Spicy Shrimp Creole
This dish is seriously so easy to make, and it requires such a short list of ingredients. I have made this for my family a couple of times. They are pretty picky eaters as a whole, and it can be a bit difficult to please every palate. However, this dish brought an onslaught on compliments – even the next day. I LOVE when people are still thinking about last night’s dinner over breakfast.
TIP: Start with choosing good shrimp. Don’t be fooled by fresh (unfrozen) shrimp in your seafood department –chances are high that this shrimp came right out of a frozen bag and was simply thawed for their display. Frozen is best, since it stays fresh until you are ready to cook it. Save yourself some time – buy shrimp that are already deveined and peeled (or at least “Easy Peel”).
How we did it:
- Make sure your shrimp are thawed, deveined and peeled. Rinse them under cool water and leave to dry in a colander.
- Chop up your onion, green pepper & celery stalks. Mince the garlic (or buy the stuff in the jar. It’s a life saver – and I love having that much prepped garlic on hand at all times.)
- In a large skillet, heat enough olive oil to lightly coat the pan. Add your onion, pepper and celery. Sauté for a few minutes.
- Add the can of tomatoes (or two if you are using more shrimp).
- Season with a little salt, Old Bay (or other spices) and garlic. Stir it all together.
- Add a couple of bay leaves and allow the sauce to start simmering.
- Cook for about 20 minutes or so – until the liquid starts to cook away and your sauce gets a little thicker.
- Remove the bay leaves.
- Mix the flour and water together in a separate dish, and pour it into the sauce. This will help thicken the tomato sauce even more. Let it cook down for about 5 minutes.
- Season the shrimp with Old Bay (or whatever seasoning mix you like). Add it to the tomato sauce. Cook until the shrimp are done – all pink and nothing clear looking. (Takes about 5-7 minutes)
Make sure you spice up your dish! Add a few dashes of Worcestershire, and throw in some hot sauce for a kick. Take a few tastes to make sure it’s salted well. The sauce makes this dish, so make it good!! When all is tasty, stir in some fresh parsley and serve over rice.