Eat Mo' Bettah BBQ Shrimp

Back when I was in grad school in the frozen tundra of Wisconsin, the was-band & I occasionally patronized a fabulous hole-in-the-wall Cajun food take-out place.  We loved the BBQ shrimp there, but we could never remember the name of the place.  We simply called it "Eat Mo' Bettah," in honor of the Cajun Chef guy on TV.  (Y'all remember him?)

The jambalaya there was tasty, too.  And one of the most amazing things I have ever eaten in my life was their Cream of Garlic soup.  We could never figure out when The Soup Dreams Are Made Of would be on the menu, so it was a happy day indeed when we happened to hit it lucky and wander in on Cream of Garlic day.


The Teeter recently had 2 lb. bags of frozen shrimp on sale, which immediately brought to mind happy memories of BBQ Shrimp.  Luckily, I have a recipe that's a dead ringer for the BBQ Shrimp of yore.  I discovered it, in of all places, Desperation Dinners by Beverly Mills and Alicia Ross.  

This perky little cookbook promises "Home-cooked meals for frantic families in 20 minutes flat" and it mostly delivers on that promise, with mostly good results.  Some recipes are fabulous, others, we prefer not to repeat.  But most of the recipes are really pretty good.  Of course, being the tinkerer that i am with recipes, I often reverse-engineer the recipes to make them a bit slower to prepare but better-tasting.


Happily, the BBQ Shrimp from Desperation Dinners only requires minimal tinkering for fabulous results.  It's super-simple, & super-easy-- 3 quick steps!


I have a note on the recipe that says it's not too spicy for DS (added when DS was in kindergarten, i think), so this recipe is even kid-friendly.


DS and I enjoyed our delectable BBQ Shrimp over some Mahatma Saffron Rice, prepared in the microwave.  

I was pleasantly surprised at how well the rice turned out!  On the side we had some HT Garlic Bread (to sop up all that good sauce!) and a medley of leftover frozen veggies.  I can highly recommend both the HT Garlic Bread  (from the freezer section) and the Mahatma Rice mix.  And both were purchased FREE with coupons (Suh-WEET!!).


As I've mentioned, the BBQ Shrimp is super-easy to prepare.  I did a quick-thaw of my frozen shrimp in a sink-full of lukewarm water and had it thawed, peeled, and ready to roll by the time the rice had finished cooking in the microwave.

I put a lb. of shrimp in a ziptop bag and used a glass pie plate to keep it submerged in lukewarm water to thaw.

One of my more fastidious colleagues at the Teeter disdained to purchase the shrimp because it wasn't pre-peeled, but I am here to tell you, when they say "EZ-Peel," they aren't kidding.  The shells are pre-slit down the belly of the shrimp and it takes just a second or two to get them off.  Plus, the tail part comes intact out of the shell very easily-- which is wonderful, since DS has a "thing" about having ANY shell left on his shrimp. (He hates that little decorative bit of shell restaurants often leave on the tail.)

My thawed, peeled shrimp


There is one ingredient that can't be replaced in this recipe, however--- it's the Chili Sauce.

It is the secret to the whole dish.  This isn't some fancy Thai Chili sauce, it's very ordinary stuff kind of like ketchup. In fact, if you've never tried it, you have probably seen it next to the ketchup in the store and just never noticed it.  It's great for making quick cocktail sauce for shrimp--  just add a little horseradish, and presto, there you are.  I always have a bottle of Heinz Chili Sauce in my fridge.


Here is my slightly adapted recipe for

Eat Mo' Bettah BBQ Shrimp

by DomesticMuse

(I gar-on-tee you gonna love it!)

1 T extra-virgin olive oil
1 T unsalted butter (or margarine, if you want to make this dairy-free)
1 T freshly minced garlic (from 5-7 cloves)
1 c. chicken broth
1/2 c. bottled chili sauce (preferably Heinz)
1 t. Cajun seafood seasoning blend (I use Paul Prudhomme's Seafood Magic)
1 t. Worcestershire sauce
1 t. dried thyme leaves
Tabasco or your favorite hot sauce to taste
1 lb. raw lg. shrimp, peeled


1. Spray a large, heavy skillet with non-stick spray.  Heat over medium heat and add the EVOO and the butter.  Once the butter has melted, add the garlic and cook 30 seconds--  don't let the garlic brown.


2.  Add the chicken broth and raise the heat to high.  Add the chili sauce, cajun seasoning, Worcestershire, thyme, and hot sauce (if using).  Boil for 2-3 minutes, or until slightly thickened and the flavors have blended.

3. Add the shrimp and cook, stirring gently, until the shrimp are pink and just cooked-through, about 2-3 minutes.

 Remove from the heat and serve the shrimp and sauce over a bed of rice.



The Mahatma Saffron rice was terrific with the shrimp and sauce.


MICROWAVE RICE
Here are the directions for cooking it in the microwave.  I think you can follow the same directions with plain rice, just use 1 c. of rice and 2 c. of boiling water.


1.  Combine the rice mix, 1 T butter or margarine, and 1 2/3 c. boiling water in a 1 1/2 qt. microwave-safe bowl.
2. Cover and cook on high for 3 minutes.
3. Reduce the microwave power to 50% power and cook, covered, for 17 minutes.  Fluff with a fork and serve.


Makes 2 1/2 c. cooked rice.  (DS and I managed to eat all but about 1 T of the rice--  Zelda was thrilled to eat what was left.)


Here is DS's plate, 


BEFORE



and 

AFTER


C'mon, Y'all--  try some BBQ Shrimp and eat mo' bettah!


