Balls and Walnuts
more than you ever wanted to know
Shrimp cakes
I think I done good tonight. As usual, I skimmed a bunch of recipes on the web and decided to combine the ideas that seemed most appealing. This recipe which uses cooked sweet potato as a base tempted me, but I opted for something more traditional. But not too traditional: many recipes call for a cup or more of mayonnaise, which has always struck me as a calorie-overkill innovation. Hey, these things are unhealthy enough as it is — why add another several hundred calories?
Here’s what I did:
1 pound of raw shrimp, peeled
1 heaping tablespoon each of jalapeno pepper, red bell pepper, and yellow onion, diced fine
2 green onions, diced
1 large clove of garlic, sliced
1 heaping tablespoon of celery, diced fine
1 egg
1 chipotle chili, diced fine
2 cups of Panko bread crumbs, divided
Salt to taste
Lemon slices
olive oil and butter
Saute the garlic, onion, bell pepper, and jalapeno until tender. Let this cool a bit. Next, put the peeled shrimp into the work bowl of a food processor and add the sauteed vegies, 1 cup of Panko, 1 egg, however much salt and pepper you like (pepper being very optional, thanks to the chipotle chili and jalapeno), and the chipotle chili. Run the processor until you have a nice paste, then add the celery and process until incorporated.
Shape into patties 2 to 3 inches across and about 1/2 to 3/4 inches high. Bread with Panko. Heat up some butter and olive oil in a nonstick skillet and fry those patties on both sides until golden brown. Serve with lemon slices.
I made a nice mushroom risotto with this. Does anyone need risotto lessons? When I have the time to prepare it, risotto is well worth the extra effort.
D.
i’ve been making risotto a lot lately. albertson’s had cheap asparagus a couple weeks ago, so i made it with that. dried porcini mushrooms, and i saved and strained the soaking liquid… and last night, roasted butternut squash risotto, with saffron.
it doesn’t take that long, doug. maybe half an hour, including sauteeing the allium and toasting the rice. it is a lonely proposition on account of having to stir it and whatnot, but i like the time to myself. 🙂
Hi joolz. Yes, if anything it’s faster than steamed rice in the rice cooker, but I usually make either a chicken stock or a vegetable stock as the liquid for the risotto. That can be kind of a hassle. On the upside, I now have some leftover chicken stock.
heh. i have a 16 qt stockpot that i haul out every few months to make a huge batch of chicken stock. too bad my freezer is basically full for awhile afterwards! but it does make a huge difference when it comes to risotti and soup and whatnot.
We used to keep two fridges going. We donated one to Goodwill (our power bill was getting a little too conspicuous) but I do miss having the extra space.
Sadly for me, my family are Neanderthals who do not like risotto. I love it, but the whining when I serve it dampens my ardour somewhat.
Curiously enough, after complaining that my family do not like risotto, the Twin Teens made risotto with prawns last night, and there was much rejoicing!