Shrimp Creole
Last night was an old favorite: Shrimp Creole. The mixture of sautéed peppers, onions, shrimp and garlic with a slight kick from the cayenne pepper is simply delicious over a hot bowl of white rice.
The recipe below makes a lot, but my boyfriend likes to eat a lot so it works out well! It makes delicious leftovers and will leave your house smelling fabulous, but you could easily halve this recipe for less.
What you’ll need: butter, garlic, uncooked shrimp, yellow onions, a variety of bell peppers (I usually do red and green), a big can of diced tomatoes, cayenne pepper, white wine, salt and pepper.
Melt the butter in a large saute pan over medium-high heat, and cook the garlic, onions and peppers until soft, about 6-8 minutes. Stir occasionally and once the onions become translucent you’re good to go.
For this recipe, I usually buy a bag of whatever uncooked shrimp is on sale. Large or jumbo is best, because the shrimp cooks down a bit in the process, and that way you still have nice big pieces of shrimp at the end, but medium is okay, too. Defrost the shrimp ahead of time, and if it’s not already peeled, go ahead and peel and devein the shrimp. Next, add the shrimp, and then the whole can of tomatoes and stir everything around. For the tomatoes, I like to use the diced tomatoes that have basil and oregano added because it provides more flavor for the creole, but regular would be just fine, too.
Mix everything until combined. Season with salt and pepper. Add the cayenne pepper and wine, and stir everything up. Cook the mixture on medium heat until it flavors up and becomes fragrant, about 10 minutes.
Then turn the heat down to a simmer, and let the creole continue to cook for another 10-20 minutes or until you’re ready to serve! You can keep it at a super low level to keep the creole warm, too, but be careful not to over cook the shrimp. As it continues to cook, the flavors will start to combine and the juices from the tomatoes and wine should start to create a nice liquid which will be mighty delicious when you’re done. Taste to make sure everything is seasoned well. Serve over rice and enjoy. (Make sure you spoon extra liquid into the bowl, too. That’s the best part!)
I bet this would be delicious over some pasta or brown rice, too.
Shrimp Creole
- Total Time: 1 hour
- YIELDS 8 servings
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Instructions
- Cook the rice according to the package instructions. My favorite is the white Mahatma jasmine rice.
- Melt the butter in a large saute pan over medium-high heat, and cook the garlic, onions and peppers until soft, about 6 minutes.
- Add the bag of shrimp and the whole can of tomatoes and mix everything together.
- Add salt, black pepper, cayenne pepper and white wine, if you're using, and stir.
- Cook over medium heat until the creole flavors up and shrimp are cooked, about 10 minutes.
- Then turn it down to a simmer and continue to cook for another 10-20 minutes or until you're ready to serve.
- Serve over white rice and enjoy!
Hey Lauren. I can’t eat tomatoes due to a very acid-sensitive stomach, but this dish looks yummy all the same. I was wondering if you ever used a Jasmine rice in a white paper bag. It was Cache River, I think. But my grocery store (Publix) stopped carrying it. It was incredibly fragrant and cooked perfectly every time. I have tried other brands, but nothing is as good. Any thoughts?
Hi Joan, thanks for the comment!
I’m sorry to hear that you can’t eat tomatoes. It won’t be quite the same, but you could make this dish without the tomatoes, and add a little bit more wine, butter, oregano and basil to create a wine-buttery sauce and still enjoy this over rice.
As for the rice, I’ve never heard of that brand before, and I’m a fan of cooking rice stove-top. My favorite brand is Mahatma Jasmine rice (http://www.mahatmarice.com/products/4/ThaiJasmine.aspx) and it always comes out great!
Here’s how I make my rice: I add 1 cup of rice, 2 cups of water and a dash of salt to a medium saucepan. Bring the whole mixture up to a boil, give it a stir, put the cover on and reduce the heat to a simmer (Level 1-2) and let that cook for 15-20 minutes. You can check it at 15 and see if it’s all fluffy and absorbed the water. Depending on your stove it may be cooked or need a few more minutes. I find this to always work and be delicious!
I tried microwavable rice a few times (the Minute brand: http://www.minuterice.com/) but don’t find it to be nearly as fragrant or tasty.
Let me know if you have any other questions and how your next batch of rice comes out.
Thanks for reading! 🙂
Lauren
I just realized you never mentioned microwaveable rice! For some reason my mind thought that when I read the white paper bag. I still hope you’ll give the Mahatma a chance!
Joan! I have a surprise for you… Found your rice at Publix last night! When we get together to cook I will bring you a bag 🙂