Szechwan Shrimp

Lent is upon us, and that means many a meatless Friday. So to jazz up a Lenten dinner that would normally consist of fish sticks and steak fries, I am going to spend the next few Fridays exploring shrimp. On the menu this week, a spicy number I got from AllRecipes.com. I am always apprehensive of any recipe that calls for ketchup (it's an "issue" I have), but this was spicy, sweet, tangy, and in no way ketchup-y-ish. In fact, this was the closest to restaurant style szechwan sauce I have ever had. I did make quite a few modifications, which I will note along side the original recipe in green, I mostly changed it up to suit what I had on hand, and to boost up the veggie content, but this is a great base to build on. Use your imagination, and make it your own....always a good excuse to clean out your fridge:)

Spicy Note: This is a szechwan dish, so it is spicy, use your judgement, and feel free to cut back on the ground red pepper, my nose was definitely running (nice, huh) after this meal. I served it with sticky Jasmine rice and some veggie lettuce wraps to cut the spice.

Shrimp Note: This recipe calls for 12 oz of cooked shrimp. I used raw, and it was WELL worth the extra effort of peeling and butterflying them. Raw shrimp only takes about 2 minutes to cook, and unlike already cooked shrimp, raw shrimp won't get rubbery. Never cook shrimp longer than you have to. So my advice...USE RAW SHRIMP.

Szechwan Shrimp

Sauce:
4 tbsp water (8 tbsp water)
2 tbsp ketchup (4 tbsp ketchup)
1 tbsp soy sauce (2 tbsp soy sauce)
2 tsp corn starch (4 tsp corn starch)
1 tsp honey (2 tsp honey)
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper (1 tsp ground red pepper )
1/4 tsp ground ginger (1/2 tsp fresh minced ginger)

1 tbsp vegetable oil
1/4 cup sliced green onion (about 3 chopped green onions)
4 minced cloves of garlic
12 oz cooked shrimp (12 oz peeled and deveined raw shrimp)
1 red bell pepper, sliced
1 small sweet onion, sliced
1 tbsp toasted sesame seeds

1. In a bowl, stir together water, ketchup, soy sauce, cornstarch, honey, crushed red pepper and ground ginger. Set aside.

2. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Stir in green onions and garlic, cook for 30 seconds. Add red bell pepper and sweet onion, stir together, and cook for about 2 minutes, until tender.

3. Add shrimp and sesame seeds to pan, and saute on medium high heat until shrimp is pink.


4. Stir in sauce, and toss to coat, cooking until sauce is bubbly and thickened (About 1-2 minutes). Remove from heat.



Remember, she's a hot one tonight folks, enjoy!