Hey, family members! I've been thinking about doing this for some time - starting a cooking blog to share recipes with you. Most of them will be ones that we like to cook in the family, but some will be experiments that work out.
New note 2023: Grandma & Grandpa used to make Shrimp Creole similar to this. The thing that is missing from this version (and was missing from theirs) is using a "roux" as a starting point for the sauce. As I understand it, a roux is a slow-cooked flour and butter mixture (equal parts) that is browned and then used as a basis for creole sauce. A roux that is only cooked a little bit is the basis for a white sauce, which is a good thing to know how to make.
This is a meal I cooked yesterday evening. I had 8 Roma tomatoes, ripe but not super-ripe. A one-pound bag of extra large, cooked but not de-tailed shrimp, a red bell pepper, an onion, and rice. Plus staples: chili powder, salt, minced garlic packed in olive oil, Mrs. Dash veggie seasoning.
"T" means tablespoon, "t" means teaspoon.
Shrimp Creole with Fresh Tomatoes
Ingredients:
1 cup white rice (cooked separately with 2 cups water, 1/2 t. salt) - see below for directions
1 lb. large frozen cooked shrimp (thaw in cold water, and then remove the tails) (note: really, any size cooked frozen shrimp can be used)
2 T. cooking oil
1 red bell pepper
1/2 med-large onion
1/2 T. Mrs. Dash vegetable seasoning or similar
1 t. (heaping) minced garlic packed in olive oil
1/2 T. chili powder (note - chili powder is a spice mixture that contains salt)
8 chopped Roma tomatoes or equivalent (or use a can of canned whole tomatoes broken up, or a can of tomato sauce)
Thaw the shrimp in cold water. To speed up thawing, have a gentle stream of cold water running through the bowl the shrimp are in. While they are thawing, start the rice. Check the shrimp, and if thawed, drain, take off the tail shells and put them in the trash (will not go down disposal without causing a problem). Make sure there are no pieces of shell left with the shrimp meat.
Start a cup of rice cooking (1 cup Basmati rice, 2 cups water, 1/2 teaspoon salt). Bring to boil, turn heat as low as it will go, set timer for 10 minutes. Turn off at 10 minute mark. If you are using regular white rice, cook for 14 minutes instead of 10 minutes.
Chop up the bell pepper and 1/2 of an onion, start sauteeing them in stove-top wok-type pan or large frying pan in 2 T. oil. Heat on medium. While cooking, add some ground vegetable seasoning - about 1/2 tablespoon (use some variety of Mrs. Dash like garlic/herb). Add a heaping teaspoon full of minced garlic packed in oil. Coarsely chop up the tomatoes and add them - will start to cook down and turn sauce-like at this point. Add a good amount of chili powder (up to 1/2 T.).
Last, added the thawed shrimp, and cook until heated through. Serve over the cooked rice.
Note: I realized afterward that my mother's Shrimp Creole recipe used diagonally sliced fresh celery, sauteed with the veggies, but I don't keep that around as a staple. I listed canned tomatoes and/or sauce as alternatives in the ingredients, in case you don't have fresh tomatoes that you want to use in sauce.
One other note - several of the recipes I checked on-line listed Worcestershire Sauce as an ingredient, so you may want to add a teaspoonful or two to the sauce or sprinkle some on after serving. It is salty.
This is a meal I cooked yesterday evening. I had 8 Roma tomatoes, ripe but not super-ripe. A one-pound bag of extra large, cooked but not de-tailed shrimp, a red bell pepper, an onion, and rice. Plus staples: chili powder, salt, minced garlic packed in olive oil, Mrs. Dash veggie seasoning.
"T" means tablespoon, "t" means teaspoon.
Shrimp Creole with Fresh Tomatoes
Ingredients:
1 cup white rice (cooked separately with 2 cups water, 1/2 t. salt) - see below for directions
1 lb. large frozen cooked shrimp (thaw in cold water, and then remove the tails) (note: really, any size cooked frozen shrimp can be used)
2 T. cooking oil
1 red bell pepper
1/2 med-large onion
1/2 T. Mrs. Dash vegetable seasoning or similar
1 t. (heaping) minced garlic packed in olive oil
1/2 T. chili powder (note - chili powder is a spice mixture that contains salt)
8 chopped Roma tomatoes or equivalent (or use a can of canned whole tomatoes broken up, or a can of tomato sauce)
Thaw the shrimp in cold water. To speed up thawing, have a gentle stream of cold water running through the bowl the shrimp are in. While they are thawing, start the rice. Check the shrimp, and if thawed, drain, take off the tail shells and put them in the trash (will not go down disposal without causing a problem). Make sure there are no pieces of shell left with the shrimp meat.
Start a cup of rice cooking (1 cup Basmati rice, 2 cups water, 1/2 teaspoon salt). Bring to boil, turn heat as low as it will go, set timer for 10 minutes. Turn off at 10 minute mark. If you are using regular white rice, cook for 14 minutes instead of 10 minutes.
Chop up the bell pepper and 1/2 of an onion, start sauteeing them in stove-top wok-type pan or large frying pan in 2 T. oil. Heat on medium. While cooking, add some ground vegetable seasoning - about 1/2 tablespoon (use some variety of Mrs. Dash like garlic/herb). Add a heaping teaspoon full of minced garlic packed in oil. Coarsely chop up the tomatoes and add them - will start to cook down and turn sauce-like at this point. Add a good amount of chili powder (up to 1/2 T.).
Last, added the thawed shrimp, and cook until heated through. Serve over the cooked rice.
Note: I realized afterward that my mother's Shrimp Creole recipe used diagonally sliced fresh celery, sauteed with the veggies, but I don't keep that around as a staple. I listed canned tomatoes and/or sauce as alternatives in the ingredients, in case you don't have fresh tomatoes that you want to use in sauce.
One other note - several of the recipes I checked on-line listed Worcestershire Sauce as an ingredient, so you may want to add a teaspoonful or two to the sauce or sprinkle some on after serving. It is salty.
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