Spicy Cilantro Shrimp

I love shrimp! Remember that scene from Forest Gump? You know the scene, "...fried shrimp, baked shrimp, coconut shrimp, lemon shrimp..." that is my happy place. I don't really know how or where this dish came about, but I remember the first time I made it. I was in my first apartment in my hometown, coincidentally it was the apartment I grew up in, I took over the contract when my mom moved up north, but I digress. I think it all started because I was trying to make my own version of very, very, spicy shrimp.  The meal only takes about 20 minutes to prep AND cook, how awesome is that? And the outcome is delicious, so spicy, with a delicious buttery sauce... in one word it is yummy!

Serves 3 

First, melt four tablespoons of butter in a nonstick skillet over medium/high heat.

While it melts, finely dice half of a large onion.

When the butter has melted, like so.

Add in the onions and cook until soft.

When the ingredients are beautiful, buttery and bubbling :) add in four cloves of minced garlic and stir to combine.

Grind in some fresh black pepper and a pinch of salt and stir.

You will need one and a half pounds of de-veined, peeled shrimp.

If they are not deveined or peeled, I am sorry, but add another 15 minutes to your prep time, and get moving. 

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Close up of the beautiful, buttery, bubbles!

Add in the shrimp.

Almost instantaneously, the shrimp begin to turn pink. 

Give it a stir and continue to cook shrimp.

Meanwhile grab one plump lemon.

Roll the lemon back and forth with the palm of your hand on a hard flat surface (like a cutting board or counter) to loosen natural oils and juices.

Slice the lemon in half and squeeze the juice of the lemon into the shrimp, using one hand to catch the seeds underneath. Repeat with the other half of the lemon, discard lemons once they are all juiced out.

Add in one and a half tablespoons of cayenne pepper. Stir ingredients to combine.
If you do not like your food spicy (I'm talking hot, not medium or mild), only add in one tablespoon of pepper.

Your shrimp should be smelling and looking all kinds of delicious by now.

Add in half a teaspoon of rooster sauce, it will help give a unique taste and deeper hue to your shrimp.

Next, finely chop about 1/4 cup of cilantro.

Add to the shrimp and stir. Add salt to taste as well. By now your shrimp should be done, remove from heat. How can you tell when your shrimp is done? If your shrimp is firm to the touch and a beautiful hue of orange, it is done. Give it a taste, if it is too spicy for your liking melt in a couple tablespoons of butter and stir. 

Serve this dish with some nice bread to dip the sauce in or plain white rice. 

So yummy!

A brilliant reader had a brilliant idea, she/he suggested I add printable recipes to the blog, I have yet to figure out how to do so, but here is my best shot for now. At least this way you can copy and paste the recipe into a word document and get the job done. 

PS-If anyone knows an easier way to do this let me know, I'm all ears!

Ingredients:

• 1.5 pounds of de-veined, peeled shrimp
• 4 tablespoons of butter
• 1/2 a large onion, diced
• 1/4 cup of cilantro, finely chopped
• 1.5 tablespoons of cayenne pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon of rooster sauce
• salt and pepper to taste
• 4 cloves of garlic, minced
• One lemon, juiced

Directions:

Melt four tablespoons of butter in a nonstick skillet over medium/high heat. Meanwhile, finely dice half of a large onion. When the butter has melted, add in the onions and cook until soft.

When the ingredients begin to bubble add in four cloves of minced garlic and stir to combine. Grind in some fresh black pepper and a pinch of salt and stir.

Add in the shrimp, stir and continue to cook. Meanwhile, slice a lemon in half and juice over the shrimp mixture carefully. 

Add in the cayenne pepper and rooster sauce. Stir to combine.

Chop the cilantro and add into the shrimp mixture, combine well. 

Add salt to taste. Remove from heat when shrimp are firm to the touch. 

Serve with bread or white rice.