Tuesday, July 17, 2007

small in size, but big in flavour

On the days that Mony works late, it gives me a good opportunity to experiment in the kitchen. Tonight's meal was focused on shrimp and paprika. When we were in Spain a few weeks ago, we picked up 2 types of authentic paprika - one spicy and one smokey. Although both are types of paprika, they are far from being the same. One is hot with a slightly savoury note, while the other is smoked over coals to get that intense rich flavour.

I started dinner off by sauteeing garlic and shallots with some olive oil. As that slowly cooked, I washed and peeled some shrimp but kept the tails on (makes for a much nicer presentation). Sliced mushrooms were added to the pan and sauteed till soft. Once the aromatics were ready, a tsp each of both paprikas was added to the pan. The spices were cooked till fragrant, and at that point the peeled shrimp was dropped into the pan. White wine was added to loosen the little yummy brown bits and was left to reduce.

A tablespoon of cream and chopped parsley was added at the end for that finishing touch.
The result was rich and sinful. The broth was smooth and creamy while the shrimp was juicy and succulent. This is an easy recipe and quite elegant. You can eat it over rice or even better with just a chunk of warm crusty bread.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

this looks really good
i'll try it here in s.f.,ca
thanks for the great blog...

Annie Ruok said...

looks almost like a thai-style soup - very yummy looking! Nice to have exotic spices from faraway lands at your fingertips to create new dishes!