As you know,
the Hawthornes love their shrimp.
Every August-September,
we're buying shrimp 5-10 pounds at a time,
depending on size,
stocking up for the winter.
Mr. Hawthorne gets nervous
if we have less than 50 pounds of shrimp in the freezer.
The shrimp are big now,
so we're hoarding them,
hoping they'll get even bigger
and hoping that a hurricane won't blow through,
driving the shrimp out to sea and
ending this season's shrimp harvest.
Today, I'm making beer batter fried coconut shrimp
with a pineapple salsa.
Pineapple Salsa
6 slices of pineapple, finely chopped
1 roasted red pepper, chopped
1/3 cup orange marmalade
1/2 red onion, chopped
2 TB horseradish
1 jalapeno, seeds and ribs removed, minced
zest of one lime
Add it all together and taste test.
If you want more of something,
add it.
Choppie, choppie.
Roasted red pepper.
Orange marmalade.
Chopped red onions.
Jalapeno.
Horseradish.
Lime zest.
He pulled the heads and shells off, leaving the tail.
Then he de-veined the shrimp.
Actually, de-veining is a misnomer
since no vein is involved.
What you're removing is the digestive tract
which runs along the back.
Next I butterflied the shrimp.
I work on paper towels.
Helps to stabilize the shrimpie
and you can easily wipe shrimp parts off your knife.
I work on paper towels.
Helps to stabilize the shrimpie
and you can easily wipe shrimp parts off your knife.
Turn the shrimp on its back
and run a knife down the middle where that line is,
cutting through the shrimp.
That's not a vein either.
It's a nerve.
I use a paper towel to pull that slippery thingie out.
Butterflied shrimp.
Next I prepared the batter and coating mixture.
Beer Batter
2 cups flour
1 cup cornstarch
1/2 tsp freshly ground sea salt
1tsp freshly ground pepper
1 tsp cayenne powder
12 ounces beer
pineapple juice
Combine dry ingredients.
Whisk in beer until you get a smooth batter.
If batter is too thick,
add in a little pineapple juice to thin it.
You want a thin pancake batter consistency.
Coating Mixture
equal parts coconut and panko breadcrumbs
Holding the shrimp by the tail,
dip two at a time in the Beer Batter,
sliding the shrimp up the side of the bowl
to get excess batter off.
Next dredge the shrimp in a mixture
of one part sweetened coconut flakes
and one part panko bread crumbs.
Heat at least 2 inches peanut oil to 350°.
Fry 6 shrimp at a time until golden.
About 75 - 90 seconds.
Drain on paper towels.
Serve with pineapple salsa.
My assembly line is ready.
Butterflied shrimp on left,
beer batter,
panko/coconut mixture,
hot oil,
paper towel lined rack.
And there are 4 pints in the background
of Mr. Hawthorne's Salsa Ranchera that he canned the other day.
And there are 4 pints in the background
of Mr. Hawthorne's Salsa Ranchera that he canned the other day.
I enlisted Mr. Hawthorne's help
so we could go faster.
I battered and coated 6 at a time and ...
... he fried them.
By the time I had the next 6 shrimp ready,
he was done frying the last batch.
Serve with pineapple salsa and a few sprigs of cilantro.
This is one of my absolute favorite dishes.
I wish I weren't the only one who likes coconut shrimp or I'd be making that all the time!
ReplyDeleteMarilyn, you need to make this for yourself. And when the vultures circle and come in to pick a piece to sample, then you stab 'em with your steak knife.
ReplyDelete