Bon appetit!

Easy Breezy Shrimp Pasta

There are days for lovingly simmering pasta sauce for hours. Then there are days like today, when we leave the house in the morning and don't return until 11 hours later, famished. This recipe is a tried-and-true lifesaver for a busy day. Quick, delicious, easy. I've been making it for years. Using bottled pasta sauce as the base saves mucho tiempo-- and the ingredients you add will make it taste as good as homemade.

Some of my ingredients:

I LOVE that the wine is called French Maid!! (Hey, it was on sale!)

The great thing about this recipe is that it is very flexible and you can vary the ingredients depending on what you have on hand. No shrimp? Chicken works fine. So do those frozen meatballs. No peppers? No problem. Just leave 'em out. Want to use fresh herbs instead of dried? Go right ahead-- just wait to add them until the last minute or so of cooking. I've used linguine here, but you can use whatever kind of pasta you like. Also, we love things SPICY. If you don't, use a smaller amount of pepper flakes.


The shrimp version is a big favorite of DS's and we haven't had shrimp in quite a while. Since I got both the pasta and bottled pasta sauce FREE with coupons, I decided to splurge on the shrimp (on sale for half price). Actually, I got ALL the ingredients at a discount-- so I made this dish in poco tiempo for poco dinero!

Unfortunately, this dish is kind of like me: not very photogenic! You'll just have to take my word for it that it's delicious. Everything just looks kind of.... orange... yes, that largish orange thing towards the bottom is a piece of eggplant.


Need a meal on the table pronto? Try

Hellzapoppin' Shrimp Linguine
by DomesticMuse

1 lb. linguine or pasta of choice (I used whole wheat linguine)
2 T extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 t. red pepper flakes (more to taste)
1 onion, diced
1 sweet bell pepper, diced (I used red, you can use green, orange... or none.)
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 small eggplant, peeled and diced (see notes below)
3/4 c. wine (I used white to go with the shrimp)
1 t. dried oregano
2 t. dried basil
1/2 t. dried thyme (fresh would have been really nice here, but I didn't have any)
1 jar pasta sauce (whatever kind you like. I used Newman's Own Sockarooni)
1/2 pasta jar of water
1 t. sugar
1 T balsamic vinegar
2 T capers
salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
1 lb. raw medium shrimp, peeled

Put a large pot of salted water on to boil while you are getting the sauce ingredients ready. Set a large heavy skillet over medium heat.
When the onions are chopped, spray the skillet with nonstick spray and add the olive oil. Add the onions to the pan and saute until translucent. Add the peppers and saute for 2-3 minutes, then add the garlic and saute for about 1 minute (don't let it burn!). Add the eggplant and sprinkle with 1/2 t. salt. Saute for 3-4 minutes, until starting to get tender.
Increase the heat to medium high and add the wine. Bring to a boil, and cook until wine is almost completely evaporated. Add the oregano, basil and thyme and stir for about a minute.
Add the bottled pasta sauce. Fill the "empty" jar halfway with water, put the lid on tightly and shake to get all the remnants of sauce out of the jar. Add the water/sauce mixture to the pan, along with the sugar. Simmer uncovered for 10 minutes, until thickened.

Here's my sauce, starting to simmer


At this point, add your pasta to the boiling water and cook until al dente (7-9 minutes, depending on what kind you're using). Drain the cooked pasta.

Taste the sauce at this point to check the seasoning. When I tasted my sauce, it Needed Something. So I added 1 T of balsamic vinegar and more red pepper flakes. That did the trick. (A bit of grated orange zest would have been nice too, but I didn't have any oranges.) Now add the capers and stir. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Finally, reduce the heat to medium and add the shrimp. Stir until the shrimp is pink and cooked through, about 2 minutes. If you are using fresh herbs, add them now. When the shrimp is cooked through, add the pasta to the sauce and stir to combine. Remove from the heat and serve immediately.

Some chopped Italian parsley would have been a nice addition at this point, but I forgot to pick some up. By all means, feel free to add grated cheese if you like.

DS's bowl, up close & personal


NOTE: The basic components of this infinitely flexible sauce are 1)onion & garlic sauteed in olive oil, 2)protein & veggie(s) of choice, 3)wine or vodka, 4)Italian herbs (fresh or dried) of choice, 5)bottled pasta sauce of choice, 6)flavor booster of choice. Some components of the ingredients are only soluble in alcohol, so adding wine or vodka greatly enhances the flavor.
NOTE: if you are using boneless chicken, ground beef, or Italian sausage, brown these items first and remove from the pan, then proceed with the recipe. If you add the meat after or with the onion, it will never really brown because there's too much moisture in the pan. Add the browned meat or chicken back to the pan when you add the bottled pasta sauce. Frozen meatballs and can be dumped in when you add the pasta sauce.
NOTE: Many combinations of vegetables will work great here, depending on what you like. Peppers, mushrooms, eggplant, and zucchini in various combinations are all delicious. I have not had good luck with cruciferous veggies like broccoli or cauliflower, but you may.
NOTE: some of the "flavor boosters" we enjoy are capers, drained, marinated artichoke hearts, green or black olives, fennel seed (add with the other herbs), grated orange zest, & balsamic vinegar.
NOTE: it's really important to add only minimal amounts of salt as you go, because the sauce will get saltier as it thickens. A bit of salt draws the moisture out of eggplant and helps it cook better. Some ingredients, like capers or olives, are salty, too. You can always ADD more salt if the sauce needs it, but you can't take salt out! So wait until the sauce is pretty much done before adding salt to taste.

LET'S EAT!!