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Sunday, September 4, 2011

Faster than take-out Shrimp in Mushroom Sauce

This is a dish that took me 28-minutes end to end. That is faster than takeout any day! Its delicious and hearty, without being laden with meat...shrimp is the protein here.
Don't be daunted by the ingredients list, its mostly items you have, and just a few you will need to add to your grocery list for the week to pick up so you can make this next Monday night.
We use shrimp in this, because it lends itself perfectly to the flavors. Since we only buy domestic, wild shrimp (when it is on sale), we don't get this treat often, so when we do—we want to do something really great with it. Tomatoes are an unexpected ingredient in this stir fry dish, but they add a delicious tangy-sweet component to the dish. The cool and crunchy, raw cucumber is a wonderful cooling contrast to the slightly sweet, and earthy-rich mushroom sauce.

Main dish:
  • 1 lb. raw (or frozen) shrimp
  • 1 oz. package dried shitake mushrooms (check your Asian food isle)
  • 2 cups (or so) grape or cherry tomatoes
  • 1 red bell pepper, cut into thin strips
  • 1/4 to 1/2 cup edamame beans (not in the shell)
  • 1 cup cucumber, chopped into large pieces
  • 1/3 cup fresh, chopped cilantro
  • About 4 oz of GF rice noodle (like Thai Kitchen brand)
  • Salt and pepper
  • Olive oil

Sauce:
  • Water
  • 1/4 GF Tamari (GF soy) sauce
  • 1/4 cup GF Worcestershire sauce
  • 1/4 brown sugar
  • 2 tbs corn starch
  • 1 tbs vinegar (any kind)
Start a teapot with about 4 cups of water until it boils. Place rice noodles and dried shitakes in a large glass bowl. When the teapot boils, pour the liquid over the noodles and mushrooms. Using a wooden spoon, push the noodles and mushrooms underwater to submerge. Cover with a dishtowel and let sit. In a large saute pan, over medium-high heat, add 1 tbs olive oil and saute the edamame, tomatoes, and red bell pepper until it begins to soften, about 5 minutes. Return to the noddles. The water will have taken on a brownish color and flavor of the mushroom, creating a mushroom broth. Using tongs, retrieve the mushrooms from the bowl of noodles and add to the saute pan. Cover the noodles again. Saute the vegetables another 2-3 minutes. Then, add the raw shrimp. Cook the shrimp until they are about 1/2 way cooked (you can still see some grayish part, and they are not all the way pink). Return again to the noddles, they should be soft by now in the water. To the noodle water and noodles add the brown sugar, Worcestershire, GF soy sauce and corn starch. Stir to mix. Add the noddle mixtrue to the pan of vegetables and mushrroms. and stir to combine. The liquid will begin to simmer and as soon as it does, it will thicken into a thick glossy sauce. Season generaously with salt and pepper (to taste.) When the sauce is as thick as you like it, dish it into bowls. Top the hot rice noddles and sauce with the raw cucumbers and cilantro. Serve.

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