Texas is noted for great cooking that includes the spicy flavors of the Southwest and the shrimp fresh from the Gulf.  This recipe combines   the two great flavors the the traditional method of smoking to bring out the best of the flavors.

Dipping Sauce

1 Cup Cider Vinegar

1 Cup Brown Sugar

3/4 Cup chopped roasted mild green chiles

1 Medium Onion, minced

6 Ounces fresh tomatillos, husked and finely chopped

3/4 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon salt

Preparation:

Mix all ingredients together in heavy sauce pan .  Simmer sauce over medium heat about 30 minutes until thickened and cooked down. Serve warm or chilled.  If it becomes to thick after cooking add a small amount of water to thin.

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Shrimp:

3/4  Pound medium shrimp, peeled and deveined

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

1 tablespoon chili powder

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

1/4 teaspoon salt

Batter:

1 Cup all purpose flour

1/4 Cup masa  harina (Masa harina is lime processed corn flour found in the Mexican section of the grocery store.  Look for tamala grind or coarse grind as it makes a crunchier nugget.)

1 1/2 teaspoons chili powder

1 1/2  teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1/2 teaspoon sugar

3/4 Cup corn kernels, either fresh or frozen

3 tablespoons minced onion

8 Ounces beer

1 egg

Vegetable oil for frying

Preparation:

Heat smoker to smoker’s required temperature.

Toss, shrimp with oil, garlic, and  chili powders , salt and pepper.  Let marinate at room temperature for 15 minutes.

Transfer shrimp to a small grill rack, basket or heavy duty tin foil. Smoke until shrimp is just cooked through and barely firm usually about 10-20 minutes at about 225 to 250 degrees.

Cool the shrimp enough to finely chop by hand and reserve shrimp.

Using a large bowl mix together batter ingredients and fold in shrimp.

In large heavy sauce pan or Dutch oven, heat several inches of oil to 350 degrees.  Gently drop rounded teaspoons of batter into oil a few at a time.  Do not overcrowd.  Fry nuggets until  crisp and golden brown, about 3 minutes.  Drain nuggets.

Serve hot with dipping  sauce.

Yield: 2 to 2 1/2 dozen nuggets.

This Southwest recipe delights the senses with a just right spicy taste and brings together a delicious combination that you will want to serve again and again to your friends.

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When I was a little kid, my family would occasionally make the trek from Vicksburg, Ms. to Jackson, Ms. — about 45 minutes — to go to Morrison’s Cafeteria after church. My little brother and I got to pick whatever we wanted. I always picked fried shrimp. Forty-plus years later, I still do, too often. Although shrimp and grits gets picked a little more often, these days.

Shrimp scampi recipes are really popular. Lots of variations on the shrimp scampi theme, too. Only one way to find out which one is these best…make them all and give them a try. (Hey, nobody said that being an authority on shrimp scampi was gonna be easy!)

Seems like people never tire of a good shrimp salad recipe either. The fact that it is so simple — not to mention down right delicious — probably has a lot to do with that. (Ever heard of a shrimp salad sandwich? Dee-lish.)

Recipes for grilled shrimp, coconut shrimp, boiled shrimp…you name it. Our aim is to have your favorite shrimp recipes here in one place for you. We also look forward to any comments you would like to add.

Three friends have dropped by the site and added their own recipes. Many others have threatened to send their favorite recipes, but haven’t yet. Pat’s Asparagus and Shrimp Risotto recipe was probably the most surprising! Linda’s Shrimp In Black Pepper is something else new and wonderful to these taste buds. And, naturally, anything from Chef Jerry is always amazing. Same goes for his Tyler Florence-inspired Shrimp Bisque.

If you have a shrimp recipe you would like to share, please jump over to the Contact Us page and let it rip.

Shrimp recipes are among the most sought after recipes online. No real wonder why either. It is a massively popular ingredient in cuisines all around the world. Above and beyond all else, shrimp simply tastes great cooked in many different ways.

Other than being high in cholesterol, shrimp is largely good for you. The nutritional value of shrimp is excellent. It is low in Saturated Fat and is a good source of Niacin, Iron, Phosphorus and Zinc. It is also a very good source of Protein, Vitamin B12 and Selenium.

All of that said, shrimp still just tastes darn good. In the end, that’s why I like it.

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Fried shrimp has been one of my favorite things to eat since I was a little kid. And of all the ways to prepare coconut shrimp, fried is still my favorite. For the sake of variety, I’ve also included a couple of baked recipes. One of the baked versions is a diet recipe. Hit the print button and compare them. See which one you’ll have this week and which you might have next week.

FRIED COCONUT SHRIMP

Ingredients

• 1 pound unpeeled, medium-size fresh shrimp
• 3/4 cup biscuit mix
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 3/4 cup beer
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 1/2 cups flaked coconut
• Vegetable oil

Making It…

1. Peel shrimp, leaving the tails intact; devein, if desired, and set shrimp aside.
2. Combine biscuit mix, sugar, and beer, stirring until smooth. Set mixture aside.
3. Coat shrimp with flour; dip into beer mixture, allowing excess to drain. Gently roll coated shrimp in flaked coconut.
4. Put about 3 inches of veg oil in a large saucepan; heat to 350°. Cook shrimp, a few at a time, 1 to 2 minutes or until golden; drain on paper towels, and serve immediately.

