Shrimp Scampi With Garlic, Red Pepper Flakes, and Herbs Recipe

Cooking Discussions Cooking, Cookbooks, Ingredients
1

I just tried this recipe for the first time, really perfect. It occurred to me to ask the friendly fish guy at WF what his favorite was for wild shrimp … he said the pink ones from the Gulf, now on sale, so I couldn’t resist and bought a pound. I bought the parsley, chives, tarragon but decided I would prefer the tarragon in chicken salad so just used more parsley.

I think the recipe omits stating to remove the second batch of shrimp before you make the sauce; I didn’t want the shrimp to get tough so that’s what I did and combined everything at the end. I used a bag of TJ Pappardelle.

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What I found pretty amusing about the write-up was how many dings it managed to get in against ATK’s shrimp scampi recipe, which is supposedly one of their most popular ever.

(They make a quick stock from the shells, and use some cornstarch for the sauce to safeguard against failed emulsification.)

Also, how sometimes a recipe makes what’s supposed to be a simple and quick dish a much bigger ordeal. Better, sure, but how much more so than the quick version?

But your scampi looks delicious, and I’d gladly eat it any day!

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I used 5 cloves (minced) of very fresh organic garlic from WF, the friend eating it said he’d have put 2 more cloves.

I also made poached organic chicken breasts, finely chopped green onions, celery, tarragon, parsley, chives then ½ mayo ½ sour cream, so delicious!

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I think mixing ¾ teaspoon of baking soda and ¼ teaspoon of salt with cleaned shrimp for an hour was worth it, easy. I didn’t add more salt at the end.

Recipe doesn’t say to refrigerate for that hour but I did.

5

I always add a pinch of baking soda after I learned the Chinese technique — never more, or I can taste if (yuck).

Try adding some sugar with the salt too — I think that was an ATK tip, and it does indeed bring out the inherent sweetness of the shrimp.

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6

I agree with the sugar, and often use it with shrimp. I find Kenji’s frequent use of baking soda annoying, and typically leave it out. I, too, can taste it. Air-drying the shrimp on a rack in the fridge can help with the browning process.

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Interesting. I didn’t notice that while quickly scanning. I know SE is no longer by Kenji, but hiis name is being dropped. Didn’t Kenji used to work for ATK?

I can always use a new shrimp recipe, although mine will be frozen.

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Yes, Kenji used to work as a test cook and contributor at ATK. I think that’s where he first began to popularize the ‘reverse sear’ method for steaks

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9

Mine is always frozen as that and “‘fresh’ from frozen” are the only choices we have. I luv shrimp almost any way (except for ceviche). Cocktails, Louies, scampi, BBQ, in cioppino, fried/coconut, bacon wrapped, curries, etc.

BUT… 9 times out of 10, I do sweet and pungent. I know I have harped on this many times on HO, but if you haven’t tried it… you need to.

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The ones available from my WF are sold thawed from frozen. I’ve read that shrimp deteriorate fast, so unless you buy them at the dock, frozen is best.

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My mistake; Somehow I remembered “wild, from the gulf”, and later thought “that is one of the places you might get them fresh”.

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I recommend getting frozen shrimp and thawing them yourself when needed. I find thawed shrimp at most supermarkets to have an unpleasant mushy texture.

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13

That looks great!

14

I have ruined several pots of chili and meat sauce overdoing the baking soda to brown ground meat. It messes up the acidity.

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15

Have you ever reduced the sugar? That’s a lot!

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No. I usually make a six ounce serving (so less than 2 Tblsp sugar). I suppose you could reduce it a bit and still get great flavor, but if you compare it to other Chinese fried sweet entrees (orange chicken, General TSO’s, S&S pork, etc.) it seems pretty much in line.

The sugar provides the sweet, sticky coating combined with the garlic, red pepper, ginger, and zests. Trust me… I have served this to a vast array of guests and ALL of them were blown away, contacting me later for the recipe.

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17

We get frozen wild Argentinian shrimp here that I quite like. Bonus is that it is often on special.

BTW, one thing that I shudder at when I see it at family (in-law) gatherings is shrimp rings with cocktail sauce. The shrimps, of whatever size, have no discernible taste at all on their own.

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18

Yeah, those are grody.

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So do I. And it’s no big deal to thaw them at home.

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20

I’ve used that one before and the family really likes it. Regarding his wine problem, I rarely have vermouth on hand, so I use chardonnay but pre-reduce quickly it in a sauce pan off to the side.

Like your friend, I like a lot more garlic so I usually grate 8-10 cloves on the microplane.

Regarding the batches, he did say “repeat” the instructions for the 2nd batch, which would include removal to the plate. But yeah, he could have been a lot more explicit about that aspect.