Tonight’s dinnner was very tasty. Lemon juice and freshly ground pepper along with chives and a fabulous extra virgin olive oil made the shrimp. Buttermilk and sherry vinegar made the spinach salad. But the real kicker was the fried okra croutons. Perfectly golden, spicy with a Cajun kick.
For the shrimp:
3/4 lb peeled and deveined jumbo shrimp
juice of 1/2 lemon, zest from whole lemon
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced (I actually use my microplane grater to grate the garlic after I’m done zesting the lemon)
freshly ground black pepper and coarse salt
hearty dash of Old Bay seasoning and a pinch of red pepper flakes
1 tablespoon nice quality extra virgin olive oil and 2 tablespoons fresh chives
For the buttermilk dressing:
1 tablespoon sherry vinegar
1 tablespoon reduced-fat mayonaise (I use the new Kraft mayo made with
olive oil.)
1 tablespoon buttermilk
freshly ground black pepper
garlic salt to taste
1 teaspoon each stone ground mustard and honey
1 tablespoon or so extra virgin olive oil
For the okra:
a double handful of okra, sliced thick
3/4 cup buttermilk
cajun seasoning
1/2 cup each corn meal and all-purpose flour
oil for frying
For the Salad:
4 cups fresh spinach
12 grape tomatoes (I used a combination of yellow and red)
red onion slices
1. Marinade the shrimp for 30 minutes. Prepare a hot grill.
2. Mix dressing, adding oil after remaining ingredients are blended. (I confess that the amounts for the dressing are just estimates. I’ve never been much for measuring. Just mix it together until it is about the right consistency–a fairly thin version of bottled ranch dressing but with a creamier, olive oil infused flavor.)
3. Add okra to buttermilk. Let stand for 5 minutes. Then toss by the handful with the flour/cornmeal/spice mixture. Shake off excess and fry!
4. Grill shrimp over hot fire for 2-3 minutes per side, being careful not to overcook. Remove from grill and toss immediately with chives and olive oil.
5. Toss greens and tomatoes with dressing, top with red onion. Place shrimp on top and sprinkle liberally with okra.