Coconut Shrimp

When I was brainstorming about today’s post, I wanted to share something that was equal parts delicious and easy. I too turn away from long ingredient lists that seem complicated, messy and expensive. I wanted to give you a dish that you may have never created before.  

I thought about grilled pineapple with a brown sugar sauce. I thought about new ways to cook with avocados. Banana pudding even came to mind.

Lame, lame, lame. At least for now. Don’t be surprised if any one of those items show their face here. Chances are they will.

Alas! Let’s give coconut shrimp a try!

Delicious? Check. Easy? Not bad. Something new to try? Yes! Oh! And the ingredient list is pretty short.

This is the perfect summertime meal. It’s tasty, my friends. The crunchy coconut is downright heavenly.

I also made a sauce for the shrimp. Well, MD did. It was pretty awesome.

Let me tell you how I did this so you can enjoy it soon!
Total time: 30 minutes

To make your sauce you’ll need:
Half cup sugar-free marmalade

Tablespoon Dijon mustard

Teaspoon cayenne pepper

Tablespoon honey

A few dashes of sriracha sauce (If you dare. I didn’t. MD dares a lot.)

Mix all of that together and set aside in a couple of dipping bowls. 

I served my shrimps over white rice.

Boil one cup of dry white rice with two cups of water. Boil for about half an hour. When the rice is ready, throw it in a bowl and add a half cup of fresh cilantro, juice from two limes and salt and pepper.

When you've got that under your belt, prepare 20 or so thawed jumbo shrimp.

IMPORTANT: Please don't use the pre-cooked kind. You can totally buy frozen shrimp; just make sure it’s uncooked. They get too rubbery when you cook it twice. Trust me on this. You can find this at any grocery store. I bought mine in the freezer section at Sam’s Club. (shout out!)

To prepare:
Leave the tails on the shrimps. Carefully slice halfway through the top of the shrimp to butterfly it. This way you can cram in more coconut.

For your batter:

1/2 cup corn starch

1/2 cup flour

1 teaspoon red pepper flakes

1 egg

3/4 cup of milk

2 cups of unsweetened shredded coconut (or sweetened if that’s all you find)

Heat 1 cup vegetable oil to medium high heat in a pan. 

Get your dredging station ready.

Dip your shrimps in the batter and then into the coconut and coat heavily.

Drop them into your pan and let them sizzle for 1 to 2 minutes and then flip them to the other side. Sizzle for 1-2 more minutes.

Sizzle, sizzle. Pop. Crack.

When they are golden brown on each side, grab them out with tongs and place on a paper towel. Continue those steps until all shrimps are cooked.

 Plate and devour!

Yes, I meant to place the napkin on the wrong side, thank you very much!

 Make this one soon! It’s a keeper.

Cheers!
Christi