Cajun shrimp

A few days earlier than I promised, but hey, that can't be a bad thing now can it? Anywho, this is part two of my quick and easy seafood recipe set. Shrimp are notoriously quick and easy to cook, and make for a great middle of the week dinner when you don't have a lot of time. The problem with most shrimp in general, through, is that they're a little bland with out something else to provide the flavor. Coming from the Chesapeake Bay area, that usually means boiling them in a pot of water and vinegar with a bunch of old bay. There's the cold shrimp cocktail, but that always seems passé. Adding shrimp to pasta or stir fry is quick, but means the shrimp are no longer the star players. So I was happy that while watching Food Network one day, I saw something very similar to this recipe.

I call it cajun shrimp, because I use a good amount of heat and butter, but there's really no provenance beyond that. It is yummy though. Served over a bed of rice and it makes a tidy little meal when combined with a salad.

Cajun shrimp:
1 lb. shrimp
1 stick butter, room temp.
1.5 tsp chili pepper
1 tsp. tabasco
1 tsp. paprika
1 tsp. old bay

1. Put the butter and spices in a bowl or your food processor and combine thoroughly. This can be made well ahead of time and kept in an airtight container in the fridge. Wash the shrimp and remove the shells, leaving the tails on.
2. Heat a skillet over medium hight heat and add at least half of the butter. When the butter is completely melted and begins to bubble, add the shrimp and coat thoroughly. Cook for about 5-10 minutes, depending on the size of you pan how tight everything is.
3. Lay over fresh rice and enjoy with an ice cold beer and some bread (with this amount of heat, you'll need those).

It looks a bit like chicken doesn't it, but its the seasoned compound butter.

Shrimp in the pan, before being tossed to coat.

The end product, all seasoned and buttery.

Those of you who would normally butter your rice obviously need not do so with this recipe. There's more than enough carryover to season the rice with some rich and spicy flavor. As I noted in the recipe, although you have a starch with the rice, you'll probably want some extra bread to help deal with the heat. True, you could use less chili powder and tabasco, but what's the fun in that?

Look for another update some time late next week (possibly next weekend),
Cheers,
Mike