shrimp - fried) -


Calories - 345  Fat - 26    Carbs - 17     Protein - 16   Fibre – 3

- Nutritional Info (1 tbsp sauce) -

Calories - 44  Fat - 0    Carbs - 12     Protein - 0   Fibre – 0



4 comments:

  1. Your new design look fantastic Jax!!

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  2. These look fabulous! Just spotted them on Fabulous Food Blog Recipes on FB. Pinning them! Have a great day!

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  3. Tried your recipe last night! It came out great, even the dipping sauce! I couldn't find plain rice wine vinegar, so I used seasoned rice vinegar instead. But, it still came out great! Will use recipe again in the future!

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  4. These are amazing!!! Better than any Chinese Food restaurant I’ve ever tried!!

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