Wednesday, December 30, 2009

Spiced and Pickled Shrimp



The weather outside is frightful. Come inside and join us by the fire for one of our favorite finger foods - spiced and pickled shrimp
.






From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...I love to serve these shrimp to friends at informal gatherings. This dish is one I wish I could claim as my own. I can't. I found the recipe, developed by Peggy Towbridge, at About.com Home Cooking and it's been a favorite of mine ever since. Don't be put off by the ingredient list. Chances are you have everything needed to make these shrimp in your refrigerator or pantry. I've made two slight changes to the original recipe. I think balsamic vinegar muddies the glorious color of this dish, so I've opted to use white wine or white balsamic vinegar instead. I've also added small amounts of red and yellow bell pepper to provide more eye candy in the final presentation. While I've served these shrimp as a first course for an informal dinner, I am more likely to set out bowls of them to entertain a large number of people for cocktails or an open house. When I serve these as finger food, I remove all trace of shell from the shrimp. I know that runs contrary to conventional wisdom, but I hate to see folks trying to balance drinks and plates of discarded shells or toothpicks. Shrimp, once a luxury item, is relatively inexpensive these days. So, you'll be happy to know the recipe can be doubled or tripled for those occasions when you're feeling particularly generous or are feeding the immediate world. I let the shrimp marinate for 24 hours before serving them. Discard uneaten, unrefrigerated shrimp at the end of the evening. The brine used to pickle the shrimp is not strong enough to kill organisms that might developed after the shrimp has been sitting unrefrigerated for several hours. Here's the recipe for a terrific party appetizer.

Spiced and Pickled Shrimp...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite

Ingredients:
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon lemon pepper
1 teaspoon sweet Hungarian paprika
1/4 teaspoon celery seed
Juice of 1 lemon, rinds reserved
2 pounds large or jumbo raw shrimp, peeled and deveined
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup cider vinegar
1/4 cup white balsamic or white wine vinegar
2 tablespoons fresh dill weed, finely chopped OR 2 teaspoons dried
2 cloves garlic, pressed
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon honey
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes or hot sauce to taste
1 small sweet onion, finely sliced
1 small red bell pepper, cored and thinly sliced
1 small yellow pepper, cored and thinly sliced
1 small green bell pepper, cored and thinly sliced

Directions:

1) Combine garlic powder, onion powder, lemon pepper, paprika, and celery seed until mixed.
2) Sprinkle lemon juice over the shrimp, top with the spice mixture, and toss to coat.
3) Place sliced reserved lemon rinds in about 1 inch of water. Cover with a steamer basket. Place spiced shrimp in the basket, cover pot, and gently steam until shrimp is just barely done and opaque, about 2 minutes. Do not overcook or the shrimp will become rubbery. Remove from heat, uncover, and place shrimp in a large bowl of ice to stop cooking.
4) For the marinade, place olive oil, cider vinegar, balsamic vinegar, dill weed, garlic, Dijon mustard, honey, salt, and pepper flakes or hot sauce in a large heavy bag with a zip top. Squish to thoroughly combine.
5) Add drained shrimp, sweet onion, and bell pepper to the marinade in bag. Seal with air in bag and toss to coat. Open bag, squeeze out air, and re-seal. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight. Serve cold. Yield: 12 to 16 appetizer
servings.

This is being linked to:
Outdoor Wednesday - A Southern Daydreamer

30 comments :

surfingtheworldcuisine said...

Shrimps always catch everyone's eyes in any gathering! I love the colours and it looks very tasty!

Happy New Year to you and your family!

sherri@lavenderfields said...

Oh my husband will love this! He is the big seafood lover in our family! What a beautiful picture of the snow too! I wish we had some for the holidays! I have really enjoyed coming to your sight the past few months since I started blogging! You have really posted some wonderful recipes and I appreciate it! All the best to you and your family in 2010! Happy New Year! Sherri : )

Light and Voices said...

Happy New Year from our house to your house. My husband dearly loves seafood period. Thanks for the recipe.
Joyce M

Barbara said...

Wow, Shrimp is my favorite....fixed in any way, I can't wait to try this, Thanks for always having such wonderful recipes and sharing your great talent with us.

