Shrimp with Spicy Garlic Sauce

When I was living in China, ordering a dish of something coated in spicy garlic sauce was usually a gamble. Take pork or eggplant for example, two Sichuan dishes usually cooked with this sauce. The dish could be either perfectly manageable, or, if the chef was overly generous with his chili oil, throat-burningly spicy. Having your throat burnt isn't necessarily bad, per se (after all, you did go out for Sichuan). But when your meal also includes mapo tofu, dan dan noodles, and boiled beef in chili sauce, it would be nice to have a little reprieve.?

In the U.S., shrimp with garlic sauce in Chinese restaurants is rarely very spicy, even if the entree is marked with a big red star or chili pepper on the menu. I wanted to strike a balance with this recipe. Instead of using a lot of chili oil, like in Sichuan cooking, or a tiny squeeze of hot sauce like many restaurants here seem to do,? I used a good amount of Huy Fong (Red Rooster brand) chili garlic sauce instead. (You can use any brand of chili garlic sauce or regular chili sauce.)

Of course, because this dish is all about the garlicky taste, nothing beats freshly sautéed garlic. There is nothing wrong with adding garlic on top of garlic. You'll want to start with sautéing a few cloves cloves, crushed or chopped. Then add the shrimp and the sauce, and the entree will be done in, seriously, 5 minutes.?

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Shrimp with Spicy Garlic Sauce

Serves 4

1 1/2 pounds uncooked large shrimp
3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons chili oil
2 teaspoons sesame oil
1 teaspoon sugar
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 gloves garlic, crushed or finely chopped
2 teaspoons Chinese rice wine
1 pinch freshly cracked black pepper
1 scallion, thinly sliced

1. Peel the shrimp, leaving the tail segments intact, then devein them.?

2. In a small bowl, mix together the soy sauce, chili oil, sesame oil, and sugar and set aside.

3. In a wok or large pan, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Stir-fry the garlic until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the shrimp and cook until both sides are pink, about 2 minutes on each side. Add the sauce mixture and stir so the shrimp is fully coated.

4. Remove from the heat and garnish with chopped scallions. Serve with rice or vegetables.

____________________________

More Chinese seafood recipes to try:

Dragon Well Tea Shrimp (Longjing Xiaren)

Ginger and Scallion Steamed Crab

Chinese Steamed Fish with Black Bean and Ginger Sauce

Coconut Milk Shrimp

Wonton Noodle Soup, Hong Kong-Style

View the original article here

Shrimp with Spicy Garlic Sauce

When I was living in China, ordering a dish of something coated in spicy garlic sauce was usually a gamble. Take pork or eggplant for example, two Sichuan dishes usually cooked with this sauce. The dish could be either perfectly manageable, or, if the chef was overly generous with his chili oil, throat-burningly spicy. Having your throat burnt isn't necessarily bad, per se (after all, you did go out for Sichuan). But when your meal also includes mapo tofu, dan dan noodles, and boiled beef in chili sauce, it would be nice to have a little reprieve.?

In the U.S., shrimp with garlic sauce in Chinese restaurants is rarely very spicy, even if the entree is marked with a big red star or chili pepper on the menu. I wanted to strike a balance with this recipe. Instead of using a lot of chili oil, like in Sichuan cooking, or a tiny squeeze of hot sauce like many restaurants here seem to do,? I used a good amount of Huy Fong (Red Rooster brand) chili garlic sauce instead. (You can use any brand of chili garlic sauce or regular chili sauce.)

Of course, because this dish is all about the garlicky taste, nothing beats freshly sautéed garlic. There is nothing wrong with adding garlic on top of garlic. You'll want to start with sautéing a few cloves cloves, crushed or chopped. Then add the shrimp and the sauce, and the entree will be done in, seriously, 5 minutes.?

_________________________

Shrimp with Spicy Garlic Sauce

Serves 4

1 1/2 pounds uncooked large shrimp
3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons chili oil
2 teaspoons sesame oil
1 teaspoon sugar
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 gloves garlic, crushed or finely chopped
2 teaspoons Chinese rice wine
1 pinch freshly cracked black pepper
1 scallion, thinly sliced

1. Peel the shrimp, leaving the tail segments intact, then devein them.?

2. In a small bowl, mix together the soy sauce, chili oil, sesame oil, and sugar and set aside.

3. In a wok or large pan, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Stir-fry the garlic until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the shrimp and cook until both sides are pink, about 2 minutes on each side. Add the sauce mixture and stir so the shrimp is fully coated.

