I've prepared this dish a number of times and each time I do, it amazes me more and more! The layers upon layers of flavor come together to make a multi-dimensional dish that really is fantastic. It takes a bit of time to develop each flavor but it is well worth it. Let's begin by outlining some of the ingredients.
Watch me make Shrimp Creole here:
Time savers
The first thing that needs to be done in preparation for this meal is chopping all of the vegetables. The celery should be chopped pretty small to cut down on cooking time. Generally, I like to cut each rib in half and then slice the halves into small pieces. Peeling and deveining the shrimp ahead of time will also save a lot of time as well as chopping all garnishes.
Using tomatoes for shrimp creole
As pictured below, I used tomatoes on the vine and gave them a nice, rough dice. Alternatively, you can use the same amount of diced canned tomatoes; just be sure to drain them.
More about the cooking process
Saute the vegetables until tender. Adding the celery first and letting it cook for 5-10 minutes is a best practice here as they are much harder and will need additional time to cook. Once this first step is complete, add the bell peppers and onions. The key to making a delicious shrimp creole is allowing the flavors to build upon themselves.
Shrimp Creole is very easy to make
Once you've cooked all of the vegetables through and added in all of the other ingredients, the remainder of the cooking time is spend simmering the ingredients on medium-low heat. This will give the ingredients time to fuse together while reducing the liquid at the same time. Once the liquid has almost fully reduced, the shrimp go in for the final step of the process.
Enjoy!!
MORE WITH SHRIMP!!!
Shrimp Creole
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: Serves 4 1x
Description
Shrimp Creole is a dish that combines a multitude of flavors to make a robust tomato-based sauce filled with shrimp; paired with Basmati rice.
Ingredients
1 lb shrimp
¼ cup tomato paste
1 cup dry white wine
1 cup vegetable broth (or chicken)
2 tbsp butter
½ cup bell pepper, chopped (I happened to have an assortment previously frozen)
⅓ cup white onion
2 ribs celery, finely chopped
1 cup tomatoes, chopped
2 bay leaves
3 garlic cloves
1 tablespoon hot sauce
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
½ tsp paprika
½ tsp oregano
½ tsp onion powder
¼ dash white pepper
¼ tsp black pepper
**Salt to taste
Instructions
1. Boil rice, set aside.
2. Prepare vegetables by chopping celery, tomatoes, garlic, onions, bell pepper and garnishes *chives and parsley.
3. Over medium heat, melt butter then add onions and sauté until translucent.
4. Add bell peppers and tomatoes to the pan, cooking until tomatoes softened completely and resemble tomato pulp. Add tomato paste.
5. Include white wine, broth, dried spices, bay leaves, worcestershire sauce, hot sauce, and garlic. Turn heat on low, cover, and simmer until liquid has reduced by half.
6. Add shrimp, stir to incorporate, and cook shrimp completely. Squeeze shrimp with lemon.
7. Spoon shrimp creole over rice and serve.
Notes
*chopped chives and parsley were used for garnish
Keywords: rice, shrimp, basmati rice, shrimp creole