Shrimp Creole

By KDHarmon

Ingredients

• 5 pounds jumbo Louisiana or wild American shrimp, peeled and deveined
• Salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh lemongrass
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 3 medium onions, diced
• 10 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
• 1 stalk celery, diced
• 1 bell pepper, red, green, or yellow, seeded and diced
• 5 pounds overripe Brandywine or other heirloom tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and chopped
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1 tablespoon crushed red pepper flakes
• Leaves from 2 branches fresh basil, chopped
• Leaves from 1 sprig fresh mint, chopped
• Sugar
• 6 –8 cups cooked Basic Louisiana White Rice

Details

Servings 12
Adapted from snooth.com

Preparation

Step 1

Put the shrimp into a large bowl, season with salt and pepper, then mix in the lemongrass. Heat ¼ cup of the oil in a large deep skillet over moderate heat. Add the shrimp, stirring and tossing them with a spatula. Sauté until they turn pink, about 2 minutes. Remove the shrimp from the pan and set aside while you make the sauce. 
Into the same skillet with the oil and shrimp juices, put the remaining ¼ cup oil and the onions, garlic, celery, and bell peppers and cook, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, for about 2 minutes. 
Add the tomatoes. Reduce the heat to medium-low and when the sauce comes to a simmer add the bay leaf, allspice, and red pepper flakes. Simmer for 10 minutes. 
Add the shrimp back to the skillet along with the basil and mint. Cook for a minute or two. Season with salt and pepper. If the sauce tastes too tart, add a little sugar to balance the flavor. Remove the bay leaf. Serve over steamed Louisiana white rice.