Erin’s Easy Eats

I love coconut shrimp.  I have tried for years to recreate the recipes that you get from the freezer or from a restaurant, and am always left wanting.  But no longer.  This all sounds quite melodramatic, but you really must realize that I have made so many bad coconut shrimp recipes that finding a good one was like having a party in the kitchen.  We have also proclaimed this recipe “Hell’s Kitchen worthy” if we used bigger shrimp, left the tails on, and did some pretty presentation where they stood up and said hello in a little puddle of salsa.  I really do love that show.

Warm Tropical Salsa

• 3/4 cup orange marmalade
• 1 TBSP fresh lime juice
• 1 TBSP orange juice
• 1 1/2 tsp horseradish (trust me here, I thought it’d be gross, too)
• 1 1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
• 1 cup diced fresh mango
• 1/4 cup canned crushed pineapple, drained
• Small bunch chopped fresh cilantro

Stir together first 5 ingredients in a small saucepan; cook over medium-low heat 3 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Lower heat and stir in mango, pineapple and cilantro. Keep warm until ready to serve.

Coconut Macadamia Shrimp

• 1 pound unpeeled, uncooked fresh large shrimp
• 1/2 cup self-rising flour
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1/4 tsp ground cayenne pepper
• 1/4 tsp cajun seasoning
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup finely chopped macadamia nuts (I did mine in my mini-food processor)
• 1 cup shredded coconut (I also ran this through the food processor just briefly, still shreddy though, and not emulsified)
• 1/2 cup Japanese breadcrumbs (panko)
• Vegetable oil

Peel shrimp, leaving tails on; devein, if desired. Stir together flour and next 3 ingredients in a medium-size shallow bowl. Whisk egg in another bowl. Stir together coconut, macadamia nuts, and breadcrumbs in a third medium-size shallow bowl.

Dredge shrimp in flour mixture; dip in egg. Dredge in coconut mixture, being sure to press coconut mixture onto shrimp. Place shrimp on a large baking sheet. Pour oil to a depth of an inch and a half or so in a large deep skillet or Dutch oven. Over medium-high heat, fry shrimp, 5 to 6 at a time, 1 to 2 minutes or until golden. Take care not to overload the skillet or it will bring the temp of the oil down. Drain shrimp briefly on a paper towel-lined baking sheet.

Tags: recipes, shrimp