Sunday, July 24, 2011

Four Shrimp Salads; Simple, Straightforward and Refreshing


I love shrimps and you tend to go an extra mile for true love. So, I don’t pick up peeled shrimps, to keep their freshness intact, I prefer to go for the ones with the shell. I love rewarding myself with a cool and uplifting mini-meal after I have put in a little effort in cleaning it. It feels good to work to fulfil your desires, doesn’t it?

Baby Steps To Clean Shrimps

First Rub them with salt and wash them under running, cold water.
Remove the head and legs with your fingers.
Remove the tail or leave it for presentation.
Peel out the shell by loosening it with your fingers from the sides.
With the help of a sharp, small knife make an incision straight down the back of the shrimp, cut through in a straight line using the tip of the knife. Remove the vein by pulling it out or by running it under cold water.
It is preferable to remove the vein since it may affect the flavour of the shrimp to a certain extent.

Tip:
To get rid of the fishy smell off your fingers, utensils and clothes rinse them in a little vinegar or lime juice. You can just rub a squeezed lemon on your fingers and rinse them.

Note: All the ingredients should be chilled.


No Fuss Shrimp Salad



Ingredients

Shrimps               1 cup
Red Bell Pepper        1, ½ paste + ½ chopped finely
Cucumber           ½ cup, diced, small, without the core
Scallion (Spring Onion Green)    2 tablespoons, chopped finely
Sesame Seeds    1teaspoon, white, toasted
Iceberg Lettuce     2 cups, broken into bite size pieces
Olive Oil        2 tablespoon
Salt    to taste

Method:

Clean, peel and devein shrimps.
In a pan, add in two tablespoons of water and the cleaned shrimps with a pinch of salt and simmer the shrimps for 2 minutes, until it turns white and is cooked. Drain out the excess liquid and set aside to cool.

Grind ½ the red pepper with 1 tablespoon of oil and a pinch of salt. Make a fine paste.

In a bowl, mix the dressing with the shrimps.

Mix the remaining oil with cucumber, cut up red bell pepper and chopped scallions.

To assemble the salad, in a small plate make a bed of lettuce, place the shrimps with the red pepper sauce over the lettuce, sprinkle the cucumber dices, bell pepper and scallions from the top.

After placing the seasoned shrimps on the lettuce do not keep the salad standing for long since the greens will release their juices and loose the crunchy texture.

Refreshing Shrimp Salad



Ingredients

Shrimps    1 cup, peeled and deveined
Sweet Lime   1 cut into wedges with peels and few cut into dices without peels + grated rind of sweetlime
Cream       2 tablespoon
Salt   to taste
Sugar    a pinch (optional)
Dill leaves   a few
Iceberg Lettuce     1 cup, broken into bite size pieces

Method:

In a pan, add in two tablespoons of water and the cleaned shrimps with a pinch of salt and simmer the shrimps for 2 minutes, until it turns white and is cooked. Drain out the excess liquid and set aside to cool.

In a bowl, mix in the shrimps with some cream, sugar and salt.

On the presentation plate, decorate the sweet lime with peel around the edges.

Make a bed of lettuce, place the shrimps in cream over it, place a couple of peeled, sweet lime dices on the salad and sprinkle the dill leaves on top of it.

Serve Chilled.

Spoil Yourself Shrimp Salad



Ingredients

Shrimps   1 cup, peeled and deveined
Mayonnaise    2 tablespoons
Hot Chilli Sauce 1 tablespoon (You can use Tabasco Sauce)
Tomatoes,   ¼ cup, cut into small dices, without the core
Whipping Cream      2 tablespoons (Whipped)
Iceberg Lettuce      a couple of leaves, in the form of cups, chilled
Coriander leaves    a couple of leaves

Method:
In a pan, add in two tablespoons of water and the cleaned shrimps with a pinch of salt and simmer the shrimps for 2 minutes, until it turns white and is cooked. Drain out the excess liquid and set aside to cool.

In a bowl, mix mayonnaise, cream, hot chilli sauce with the shrimps.

In a plate, lay the iceberg lettuce cups, place the shrimp mixture in the centre of the cups. Put some dices of tomatoes and coriander leaves from the top.

Serve right away before the lettuce looses its crunchy texture.

Sweet Shrimp Mayo

This recipe is inspired by a Chinese appetiser, which is eaten as an appetiser and a salad at times.

Ingredients

Shrimps     1 cup, peeled, deveined
Cornflour and Egg White in equal quantities, mixed into a sticky mixture
Oil for frying
Mayonnaise        4 tablepoons
Lemon     1, juice
Condensed Milk    1 tablespoon
Walnuts      ¼ cup
Honey    enough to coat the walnuts

Method:

Coat the shrimps in the cornflour and egg white mixture and deep fry them.

Coat the walnuts in honey or caramel and set them aside.

In a bowl, mix mayonnaise, Lemon Juice, condensed milk with the fried shrimps.

Decorate it with the walnuts coated in honey.
Serve Chilled.

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