Barbara

eileeninmd said...

Lovely wintry scene. I love shrimp and your recipe sounds delicious!

I wish you and yours all the best in 2010. Happy New Years!

Jamie said...

Happy Happy Holidays to you and yours, Mary! It was an enormous pleasure getting to know you and your stunning blog!

These shrimp look divine! I adore shrimp and this dish is calling me!

Donna-FFW said...

These sound most delicious and they look wonderful. I love the wintry scene you posted. Its beautiful!

Martha said...

On the prairie, shrimp is always the first to go! Looks lovely!

Dawn said...

Fabulous photo and accompanying recipe. I totally agree about putting out a pile of shrimp. I am lucky enough to live in Florida so when the local seafood market is having a shrimp sale, I can purchase it in bulk for much less than any beef on sale in the store. Makes for happy party guests!

Patricia @ ButterYum said...

Lovely recipe and lovely platter. I think I'll put these on tomorrow night's menu. Thanks for sharing!

Happy New Year!
:)
ButterYum
PS - so refreshing to see that there are others willing to eliminate shrimp tails in advance. There's a time and a place, but people seem to forget that.
;)

Anonymous said...

Great photo of the snow.....there will be no snow here just rain. The shrimp looks like a perfect dish to share with friends. I hope you and your family have a safe and Happy New Year! Denise

Shellbelle said...

When our weather is hot and humid (most of the year) I love to keep food in the fridge that is already prepared and ready for knoshing — this looks like it will be added to the list!

Happy New Year Mary, can't wait to see what you will delight us with in 2010.

btw, my niece made the Mushroom Puff and said it was a huge hit!

Sonia said...

Oh what a pretty dish! I have company coming this weekend and will definitely try this! Happy New Year! Sonia/Miss Bloomers

Lea Ann said...

Wow, that photo screams winter - beautiful. Love this recipe. I'll be giving it a try. I have saved more of your recipes and I've got to start testing some of them.

George Gaston said...

Mary, Old Man winter is coming early to the Nutmeg State, but you have the right idea to bring a delicious light appertizer made of shrimp to change the focus to a sunny warm day by the shore.

This is a wonderful recipe, many thanks...

ellen b said...

Whoa! That's a beautiful cold scene outside and a yummy scene on that plate!!
Happy New Year to you and yours Mary!

LV said...

Beautiful snow scene, but I would like a big helping of your shrimp. Looks so good. Keep on cooking and have a wonderful New Year.

Claudia said...

Perfect shrimp, gorgeous photo - best way to start 2010. Love it all. Happy New Year to you and yours!

cherry said...

yummy, yummy, yummy .. My 2010 be filled with beauty and blessings for you and yours. hugs, Cherry

La Bella Cooks said...

I think I might just include this in our New Years feast. It sounds divine! Wishing you a wonderful New Year, Mary.

Katy ~ said...

I was just wishing for a shrimp recipe as I'm the only one here who eats it. This would be perfect, I think. Since it's pickled, can I assume it can be tastefully refrigerated for a couple of days?

Mary Bergfeld said...

Katy, the answer to your question is yes. I've kept it for 72 hours in the fridge.

Unknown said...

Fantastic recipe. I will be making this some time soon.

Helena said...

I love your outdoor photo, and the shrimp looks absolutely delicious. I'll definitely be adding this recipe to my growing collection. :)

My Little Space said...

I'm speechless! This is absolutely a colourful yummilicious dish... Love it!

Deb in Hawaii said...

I am never so happy as when I see a plate of shrimp at a party--looks delicious!

Bonnie said...

Love that winter photo and your blog.

Kim, USA said...

That is really good..I love seafood and this one is the best.

Homemade Salsa and Tomato sauce

Patricia @ ButterYum said...

Hi Mary - I made, I ate, and I fell in love. Thanks so much for sharing this wonderful recipe. I just blogged about it.

http://butteryum.blogspot.com/2010/01/spicy-pickled-shrimp.html

:)
ButterYum

xinex said...

Hi Mary, I just saw this at Butteryum's and it looks so divine. Mmmm, I love shrimp....Christine

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