Join us in celebrating Feast of Lanterns, 2019 with a favorite recipe (Fra Diabolo Italian Influenced) firecracker shrimp. We love to make this for holidays such as Chinese New Year or for the Pacific Grove Feast of Lantern Festival (celebrated on Monterey Bay at the end of July).
-FIRECRACKER SHRIMP RECIPE VIA FEAST OF LANTERNS-
We have a long family history on Monterey Bay. My dad Archie has deep roots in Pacific Grove, California. Each summer, I hear stories going back many years about the ‘The Feast of Lanterns Festival’. My Aunti Gerri was proud to be in the royal court!
At Huckleberry Hill, making firecracker shrimp is both a winter (Chinese New Year) and summer (Feast of Lanterns) tradition. Our family loves the sweet and spicy combo of flavors (the sauce works well with chicken too). It can be served with a chopped salad or coleslaw (similar to the Beach House version). My favorite take on this recipe is when my family enjoys it with pasta- you can see that the firecracker shrimp with pasta is a lighter color, as it is tossed with olive oil and a little red chili pepper (How much ‘brother devil’ spice do you want? Make it to taste). Bella Sophia loves both the shrimp and chicken version tossed into spaghetti. As we say, ‘shrimp and pasta fra diabolo’ is so perfect!
Happy New Year!
XOXO, Maxine (A.K.A. “Molly”)
Continue to follow your dreams, even if they lead you all the way to the Pacific Coast of California.
Huckleberry Hugs!
-Firecracker Shrimp-
4 SERVINGS
PREP TIME: 20 MINUTES
- 1 pound medium shrimp, peeled and deveined- if larger and tossing into pasta I keep the tails on as I think it looks nice, if serving over salad I remove the tails. The sauce is thicker also if you do not toss into olive oil pasta, so remove the tails if you want to allow it to stick together and eat it easier.
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 1/2 cup cornstarch or flour
- 2 large organic eggs, beaten
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil, to quick fry the shrimp
Delicious Sauce Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup local Carmel Valley honey
- 4 tablespoons freshly squeezed orange or blood orange juice
- Zest of 1 large orange, blood orange or tangerine
- 1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
- 1/3 teaspoon high quality crushed red pepper flakes, use ½ teaspoon for more spice
- 1/3 teaspoon fresh ground ginger- important to use fresh ginger to keep the flavor
Simple Steps:
In a large bowl, season shrimp with salt and pepper, to taste. Stir in cornstarch or flour (I usually use flour) and gently toss to combine. Working one at a time, dip the shrimp into the well beaten organic eggs then quickly coat into the seasoned flour.
Add shrimp and cook quickly in hot oil (one or one and a half minutes-shrimp cook fast, do not overcook). Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate to drain; discard excess oil.
To make the delicious glaze, combine honey, orange juice, citrus zest, garlic mince, red pepper flakes and fresh ginger over medium low heat. Bring to a boil, simmering until thickened, about 1-2 minutes.
Serve shrimp immediately, tossed with this wonderful sauce!
We love to toss this shrimp and spicy sweet dish into pasta! If tossing into pasta add 1/3 cup EVO and some salt and pepper with a sprinkle of red chili pepper to taste… and it makes a YUMMY pasta salad main or side dish!
