Spicy Garlic Shrimp

                          I am on to something here……Asian cooking! This is how it sort of happened….One of my closest friends, a fellow blogger as well, Stephanie, has been pushing me to do so for about a year now. Two things were holding me back- 1- I do not have the Asian ingredients needed to make most dishes and 2- I like getting Chinese/Thai take-out! But being that I am definitely getting bored with the usual olive oil, garlic, tomato sauté with pretty much everything under sun, I knew I had to get acquainted with a new cuisine to serve. Behold Stephanie and my adventurous side! She gave me the list (*see bottom*) of what I would need to buy for 95% of all Asian dishes and I went shopping……

                Speed up two weeks and a few new dishes that were good but ungbloggable, I have finally made something that I am proud to share! I found this recipe on Steph’s blog and just tweaked it with what I had in my freezer and vegetable drawer. I served it over rice and made frozen egg rolls to have on the side. It was so delicious; I still can’t believe I made it. It tasted 50 times better than takeout and was probably 50 times healthier too! I hope you try and enjoy as much as we did!

Spicy Garlic Shrimp

Serves: 4

Adapted from: Can You Stay for Dinner

Found on: Stephanie Cooks

OBJ: TCW be able to improve her Asian cooking skills by making a new dish

Ingredients:

3 zucchini, sliced ¼ inch thick, then cut in ½

I bag (12 ounce) frozen vegetables (I used an Asian medley), steamed

¼ C roasted almonds, coarsely chopped

3 TBS soy sauce
1 TBS rice wine vinegar
2 tsp sugar
2 TBS fresh grated ginger
2 TBS vegetable oil
2 tsp chili garlic sauce
2 tsp cornstarch, dissolved in 4 tsp. cold water
15-20 medium sized shrimp, cleaned

Procedures:

1. Combine the soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, sugar, ginger, 1 TBS oil, and chili garlic sauce in a bowl, whisk to combine (I added an extra splash of everything, besides sugar, because I wanted a little more sauce to coat)

2. Add this mixture to a small sauce pan, bring to a boil. Let the sauce simmer for about 2 minutes

3. Add the cornstarch mix. Return to a simmer, cook until thickened, it should coat your spoon (FYI, this happens quickly)

4. Meanwhile, in a large sauté pan, heat the other 1 TBS oil over medium heat. Add shrimp and cook until done- pink in color on both sides. Using a slotted spoon, remove shrimp to small bowl

5. To sauté pan add zucchini and frozen steamed veggies, stir and keep flame on medium, cover to allow zucchini to soften, about 5-8 minutes

6. Add shrimp back to sauté along with the brown sauce and almonds, stir well to coat

7. Serve over rice

*Shopping List: Hoisin sauce, Oyster sauce, Soy sauce, Chili Garlic sauce, Fish sauce, Rice Wine vinegar, Corn Starch, and vegetable (Canola) oil*