BAKED COCONUT SHRIMP AND SALSA

A friend sent this recipe for BAKED coconut shrimp. Seems like there might be some health benefits to baking instead of frying, but the ease of preparation was her deal. Instead of standing at the stove forever and frying small batches of coconut shrimp, she prefers putting it all together on a sheet pan and throwing it in the oven to cook while she does other stuff. Or nothing. (I like where she’s coming from!)

She made a big deal out of toasting the coconut first. Said it makes a big difference in the taste of the final product.

The salsa combines a lot of great flavors from The Islands all the way to Mexico. Excellent sidecar!

This serves four people.

SHRIMP

• 3 cups shredded sweetened coconut
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup Panko bread crumbs
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or to taste
• Add Kosher salt, to taste
• 4 large egg whites
• 1 pound of large shrimp, peeled and deveined, with tails left on.
• Nonstick cooking spray

SALSA

• 1 cup finely diced fresh pineapple
• 1/3 cup finely minced red onion
• 1/4 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro
• 1/4 cup pineapple preserves
• 1/2 to 1 miced jalapeno pepper with the seeds removed.
• Freshly squeezed juice of 1 lime
• Kosher salt
• • Freshly cracked black pepper, to taste

Panko bread crumbs are stocked in just about any major grocery stores these days or in any Asian market.

Making It…

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees
   Spread the coconut evenly on an ungreased sheet pan and toast in the oven, stirring occasionally, until golden brown and delicious — about 8 to 10 minutes.
2. Pump up the oven to 400 degrees.
3. To prepare the shrimp, line a sheet pan with parchment paper. In a shallow dish, whisk together the flour, bread crumbs, cayenne pepper, and salt. Put the toasted coconut in another dish. Put the egg whites in a medium bowl and whisk until they are frothy. Pat the shrimp dry and dip first in the egg whites, then the flour, back in the egg whites, then roll in the toasted coconut.
4. Put the shrimp on the sheet pan and spray lightly with cooking spray. Bake it all 12 to 15 minutes, until cooked through and golden brown.

To make the salsa,  in a small bowl combine the pineapple, red onion, cilantro, pineapple preserves, jalapeno, and lime juice. Season with salt and pepper. Serve with the coconut shrimp.

BAKED COCONUT SHRIMP ON A DIET

Serves Six

Give this version a try if you are trying to cut a few calories here and there.

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 lbs. extra large shrimp, defrosted, shelled and deveined, rinsed and patted dry
• 1/3 cup cornstarch
• 1/2 tsp. ground red pepper
• Dash of salt
• 1 Tbs. honey
• 1 Tbs. freshly squeezed lime juice
• 1/3 cup egg whites
• 3/4 cup coconut
• Cooking spray

MAKING IT…

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees
2. Lightly spray a large baking sheet with cooking spray
3. In a small bowl combine cornstarch, pepper and salt
4. In a small microwave safe dish heat up honey for about 30-45 seconds
5. Add lime juice to honey and stir
6. Slowly add in egg whites and continue to stir
7. Place coconut in a thin layer on a pie plate or flat dish
8. Take each shrimp and first dip into cornstarch mixture, then in egg white mixture and finally roll in the coconut
9. Place on the baking sheet and lightly spray with cooking spray
10. Bake 10-15 minutes or until shrimp is pink and the coconut is lightly toasted

There you go! Give all three a try. It’s research.

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• Jimmy Buffets coconut shrimp recipe

Maybe you have seen the TV commercials that talk about “Wild American Shrimp.”  Believe it or not, that isn’t just marketing hype. There really is a difference. Wild shrimp get to swim around a lot more. They also eat seaweed and other things in the ocean that gives them a greater depth of flavor than, say, farm raised shrimp. If you have a choice and your budget can handle it, go with wild American shrimp. You will be able to create more delicious shrimp recipes with them.

When you buy shrimp there are a couple of things to keep in mind that will be helpful.

SMELL: There shouldn’t be any! If you smell anything but the ocean, forget it.

FRESH or FROZEN:  Nothing in the world wrong with frozen shrimp. As a matter of fact, frozen is the best shrimp to buy unless you live on the water where the fresh shrimp live. If you have your choice, pick frozen shrimp that hasn’t yet been peeled and de-veined. The shell will help protect the meat and keep the texture and flavor in tact.

WEIGHT:  A good rule of thumb is that a pound of shrimp that has not been peeled and de-veined will yield about a half pound of meat.

APPEARANCE: Raw shrimp should look translucent. There should not be a color to the flesh, unless it is a tiger shrimp. And they tend to have black markings that look like rings. That is ok for tiger shrimp, but not for any other raw shrimp. Pink OK? Nope. Not until the little beast is cooked.

COOKING: Boiled shrimp should be shocked in ice cold water the minute they come out of the boiling liquid, unless you plan to serve them immediately out of the boil. That will see that the meat stays firm longer.

FACTOID: 90+ per cent of all shrimp in the United States comes from the waters off of the Gulf Coast states, hence the name Gulf Coast Shrimp.

It is delicious and good for you. It is a very versatile ingredient, too. Fried shrimp, boiled shrimp, grilled shrimp,  — I’m starting to sound like Bubba in “Forest Gump” – regardless of your preference, shrimp is one of America’s favorite dishes.

I hope you enjoy these delicious shrimp recipes. If you have one you would like to share, let us know!