Spicy Coconut Syrup Shrimp Stir-Fry
Coconut Syrup – Not just for Pancakes anymore!
Mele Kalikimaka Hau’ole Makahiki Hou to all! May your new year be bright and full of wonder and joy!
During this time of year, cooking and baking take center stage, and it’s now wonder with all the smells and flavors of comfort. I love the smell fresh baked cookies. The cinnamon and nutmeg enticing all to the heart of every home.
Bakers shine during holiday with good reason. Think of all the amazing sweets and breads bakers produce! And let’s face it, baking is an exact science. I wish I could whip up sweet desserts and goodies like they can but, I also FFI (fails to follow instruction) as Mr. Baker informed me of on several occasions!
All kidding aside, it is true I find the step by step instructions for baking, confining and restrictive, where as I love the freedom of experimentation of cooking. And that is where I have my creative breakthroughs! For instance, someone challenged me to find a recipe that uses coconut syrup, other than pancake syrup. I searched and found that most recipes used the ingredient in baking. Not a promising start but, I wasn't defeated yet. After thinking and consulting with Sunnyside Meats, I settled with shrimp to experiment with.
I got home and began peeling and deveining the shrimp. Once completed I poured coconut syrup over the shrimp, added a few spices and herbs and let marinate for about an hour. In the meantime, I readied my rice and chopped my veggies. In this case, onions, peppers, celery, carrots etc. you can use any veggie you desire, but this is what I had on hand along with a pomegranate.
To make a long story short, the recipe below is my version of a spicy Thai inspired coconut shrimp stir fry. Things to keep in mind while pulling this together; start with a good oil, in this case a roasted chili lime. Next cook the hardest veggies first and allow 3 minutes before adding next ingredient. This allows for the melding of flavors and keeping veggies from over cooking. Finish up heated cooking with shrimp in center of pan with marinade stirring often.
As you pull off the pot from the heat add pomegranate seeds and stir in. Allow to rest 5 minutes and serve in bowl with fresh rice or desired grain. Enjoy the recipe is below!
Coconut lime shrimp Stir-fry
Ingredients:
1 lb. large shrimp, shelled and deveined
1/4 c. coconut syrup
2 Tbsp. lime juice
1 Tsp. bamboo salt
1/2 Tsp. garlic
1/2 Tsp. onions
1 Tbsp. fresh chopped lemongrass
1/2 Tsp. crushed Hawaiian chili pepper
1/2 Tsp. celery seed
Veggies:
3 stalks celery cut diagonally in to 1- in pieces
10 Baby carrots quartered diagonally
1/4 onion sliced thin
1/4 pineapple sliced in chunks
Two pineapple hearts cut in chunks
Two peppers sliced into thin strips.
12 Green beans washed and topped
1/4 cup fresh pomegranate seeds
Directions:
Peel and Devein shrimp and set aside in medium sized bowl. Mix shrimp with first nine ingredients. Set aside and let marinade for up to at least 1/2 hour.
Once all the veggies are sliced, heat large pan with roasted chili lime olive oil. Add celery and carrots. Sauté two minutes. Add pineapple chunks, peppers and peppers. Sauté and additional five minutes.
Create a hole in the center of the pan with the veggie mix on the sides of the pan away from the heat. Add shrimp and marinade into center of pan. Lower heat to medium and continue to cook an additional 5 to 10 minutes stirring often to ensure that the shrimp gets cooked and mixed in with all the veggies.
Turn off heat and add pomegranate seeds on top cover up make sure and let sit for five minutes. Serve with rice quinoa or any other grain you desire. Enjoy!
