I believe you should always keep a bag of frozen shrimp in your freezer. Yes, I know, fresh is better, and if you are trying to impress guests, by all means, spend the money and time to get good, freshly-caught shrimp. But folks, this is the Midwest. Our shrimp is not local. It was not caught this morning. It is coming from a few hundred miles away, no matter what.
And when you’re in rush, frozen shrimp makes a darned easy weeknight meal. It takes a few minutes to defrost and then – bam – you can have this or this. Or throw this little Indian-inspired number together.
Indian food is tough to recreate with limited ingredients. Thankfully vibrant turmeric not only has a beautiful color, it also is one of the many ingredients in curry. Mix it with garlic and red pepper flake to give this dish warmth and nuance, and add toasted sesame seeds for a little nutty crunch. Serve this with basmati rice and some fresh or jarred mango slices. Who knew Indian food could be so simple?
Spicy Sesame Shrimp Inspired by a recipe from Indian in 6 3 Servings
3 Tbsp. white sesame seeds
3 to 4 garlic cloves
Pinch plus 1/8 tsp. kosher salt, divided
1 tsp. turmeric
½ tsp. red pepper flakes
2 Tbsp. vegetable oil, plus more to coat, divided
12 oz. medium-large shrimp*, peeled and deveined
• Toast the sesame seeds in a dry skillet over medium heat, stirring constantly until they start to brown slightly. Remove from heat immediately and set aside.
• Add pinch of salt to the garlic and mash with the side of a knife to form a paste. Mix together the garlic paste, turmeric, red pepper flakes, 1/8 teaspoon salt and a few drops of oil in a bowl. Toss the shrimp in the mixture until coated.
• Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a skillet, add the shrimp and cook 2 minutes, then flip and cook 2 minutes more, until shrimp is opaque. Remove from heat, toss with the toasted sesame seeds and serve.
This article appears in January 2014.