Great Shrimp Marinade
I made lemongrass shrimp over rice vermicelli and vegetables the other night. Though a more complicated meal than I normally throw together on a Wednesday night, it was definitely good enough to make again. I'm not sure where it came from, as my sister can't remember what magazine she cut it out of. Even if you don't make the whole recipe, you *must* use the marinade for shrimp--we broiled the shrimp since we're sans barbecue [If anyone knows of a reasonably priced one-bedroom in Carroll Gardens/Cobble Hill/Boerum Hill with an outdoor space, let me know]. It's super tangy and easy to make (with the exception of tracking down the lemongrass, which we found at the fruit market on Atlantic next to Sahadi's).
SHRIMP MARINADE
1/3 cup Thai fish sauce
1/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons finely chopped peeled fresh lemongrass
2 garlic cloves, minced
32 large shrimp, peeled and deveined (about 1 1/2 pounds)
SAUCE
1 cup fresh lime juice (about 9 medium limes, squeezed)
3/4 cup shredded carrot
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup Thai fish sauce
2 garlic cloves
2 red Thai chilies, seeded and minced (jalepenos seemed to work ok, too)
SHALLOT OIL
1/4 cup vegetable oil
3/4 cup thinly sliced shallots
REMAINING INGREDIENTS
8 ounces rice vermicelli
3 1/2 cups shredded Boston lettuce
2 cups fresh bean sprouts
1 3/4 cups shredded carrot
1 medium cucumber, halved lengthwise, seeded and thinly sliced
Cooking spray
1/2 cup chopped fresh mint
1/2 cup unsalted dry-roasted peanuts, finely chopped
1. To prepare shrimp, combine first 6 ingredients in a large zip-top plastic bag; seal (we just used a bowl). Marinate in refrigerator 1 hour, turning occasionally (we skimped on the time and it came out fine). Remove shrimp from bag; discard marinade.
2. To prepare sauce, combine the lime juice and next 5 ingredients (through chilies), stirring with a whisk until the sugar dissolves. Set aside.
3. To prepare shallot oil, heat 1/4 cup oil in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add shallots; cook 5 minutes or until golden brown. Strain the shallot mixture through a sieve over a bowl. Reserve oil. Set fried shallots aside.
4. To prepare remaining ingredients, place rice vermicelli in large bowl; cover with boiling water. Let stand 20 minutes (or follow the directions on your package). Drain. (We also chilled the noodles in cold water briefly.) Combine the noodles, shallot oil 1 3/4 cups lettuce, 1 cup sprouts, 1 cup carrot, and 3/4 cup cucumber, tossing well.
5. To cook shrimp, prepare the grill to medium-high heat (or broil them).
6. Place shrimp on grill rack coated with cooking spray; grill 2 1/2 minutes on each side or until done. Place 3/4 cut noodle mixture in each of 8 bowls; top each serving with 4 shrimp, about 3 tablespoons of sauce, and about 1 tablespoon fried shallots. Serve with remaining lettuce, bean sprouts, carrot, cucumber, mint, and peanuts.
Yield: 8 servings
Calories: 423 (29% from fat); Fat 13.5g (sat 2.1g, mono 4.1g, poly 6g; carb 51.9g; fiber 4.3g; chol 129mg; iron 4.2mg; sodium 960mg; calc 102mg
6 Comments
Leave a comment
now i know where to get lemongrass, but where does one get thai fish sauce around here?
You can get fish sauce at the small natural foods market on Court below 2nd Place (with the green awning). Or you can go to Chinatown, which is much less convenient, of course.
Yum...
the (slightly pricey) natural foods market on Court St. and Pacific (? or whatever street is one block south of Atlantic) also sells lemongrass. not sure about the fish sauce though.
oh yeah, i know that place on Court - next to the liquor store. i was really surprised when i went in there one time thinking it was a normal bodega.
are you ever supposed to be able to actually ingest the lemongrass? or is the idea to pick it out after it's done its job at flavoring? i love the taste, but find that whenever I eat dishes with lemongrass, the little pieces of it are nearly impossible to chew.
I don't think lemongrass is for eating--it's certainly not tasty. For the marinade in this dish, it just flavors everything (you throw out the extra marinade once you remove the shrimp).