Tuesday, May 6, 2008

Spicy ginger shrimp with veggies and mashed potatoes

So last night as I was wandering around the grocery store (one of my favorite places to relax) I found a jar of ginger spread. Looking at the packaging I anticipated it to be similar to crystalized ginger but ground into a paste. Not too sweet and showing that wonderful spiciness of ginger root. So I decided to buy it, and figure out what to do with it later. Today I got the perfect idea- I thought it would be a perfect ingredient in sauteed shrimp.

Tonight, once I got home from a particularly rough day at the office, I formulated the rest of my menu. I decided on mashed potatoes, some sauteed veggies, and the star- the shrimp. Into a small sauce pan I put in red potatoes with the skin left on chopped into bite size pieces. I covered them with water, and set them a boiling. Once they were cooked through I would add a bit of butter, some cream and asiago cheese and mash them all together for a cheesy take on mashed potatoes. Back at my cutting board I chopped three cloves of garlic, a serrano pepper, some thyme, and baby portobellow mushrooms. Into a sautee pan I put in about a teaspoon each of butter and olive oil, then half the garlic and the thyme. Once those were smelling good, I added in the sliced mushrooms. Then I added a bit of fresh arugala that I had left over from earlier dinners, as well as some baby spinach and allowed those to cook down. I removed them from the pan, but left some of the garlic and the thyme in the pan as I was going to use the same one to cook the shrimp. I put the vegetables aside, and added a little bit more butter to the pan. I then added the rest of the garlic and the chopped serrano pepper. I then added my special ingredient- just a teaspoon of the ginger spread. I allowed the spread to melt into the butter combination. I then added the shrimp and cooked them for two and a half minutes each side.

I decided to serve this creation layered- base of mashed potatoes, then the vegetables and then the shrimp on top. The shrimp were absolutely delicious- the pepper gave them a lot of heat, while the ginger added a second dimension of heat along with adding a really nice sweetness to offset it. The potatoes gave the heat a nice and creamy back drop, though they could have used some more salt. And the vegetables have been a staple of my cooking for the past couple of days so they were fantastc. I love the goodness of a nice portobello along with some spinach and arugala. Just a delicious mix.

I have to say- this is one for the books- Id entertain with this dish without a doubt.

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