4. Remove from the heat and garnish with chopped scallions. Serve with rice or vegetables.

____________________________

More Chinese seafood recipes to try:

Dragon Well Tea Shrimp (Longjing Xiaren)

Ginger and Scallion Steamed Crab

Chinese Steamed Fish with Black Bean and Ginger Sauce

Coconut Milk Shrimp

Wonton Noodle Soup, Hong Kong-Style

View the original article here

Shrimp with Spicy Garlic Sauce

When I was living in China, ordering a dish of something coated in spicy garlic sauce was usually a gamble. Take pork or eggplant for example, two Sichuan dishes usually cooked with this sauce. The dish could be either perfectly manageable, or, if the chef was overly generous with his chili oil, throat-burningly spicy. Having your throat burnt isn't necessarily bad, per se (after all, you did go out for Sichuan). But when your meal also includes mapo tofu, dan dan noodles, and boiled beef in chili sauce, it would be nice to have a little reprieve.?

In the U.S., shrimp with garlic sauce in Chinese restaurants is rarely very spicy, even if the entree is marked with a big red star or chili pepper on the menu. I wanted to strike a balance with this recipe. Instead of using a lot of chili oil, like in Sichuan cooking, or a tiny squeeze of hot sauce like many restaurants here seem to do,? I used a good amount of Huy Fong (Red Rooster brand) chili garlic sauce instead. (You can use any brand of chili garlic sauce or regular chili sauce.)

Of course, because this dish is all about the garlicky taste, nothing beats freshly sautéed garlic. There is nothing wrong with adding garlic on top of garlic. You'll want to start with sautéing a few cloves cloves, crushed or chopped. Then add the shrimp and the sauce, and the entree will be done in, seriously, 5 minutes.?

_________________________

Shrimp with Spicy Garlic Sauce

Serves 4

1 1/2 pounds uncooked large shrimp
3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons chili oil
2 teaspoons sesame oil
1 teaspoon sugar
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 gloves garlic, crushed or finely chopped
2 teaspoons Chinese rice wine
1 pinch freshly cracked black pepper
1 scallion, thinly sliced

1. Peel the shrimp, leaving the tail segments intact, then devein them.?

2. In a small bowl, mix together the soy sauce, chili oil, sesame oil, and sugar and set aside.

3. In a wok or large pan, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Stir-fry the garlic until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the shrimp and cook until both sides are pink, about 2 minutes on each side. Add the sauce mixture and stir so the shrimp is fully coated.

4. Remove from the heat and garnish with chopped scallions. Serve with rice or vegetables.

____________________________

More Chinese seafood recipes to try:

Dragon Well Tea Shrimp (Longjing Xiaren)

Ginger and Scallion Steamed Crab

Chinese Steamed Fish with Black Bean and Ginger Sauce

Coconut Milk Shrimp

Wonton Noodle Soup, Hong Kong-Style

View the original article here

Spicy Chicken with Cashew Nuts

September 1st, 2010 | 30-Minute Meals Recipes, Thai Recipes | 35 Comments

Spicy Chicken with Cashew Nuts pictures (1 of 3)

I love Thai food. Come to think about it, a lot of Thai recipes that I like are basically Chinese in origin, with local influences, which add an exciting layer of taste structure to the originals. There are many examples: Rad Na, Pad See Ew, and in this case, chicken with cashew nuts. In Chinese cuisine, these dishes are prepared the Chinese way, but the Thai versions are flavored with fish sauce or other local seasoning sauces, spices (yes!), and slightly varied ingredients. The end results are always delicious, sometimes more so than the Chinese equivalents. I always appreciate the local touch, which make good recipes even better…

This Spicy Chicken with Cashew Nuts is adapted from my favorite Thai cookbook “Thai Cooking Made Easy.” This variation of cashew chicken is also popular in Malaysia. In fact, it’s one of my favorite chicken dishes whenever I eat out at local hot stir-fries stalls. To me, it’s the local interpretation of Chinese cashew chicken and Kung Pao Chicken.

If you love cashew nuts and like your chicken spicy, this is a great recipe to try out.

Spicy Chicken with Cashew Nuts Recipe

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 small onion, cut into halves
6-8 finger-length dried red chilies, seeded and cut into halves
1/2 cup roasted cashew nuts, rinsed and drained
8 oz chicken, cut into small cubes
1 scallion, trimmed and cut into 1 1/2-in lengths

Sauce:

1 teaspoon soy sauce/Maggi seasoning/Golden Mountain sauce
1 tablespoon sweet soy sauce
1 teaspoon fish sauce
1/4 teaspoon sugar or to taste
2 tablespoons water

Method:

Heat up a wok and add the oil. When the oil is heated, add the garlic, onion, dried red chilies and stir-fry until fragrant or when you smell the spicy aroma of the chilies. Add the cashew nuts and follow with the chicken. Stir-fry the chicken until the surface turns opaque. Add all the ingredients for the Sauce into the wok and continue to stir-fry until the chicken is cooked. Stir-in the scallion, dish out and serve immediately with steamed rice.

Cook’s Note:

To learn more about the different soy sauces used in Thai cooking, please check out this great post by She Simmers.

View the original article here