New Orleans Barbecue Shrimp

By RoketJSquerl

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter (for the first stage of cooking; you’ll be adding more later)
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 - 3 cloves garlic, finely minced (or to taste)
• 1 teaspoon hot sauce
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper (or more to taste)
• 1 teaspoon Cajun or Creole seasoning
• 1 teaspoon sweet paprika
• 1 teaspoon fresh rosemary, minced (optional, but tasty)
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 3/4 cup white wine or dry vermouth
• 1 pound white shrimp, size 21/25, shelled and deveined but with the tail unshelled (thaw in the refrigerator overnight if frozen; see Notes)
• salt to taste
• 1 additional stick unsalted butter, chilled and cut into 8 tablespoon-sized pieces
• minced parsley or scallions for garnish
• French or Italian-style bread (for this dish, I like a somewhat softer crust, so I often use an Italian-style bread)

Details

Servings 1
Adapted from kitchenriffs.com

Preparation

Step 1

Assemble all the ingredients and do the prep work: Mince the garlic and rosemary, measure out the spices and other ingredients, have the shrimp at the ready, cut the stick of butter into chunks, wash and mince the parsley or scallion garnish.

Heat a 12-inch frying pan on a medium-hot stovetop. Once heated, add 2 tablespoons of butter and 1 tablespoon of olive oil. When these ingredients are hot (they’ll bubble and sizzle), add the garlic and cook for 2 minutes.

Add the hot sauce, ground pepper, Cajun/Creole seasoning, paprika, rosemary (if using), Worcestershire sauce, and white wine or dry vermouth. Stir to incorporate all ingredients, then simmer for 3 or 4 minutes.

Add the shrimp. Simmer the shrimp until they’re cooked through (about 4 minutes), flipping them once or twice during the process.

Reduce the heat to low, taste the sauce, and add salt to taste. Quickly stir in the stick of butter a tablespoon at a time, forming an emulsion.

Divide the cooked shrimp among deep serving bowls (such as soup dishes), then pour the sauce over them. Garnish with parsley or scallions, and serve with hearty bread. And lots of napkins.

I thaw frozen shrimp overnight in the refrigerator. For this dish, you can add them to the frying pan (Step 4) while the shrimp are still frozen, but they'll take about twice as long to cook.